Melendi

Ramón Melendi Espina (January 21, 1979), mononymously known as Melendi, is a Spanish singer-songwriter from Oviedo. Known for his radio-friendly blend of rock, flamenco, and rumba, he initially dreamed of becoming a footballer and even played in the lower ranks of Real Oviedo before deciding to focus on his music career. After spending a few years performing with a group called El Bosque de Sherwood, he made his official solo debut in 2004 with the album Sin Noticias de Holanda, which rose to Number 11 on the Spanish charts. It was followed by his chart-topping sophomore effort Que el Cielo Espere Sentao (2005) and his major-label debut for Capitol Mientras No Cueste Trabajo in 2006. Preceded by the Number 1 hit single "Un Violinista en Tu Tejado," his fourth full-length Curiosa la Cara de Tu Padre saw the light in 2008 via EMI and rose to the top of the charts in Spain, obtaining platinum certification shortly after. Over the next few years, Melendi signed with Warner and released the platinum-selling albums Volvamos a Empezar (2010), Lágrimas Desordenadas (2012), Un Alumno Más (2014), and the live concert Directo a Septiembre (2015), recorded at Madrid's Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas. In 2017, he scored one of the biggest hits of his career with "Destino o Casualidad," a collaboration with country pop act Ha*Ash from his 2016 album Quítate las Gafas that was certified platinum in both Spain and Mexico. His reputation as a bona fide hitmaker was solidified in the following years thanks to commercial blockbusters such as Ahora (2018), 10:20:40 (2019), and Likes y Cicatrices (2021), all of which achieved pole position in his native Spain.