Name: Luis Miguel Gallego Basteri

Age: 36

Occupation: Pop singer

Place of Residence: Acapulco, Mexico

Bio: From Wikipedia: ..”a Mexican pop singer best known for his crooning vocals and romantic ballads. He has been the most popular singer in Latin America since the late 1980’s. He is commonly referred to as El Sol (”The Sun”) and is also nicknamed “El Rey” (The King), Luismi, Micky, “El Idolo” and “Luismi Rey.”

Luis Miguel has won some of the most prestigious music awards, such as: nine Grammys (5 Grammys, 4 Latin Grammys); a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at the age of 26 and three World Music Awards. Luis Miguel holds the record as the best-selling living performing Latin artist in history. Luis Miguel has sold over 55 million albums worldwide and he is the best selling Spanish-language artist in the history of the United States, Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. Luis Miguel holds the record for the artist with the most #1 singles in the history of Billboard charts Hot Latin Tracks.”

Why he’s loved: Some love his unusual singing style, others because they consider him a hunk, and others because like other artists (Lucerito, Paulina Rubio, Thalia) Mexico (and other Latin American countries) has watched him grow up before its eyes. From a child star to an icon, Luismi belongs to Mexico, is a son of Mexico — even though he was technically born in Puerto Rico.

Why he’s hated: For butchering some of Mexico’s immortal bolero compositions with his pop stylings, for being “cheesy”, his impossible tan, for avoiding the press like the plague.

Why he’s influential: Luismi is influential because he was one of Mexico’s first international pop stars, conquering the hearts of fans beyond his “native” Mexico. Luis Miguel continues, even as a recluse, to pull in the dollars by selling millions of records and constantly selling out stadiums.

VOTE for Luis Miguel as VL’s Most Influential Latino 2006.