Charlie Zaa

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Carlos Alberto Sánchez (born 1974), better known in the entertainment world as Charlie Zaa, is a Colombian singer who has gained fame across Latin America and among Hispanics in the United States. Zaa is the son of Alberto Sánchez, who is a famous singer in Colombia and who also uses the last name Zaa as an artistic last name. Charlie Zaa has actually noted in public that his biggest musical influences were his father, Julio Jaramillo and Olimpo Cardenas. Zaa has also publicly disclosed his belief in the Christian religion.

Zaa was a singer with two famous Colombian salsa orchestras: "Grupo Niche" and "Guayacán". When he launched his career as a solo artist, he decided to switch to the bolero rhythym. This career decision was made during the middle 1990s, and Zaa became an instant teen idol in Latin America. At that same time, he also became paparazzi fodder, with his photos coming out in a large number of magazines. Zaa was also featured on the covers of many of these magazines.

Since becoming a solo singer, Zaa has also received much television covering, being featured in a large number of important television shows.

On July 23, 2004, Zaa suffered a severe abdominal pain as he was about to begin a concert in Ponce, Puerto Rico. He could not perform that day, having to be taken to a local hospital. Zaa was then flown to Miami, Florida, where he remained hospitalized until he was diagnosed with having a kidney condition. Soon after, his personal doctor corrected the problem in a surgery performed in his native Colombia.

Charlie Zaa has recorded over 10 CD's since launching his career as a solo artist. His CD "Sentimientos", in which he sings some past hit songs, sold 500,000 copies in Colombia, and 50,000 copies in Ecuador. Those numbers made the CD be considered a hit in both countries, considering the size of their population.