Manuel Carrasco

Manuel Carrasco Galloso (January 15, 1981) is a Spanish pop singer who jumped to fame as the runner-up on the second season of reality talent competition Operación Triunfo. Born in the seaside town of Isla Cristina, he began playing guitar at the age of 11 and took his first steps in music by participating in local carnival groups. In 2002, after a successful audition, a 21-year-old Manuel Carrasco made his way to Operación Triunfo's grand finale, coming in second after Ainhoa Cantalapiedra. As one of the show's Top 3 contestants, he also competed to represent Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 but the chance was finally won by fellow OT alumni Beth. Quiéreme, his flamenco-tinged studio debut, was released in 2003 to great commercial acclaim, selling over 200,000 copies. This success was followed by a victory at the 2004 Festival Mundial de la Canción with the song "Dibujar Tu Olvido" and a gold-selling eponymous album that finished cementing his popularity among Spanish audiences. From there on, all of his subsequent releases have either gone gold or platinum in Spain, with his albums Bailar el Viento (2015) and La Cruz del Mapa (2018) reaching quintuple platinum status. In 2022, his single "Fue" peaked at Number 25 on the Spanish Singles Chart.