Sergio Blass
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Sergio Blass (born February 3, 1972 in Gainesville, Florida) is a Puerto Rican actor and singer who has the distinction of being the only singer to have been a member of both Los Chicos and Menudo, Puerto Rico's (and arguably Latin America's) most successful boy bands of the early 1980s.
[edit] Biography
Sergio Blass, the son of Puerto Rican immigrants, moved to Puerto Rico from Florida very early in his life. Blass decided since he was small to become famous in the show business world. In part because of his own determination, Blass was taken by his parents to multiple auditions, and he was chosen to play a character in a theater adaptation of "Pinocho".
Blass became active in television commercials at the time, recording various TV ads for different Puerto Rican brands. He would soon be chosen as a member of "Concepto Juvenil", a well known boy band among Puerto Rican girls, but also a group that was considered levels below both Los Chicos and Menudo, both among their fans and Puerto Rican music critics.
Blass would later join Chayanne and Tony Ocasio, among others, in Los Chicos. Blass stayed in Los Chicos for a short period of time, but he remained active in the Puerto Rican music world after leaving that band.
Blass joined Menudo in January 1986, when he substituted Roy Rossello, nephew of future Puerto Rican Governor Pedro Rossello.. During his tenure as a member of Menudo, Blass was known as Sergio Gonzalez; he changed his last name to Blass after leaving Menudo. As a member of Menudo, Sergio Gonzalez Ojeda eventually met fellow member and friend Ruben Gomez; the pair have maintained their friendship since.
It could be argued that, just like Ricky Melendez had done one generation of Menudos before, Blass became "the face" of the late 1980s version of Menudo, especially after Martin left the band. Menudo was going through a transitional period when Blass joined, as Edgardo Diaz wanted fans to recognize the band as more of a hard rock band instead of the pop rock group that fans had identified with until then. Blass, much like Rene Farrait during the early 1980s, was dubbed as "the rocker" by band management, fitting with the group's new image.
Blass went on to record three CD's as a member of Menudo, including Sons of Rock, Primero lo Primero (What Comes First Comes First) and Los Ultimos Heroes. He also made his telenovela debut, acting with the group in Argentina's Por Siempre Amigos (Friends Forever), and in Venezuela's Los Ultimos Heroes, the latter named after Menudo's hit album. During his tenure as a member of Menudo, Blass became a teen idol in Puerto Rico, across Latin America and among Hispanic girls in the United States.
In November (1990) Blass and Ruben Gomez were arrested at Miami International Airport for allegedly carrying drugs among their personal belongings, after arriving there for a tour stop. Later on, Blass participated in a much less successful band, Amnezzia.
In 1992, Blass was credited as "Sergio Blass" and starred in the hit Mexican telenovela, Agujetas de Color de Rosa (Pink Shoelaces). The fact that he was credited as Sergio Blass surprised many of his fans, who had thought all along that his real name was "Sergio Gonzalez". He later explained that he had used the last name Gonzalez when with Menudo to honor his mother, but that his real name was Sergio Blass.
In 1994, Blass released his first solo CD, the self titled Sergio, where he included a Spanish version of a 1980s hit, The Police's "Every Breath You Take". Blass himself admitted that the album sounded like a heavy metal production.
In 1996, Blass launched his second album, titled Sueno Salvaje (Savage Dream). In 1998, Blass made what has been, so far, his last solo album, Ayudame a Ser Tuyo (Help me be Yours).
As of 2005, Blass' last known job was as a member of the reunion group, "Los Ultimos Heroes", which also included former Menudo Rawy, another one of Sergio's bandmates during his period as a Menudo.
