Jorge Villamizar (born October 14, 1970 in Montería, Córdoba) is a Colombian musician; singer and composer, leader of the band Bacilos, and one of the most representative Latin American singers. He has lived in Miami since 1992.[1]
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Jorge Villamizar moved to Ecuador with his family when he was 10 years old. His early musical influences included The Beatles and folk music from the Andean region. He was taught to play the guitar by his mother. At the age of 18 he returned to Colombia and enrolled in the Naval school in Cartagena. In interviews he has acknowledged that he used his time in the navy to write songs as a means of distraction from the boredom and solitude of life in the navy. Later he went to London where he stayed for two years studying Political Science before returning to Miami for further study. While living in London he was discovered by Robin Jones who invited him to play in the band King Salsa. It was during his free time in Miami that Bacilos was started.
Bacilos very quickly became a success on the local music circuit in Miami. Warner Music Latina signed Bacilos to contract after listening to their independently produced album "Madera". Bacilos played their last concert at the Viña Del Mar music festival in February 2007.
According to the June 2008 issue of People en Español, the group Bacilos broke up in 2007 and Jorge Villamizar went on to record his first solo CD "Jorge Villamizar". Following the break-up of Bacilos, Jorge spent time traveling in Paris, Bogotá, Cartagena and Miami. The first single from his new solo album is called "Ninguna" and has been successful in the charts. The album went on sale on May 20, 2008.
"Alex, Jorge y Lena" (2010)
With this compilation project, Jorge collaborated with Spanish singer Alex Ubago and the Cuba's Lena forming this new project titled "Alex, Jorge y Lena". Their first single was "Estar Contigo." In 2011 the trio was nominated for a Premio Lo Nuestro for Best Breakout Group or Duo. They also performed "Estar Contigo" during the ceremony.
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Jorge Villamizar is a successful composer having written songs for artists such as Paulina Rubio, Julieta Venegas and Marc Anthony.
Bacilos won a Grammy in 2002 for Best Latin Pop Album (for "Caraluna"). They won three Latin Grammys: Best Pop album in 2005 (for "Sin Vergüenza") and Best Pop Album in 2003 (for "Caraluna") as well as Best Tropical song in 2003 (for "Mi Primer Millon" which came from the album Caraluna).