Elvis Crespo Díaz (born July 30, 1971) is an American merengue singer. He has won multiple awards, including a

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

and a

Latin Grammy Award The Latin Grammy Awards (stylized as Latin GRAMMYs) are awards presented by the Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from any ...

merengue music Merengue is a type of music and Merengue (dance), dance originating in present-day Dominican Republic which has become a very popular genre throughout Latin America, and also in several major cities in the United States with Latino communities. ...

Early years

Crespo was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and was named "Elvis" after

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

. He was raised in the city of Guaynabo,

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, where he spent his childhood and adolescent years.

Musical career

He first gained fame in the mid-90s when he joined Grupo Mania, in Puerto Rico. Eventually he decided to go solo in 1998. His debut album, Suavemente, was a hit both in Latin America and in the US. The single " Suavemente" was a huge hit and eventually helped him earn the Best Male Tropical/Salsa Album of the Year from Billboard magazine. His album went platinum in the Venezuelan and Central American markets and gold in Chile. Released in 1998, Crespo's debut also earned a gold album for sales of over 500,000 copies in the first year after its release in the United States. "Suavemente" set a record for holding the top position on Billboard's Hot Latin Tracks chart for six weeks. Part of the song's success was its unexpected crossover appeal to English-speaking listeners, particularly in Miami and New York." His album was mostly merengue influenced, but his follow-up albums would venture from these roots eventually. ''Wow Flash!'' is Elvis Crespo's third solo recording for

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

. Elvis Crespo's latest album, ''Regresó el Jefe'', went on sale on 5 June 2007, with its first single being "La Foto Se Me Borró." He dedicated this album to his niece, Wilmarie Agosto Crespo, who died in a car accident on March 28, 2007. In 2016 Elvis was featured on Deorro's number one hit song "Bailar" which was featured on a

Target Corporation Target Corporation is an American retail corporation that operates a chain of discount department stores and hypermarkets, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the seventh-largest retailer in the United States, and a component of th ...

Commercial.

Personal life

On March 16, 2009, Crespo married his manager, Maribel Vega, in Puerto Rico. In December 2024, after 15 years of marriage, Elvis Crespo announced his divorce from Maribel Vega. The singer expressed that this chapter of his life was full of learning and highlighted his daughter Génesis as a special blessing. Crespo claimed to be focused on his music and creating new experiences for his followers. Crespo was investigated by the

Miami-Dade Police Department The Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office (MDSO), formerly known as the Dade County Sheriff's Office (1836–1957), Dade County Public Safety Department (1957–1981), Metro-Dade Police Department (1981–1997), and Miami-Dade Police Department (1997� ...

and the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

(FBI) after he allegedly performed a sex act and exposed himself in view of other passengers aboard an airplane flight from

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Texas to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, Florida on March 26, 2009. He was interviewed upon his arrival but was not arrested and no charges were filed. When asked by police at the airport about the accusation, Crespo reportedly said "I don’t recall doing that". On July 10, 2013, an intoxicated Crespo was allegedly expelled from a casino in Isla Verde, Puerto Rico for harassing a female employee, before he later became involved in a physical confrontation with local restaurant owner Alexander de Jesús after he attempted to steal a bottle of alcohol from his restaurant. De Jesús subsequently filed a complaint against Crespo, opening a police investigation. In a December 2013 interview with '' Al Rojo Vivo'', Crespo addressed both incidents, saying that he was ashamed, and that his behavior stemmed from his struggles with alcohol and drug addiction.

Discography

Studio albums * 1998: '' Suavemente'' * 1999: '' Píntame'' * 1999: '' The Remixes'' * 2000: '' Wow Flash!'' * 2002: '' Urbano'' * 2004: '' Saboréalo'' * 2007: '' Regresó el Jefe'' * 2010: '' Indestructible'' * 2012: '' Los Monsters'' * 2013: ''One Flag'' * 2015: ''Tatuaje'' * 2018: '' Diomedizao'' * 2021: ''Regresó el Jefe 2.0'' * 2021: ''Multitudes'' * 2025: ''Poeta Herio''

Awards

This is a list of awards and nominations of Puerto Rican merengue artist Elvis Crespo. Here are some of the awards he has won during his musical career.

Premio Lo Nuestro

1999 *Tropical: Album of the Year (Suavemente) *Tropical: Male Artist of the Year *Tropical: Best New Artist *Tropical: Song of the Year (Suavemente) 2000 *Tropical: Album of the Year (Pintame) *Tropical: Male Artist of the Year *Tropical: Song of the Year (Pintame) 2001 *Merengue: Artist of the Year *People Choice Awards: Tropical Artist of the Year 2003 *Merengue: Artist of the Year 2005 *Merengue: Artist of the Year 2012 *Merengue: Artist of the Year

Grammy Awards

1999 *Best Merengue Performance (Pintame)

Latin Grammys

2005 *Best Merengue Album (Saborealo)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crespo, Elvis 1971 births Living people American merengue musicians American musicians of Puerto Rican descent Grammy Award winners Latin Grammy Award winners Latin music songwriters Machete Music artists Merengue musicians People from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico Sony Discos artists 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers