Ricky Martin - the journey to becoming a "real estate tycoon" from a World Cup hit

Best World Cup Songs of All Time

Since its release in 1998, The Cup of Life has been considered by many music sites to be the best World Cup song of all time. The song's Spanish title is La Copa de la Vida.

Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin (52 years old) recorded this song for his fourth album, Vuelve (1998). Martin and his team composed this song after being commissioned by FIFA to write the theme song for the 1998 World Cup held in France.

The lyrics of The Cup of Life carry a positive message about football. The song has a lively melody, short sentences, fast and strong rhythm, expressing the rhythm of an exciting football match.

Ricky Martin performed the song at the closing ceremony of the 1998 World Cup at the Stade de France stadium in France. The performance was watched by over a billion television viewers. It is considered an important moment in the history of Latin pop music.

Ricky Martin performed at the 1998 World Cup closing ceremony (left) and at the 1999 Grammy Awards (right) (Photo: Billboard).

After his explosive performance at the 1998 World Cup, Ricky Martin went on to appear at the 1999 Grammy Awards to perform The Cup of Life .

The vibrant performance style, radiant face and hot hip swings have created the famous features of Ricky Martin. The 1998 World Cup ended, but The Cup of Life became a golden mark, helping to breathe lasting life into the male singer's singing career until today.

In Vietnam, many audiences have known the melody of The Cup of Life by heart since its release. Television stations often replay this song on the sidelines of football matches, or incorporate it into sports news summarizing beautiful goals.

In the stadium, the hit song is often played to warm up the atmosphere with the familiar chant "Go, go, go! Ale, ale, ale!". Many people also consider it a familiar melody of a vibrant, bustling youth.

MV "The Cup of Life" performed by Ricky Martin ( Video : Ricky Martin/YouTube).

The enduring vitality of a hit song over 25 years

When a FIFA representative contacted Ricky Martin to write a song, his first feeling was... anxiety. He said: "It was a very stressful challenge for me, but I also saw in it a strong opportunity to promote my career, so I boldly accepted."

Martin then worked with songwriters KCPorter, Robi Rosa and Desmond Child to co-write the song. "From the moment we set out on this mission together, we saw it as a global strategic mission to bring Latin music to the world, to get people all over the world dancing and singing along," Martin recalls.

Upon its release, The Cup of Life received positive feedback from music critics for its energetic melody and lyrics.

The song has appeared on the music charts of more than 60 countries, reaching the top position in 30 countries. It is the most successful World Cup song on the international music charts.

The image of Martin wearing leather pants, smiling brightly and performing an energetic performance on stage at the 1999 Grammy Awards continues to be a moment that marks the explosion of Latin pop music in the late 1990s.

Ricky Martin now (Photo: GQ).

The Cup of Life is credited with changing the status of Latin music in the international music market. More than 25 years after its release, The Cup of Life 's appeal is still impressive. The song is still regularly played on the sidelines of football tournaments.

Thanks to the success of his hit, Ricky Martin was dubbed the "king of World Cup songs" or "king of Latin pop". Before The Cup of Life , World Cup theme songs often represented the cultural identity and music of the host country.

But since the 1998 World Cup, the success of The Cup of Life has broken that tradition. After that, World Cup songs have been aimed at a global audience. The Cup of Life has become an ideal but also very difficult model to surpass for World Cup song writers.

The Cup of Life connected people all over the world, regardless of whether the listener was a diehard soccer fan or not. Ricky Martin is considered the first music star to perform a proper World Cup theme song. The song was well received by the international public and is still loved today.

The rich life of "real estate tycoon" Ricky Martin

When The Cup of Life was released, Ricky Martin was not yet a singer known to the world public. After becoming an international star with a hit, Ricky Martin immediately became an icon of Latin pop. Since then, his career has taken a new turn.

Ricky Martin is currently single (Photo: GQ).

In fact, after this hit, Martin did not have such spectacular success again. He also paused releasing a new album since 2015, but the attraction associated with the hit The Cup of Life has allowed him to regularly tour since 1998 until now.

The song always appears in the list of songs Martin performs every time he goes on tour. With the money he earns, Martin becomes a "real estate tycoon" in the US. He is very good at buying and selling villas, thereby earning millions of dollars in profit after each transaction.

Immediately after the success of The Cup of Life , Martin became known as a savvy real estate investor in the US. In 2001, he bought a villa in Miami Beach for $6.4 million. Four years later, he sold it for $10.6 million.

In 2004, he bought a mansion in Los Angeles for $11.9 million. Two years later, he sold it for $15 million... Just like that, Martin "made a fortune" in real estate. Currently, Martin also owns real estate in many countries such as Australia, Puerto Rico, Brazil...

More than 25 years after the golden milestone called The Cup of Life , Martin is still "living well", although his performance and artistic creativity are no longer as before. Martin's income in recent years mainly comes from tours and real estate business.

Today, at the age of 52, Martin has built a fortune of about 130 million USD.

Ricky Martin introduces his private home with his partner Jwan Yosef when they were still together (Video: Architectural Digest).

In his personal life, in 2008, Martin became a father of two sons (born via surrogacy). In 2010, Martin came out as gay. He then dated Puerto Rican economist Carlos González Abella from 2010 to 2014.

From 2017 to 2023, Martin was with his partner Jwan Yosef and had two more children, a boy and a girl.

Martin said that at this stage, he is single and lives with his four children in a large villa in Beverly Hills, California, USA. For now, the male singer wants to prioritize raising his children.

According to GQ/Billboard

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giai-tri/ricky-martin-hanh-trinh-thanh-ong-trum-nha-dat-tu-mot-ban-hit-world-cup-20240613160548637.htm