Me

liked it. Today there are moments when it is hard for me to find even a moment of peace and tranquillity to go sit in a park or play a game of pool with my friends. People recognize me, and this means I have to sacrifice certain things that for other people are normal: like eating at a restaurant, going for a walk, strolling on the beach. . . . Not because I don’t want to do them, but because in doing them I don’t find the peace and tranquillity I seek. And even so, I do them anyway, but I can never be anonymous. Anonymity is something I oftentimes miss, but the truth is that fame has brought me so many other blessings that I have no complaints; at the end of the day, it is a part of my work, and it is therefore something I enjoy. Most people are kind and friendly, and most of them respect my right to privacy. It always feels good to hear someone tell me that I mean something to them, whether it’s because one of my songs helped them find love or because they enjoyed one of my concerts. That is all very important to me because it is the reason why I do what I do: I like giving people a little bit of joy and I enjoy myself in the process.
    Fame is a curious phenomenon. When you have it, there is so much you can do with it. It is not just about people recognizing you in the street or about the photographers taking pictures of you. Fame is also a tool that, if you know how to handle it well, can serve to reach millions and millions of people to convey a message, by communicating and connecting with them. That is something I try not to forget. Of course, a lot of sacrifices must be made for the sake of fame, on both a personal and a professional level, but at the end of the day, what matters is knowing how to use it for what’s truly important.

MENUDO
    MY FATHER ONCE told me: “I curse the day you got into Menudo. That day I lost my son.”
    He was absolutely right. To a certain extent, he lost his son and I lost my father.
    In those days it was hard to know what was coming. We could not even begin to imagine what lay ahead. I only saw the countless opportunities, the thousands of amazing things that still awaited me, and the great path that was opening up before me. No boy—not even when he is a grown man—can discern what will happen when his life’s path is altered.
    It was impossible to understand how much it was going to take for me to reach what I wanted. At that moment, all I knew was that I longed for it with all of my being—my heart and my soul. I had worked hard with great effort and determination and I knew how far I wanted to go. Being onstage was my dream and I was willing to do whatever it took to get there. In this sense, Menudo was an obsession—it was all I could think about. Between the ages of ten and twelve, I could barely sleep just thinking about how badly I wanted it.
    When it finally came, it ceased to be a dream and became my everyday reality. It was a moment that would determine the course of my life.
    What it gave me was magnificent—experiences and emotions that deeply marked me and made me a better person. What it cost me was my childhood. But I gained invaluable lessons through what I learned and what I lost. And just as I would never want to lose any of the beautiful memories I have from those years, I also don’t want to forget some of the troubles I endured. Difficult times gave me the ability to appreciate joyful ones, and they also helped to strengthen me as a man. It’s just like everything else in life: If it weren’t for the bad things in life, we would never be able to appreciate the good ones.
    When I was young, my mother always said: “My son, in this life everything is possible. But you have to know how to do it.” She said it because she knows me well; she knew that back then I wanted everything, and in those days everything was Menudo.
    I drove my father crazy to take me to the auditions. I would plead with him: “Take me! Take me! Take me!” I would beg him in every possible way imaginable, and begged so much that I don’t know how he didn’t throw me off a cliff. Until finally one day he said: “All right, let’s go.”
    I was so happy.
    This was 1983. Today it is hard to understand what Menudo was at that time, but the truth is it was unlike anything else out there. I would even dare to say that to this day it remains a unique episode in the history of music. Before there were any bands like New Edition, the Back-street Boys, New Kids on the Block,