Gerardo

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Gerardo or "la Pelota" (born Gerardo Mejía on April 16, 1965) is a rapper and singer who later became a recording industry executive. Born in Guayaquil, Ecuador,^[1] he has based his career in Los Angeles, California since his family moved to Glendale, California, when he was 12 years old. He became known for his bandana, skintight jeans and shirtless torso. He sometimes refers to himself as the "Latin Elvis" or the "Latin Frank Sinatra".^[2]

1 As a performer
2 Recent times
3 Discography
4 Notes
5 External links

[edit] As a performer

Gerardo's first major appearance in show business was as Ricky in the 1987 feature film Can't Buy Me Love.^[1] He was later cast as the character Bird in the 1988 film Colors, about South Central Los Angeles gang violence. This was also the first time his dance skills were showcased, in one of the party scenes; however, he did not sing at any point in the film.

His hit single "Rico Suave" appeared on his 1991 debut album, Mo' Ritmo. The album peaked at #36 on the Billboard 200 chart in June 1991; the single had peaked at #7 in April. This song, as well as some others of Gerardo's, include verses with lines in both English and Spanish. The popularity of the song has made Gerardo known as a one-hit wonder. In 2005 VH1 voted "Rico Suave" #11 of the "Top 50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs, Ever" and #9 of the "100 Greatest One Hit Wonders." "Weird Al" Yankovic parodied "Rico Suave" as "Taco Grande". Another important hit in Latin America was Ven Michu Michu.

[edit] Recent times

Now an A&R executive at Interscope Records, Gerardo was responsible for bringing Enrique Iglesias to the United States in 1998. He also signed rapper Bubba Sparxxx.^[2].