Franco de Vita

Venezuelan singer-songwriter Franco de Vita’s career began with a wedding/party band called Corpus, which played salsa, merengue, and other tropical sounds around Caracas. ∙ He first found fame across Latin America in 1986, when his soaring ballad “Solo Importas Tú” was used as the theme song for the telenovela La Dama de Rosa. ∙ De Vita has made the Billboard Latin charts dozens of times, and he scored his first No. 1 hit in 1991 with the gospel-tinged “No Basta,” from his LP Extranjero. ∙ Aside from his own music, de Vita has also penned songs for such artists as Ricky Martin, Ana Belén, Luis Fonsi, and Chayanne. ∙ In 2007, he guested on Wisin & Yandel’s “Oye Dónde Está el Amor”—reprising the chorus of his own “Dónde Está el Amor”—his first of several collaborations with the famed reggaeton duo. ∙ Joining Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, and Christina Aguilera, de Vita sang “The Good Life” with Tony Bennett on his Latin-themed 2012 album, Viva Duets. ∙ Among his many awards and accolades are six Latin Grammy nominations (with two wins) and a 2014 induction into the Billboard Latin Music Hall of Fame.