Maelo Ruiz

The Puerto Rican salsa singer Maelo Ruiz is actually a New Yorker by birth, having moved from the USA to Puerto Rico with his parents at the age of four. He was born Ismael Ruiz Hernández in 1966 and after growing up in Puerto Rico began singing when he was a teenager.

His big break came at the age of 19 when band leader Pedro Conga selected him as the lead vocalist of his ensemble, Pedro Conga and His International Orchestra. Hernández went on to record four albums with the band and in doing so became a popular and well-known figure in Puerto Rico. His seven-year tenure with Pedro Conga's band resulted in four albums and numerous hit singles such as 'No Te Quites La Ropa', 'Atrévete' and 'Vicio'.

Since leaving Conga's Orchestra Hernández has forged a successful career both as a backing vocalist for the salsa artist Willie González and also as a solo singer in his own right. In 2007 Hernández was nominated for a Latin Grammy for the album 'Puro Corazón'.