| Abraham Mateo | |
|---|---|
Mateo at benefit concert in San Fernando, Cádiz on 17 April 2010 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Abraham Mateo Chamorro |
| Born | 25 August 1998 San Fernando, Cádiz, Spain |
| Origin | Cadíz, Spain |
| Genres | Latin pop, pop |
| Occupations | Singer, Songwriter, Actor |
| Instruments | Vocals, Piano, Guitar |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Labels | EMI Music Spain (2009-present) |
| Website | abraham-mateo.com |
Abraham Mateo is a Spanish teen actor and pop singer,[1] who is currently signed to the record label EMI Music Spain. [2]
Mateo was discovered in 2009, when he was ten, by executives of EMI Music Spain, who happened across his performances in the television show Menuda Noche on the Canal Sur TV of Andalucia, Spain. His self-titled debut album, Abraham Mateo, [3] was released in Spain in December 2009. The album was produced by the Spanish composer and producer Jacobo Calderon, who has worked before with internationally recognized Latin singers such as Raphael, David Bisbal, and Luis Fonsi.[4] Mateo is currently working on his second studio album, which is expected to be released sometime in 2012.[5]
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Abraham Mateo was born to Antonio Mateo and Susana Chamorro. He has an older brother, Tony, who also plays music. In 2006, when he was seven, he sang for the first time in public at the regional music competition for children "Veo Veo" organized by the Teresa Rabal Foundation in Andalucia, being awarded with a special mention of the jury.[6] Two years later, he won the revelation award at the national music contest held in Murcia being selected to represent Spain at the "Veo veo" international competition.[7]
In 2005, Mateo auditioned for the television show "Menuda Noche" on the Canal Sur TV of Andalucia but was not cast for the show. [8] Two years later, he attended "Menuda Noche" to support his older brother Tony Mateo, who has been chosen to perform in the show, but Abraham was surprised by the show's presenter Juan y Medio and sang in place of his brother. [9] [10]
Since then, Abraham Mateo has been a frequent guest of "Menuda Noche" singing in front of internationally recognized Latin singers such as Raphael,[11] David Bisbal,[12] David Bustamante, [13] and Juan Luis Guerra,[14] who have praised his vocal abilities and stage presence. Raphael said about him: "That's singing without imitating anyone! You are a great singer!", David Bustamante: "You sing like the angels! Impressive! I think he is unique!", and David Bisbal: "I have no words! He has a wonderful technique, a very nice voice and a nice tessitura! I predict a huge success!".[15][16][17]
Since his first appearances in "Menuda Noche", a friend of Mateo's family posted in YouTube videos of his performances. Early 2009, when he was ten, he signed a contract with EMI Music Spain and released on December 4 of the same year his debut album, recorded in Madrid, under the title Abraham Mateo.[3][18][19] It was digitally released on 27 November 2009. [20]
The album, produced by Jacobo Calderon and Jose Luis de la Peña, contains twelve songs, seven of them were composed by Calderon himself and four tracks are covers of popular Latin songs such as Raphael's "Cuando Tu No Estas" ("When You Are Not Here"), Alejandro Sanz's "Los Dos Cogidos de la Mano" ("The Two Holding Hands"), Laura Pausini's "La Soledad" ("La Solitudine/The Loneliness") and Jaci Velasquez's "Imaginame Sin Ti" ("Imagine Me Without You"). The album includes a duet with the French teen singer Caroline Costa, the runner-up in the 2008 edition of the television contest Incroyable Talent, the French version of America's Got Talent. Abraham and Caroline recorded for the album a Spanish version of Badfinger's "Without You", the song has also been covered with great success by Mariah Carey. To promote the album, Mateo has toured through several cities in Spain and performed in many Spanish radio and television shows, including the popular television programs Mas Que Baile, Tu Si Que Vales, The Show of Maria Teresa Campos, and the Christmas Eve Special of the Telecinco channel. He was also invited to perform at the International Carnival Maspalomas in Gran Canaria.
Mateo began to record songs in English during the summer of 2010, performing "I Surrender" by Celine Dion, "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston, "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars, "Imagine" by John Lennon, and "Mistletoe" by Justin Bieber. In summer 2011, he released an Italian version of the classical song Adagio by Lara Fabian, hist first song in Italian.[21] Shortly after releasing this song, he was invited to perform at a TV show presented by the Italian singer Rafaela Carra on the Italian channel Canale 5. On 29 November 2011, Mateo released a demo of "Desde que te fuiste" (Since You Went Away), a latin dance song written by him and one of the tracks he is working on for his upcoming album on EMI Music Spain. [22]. It was released on iTunes on 9 December 2011.
Abraham Mateo and his older brother Tony acted in the TV movies Días Sin Luz (2009) and Raphael (2010) both produced by Antena 3 Films and broadcasted by the Spanish television channel Antena 3.[23][24][25] In the biopic Raphael, Abraham and Tony portrayed the worldwide acclaimed Spanish singer Raphael in the early years of his career and sang some of the vocal tracks.
On 6 December 2011, the canadian-polish producer and director Chris Prochownik announced that Mateo will have a role in the film "Journey's End" about the tragedy suffered by several children at the Auschwitz concentration camp during the Second World War. Mateo will sing several songs for the soundtrack of this film. [26]
Abraham Mateo (2009)
| Year | Song | Producer |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Vuelve conmigo | EMI Music Spain |
| 2009 | Without you (duet with Caroline Costa) | EMI Music Spain |
| 2010 | I surrender | RC studio |
| 2011 | I have nothing | RC studio |
| 2011 | Adagio | Dani Ruiz |
| 2011 | Desde que te fuiste | Dani Ruiz |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Días sin Luz | Abraham | TV Movie |
| 2010 | Raphael | Raphael (child) | TV Movie |
| 2012 | Journey's End | Film |