Ismael Serrano

Ismael Serrano was born on 9 March 1974 in the Vallecas neighbourhood of Madrid and is one of the most important Spanish singer-songwriters of his generation. After studying Physics at the Complutense University of Madrid, he turned to music and started performing in cafés around the city in the early 1990s. In 1997 he signed with Polygram (now Universal) and released his debut album *Atrapados en Azul*, whose songs "Papá cuéntame otra vez" and "Amo tanto la vida" became anthems for a generation across Spain and Latin America, earning him a Best New Artist nomination at the SGAE Music Awards. To date he has released more than eleven studio albums, including *La traición de Wendy* (2002), *Naves ardiendo más allá de Orión* (2005), and his 13th studio album *La Llamada* (Sony Music), which blends trova, bachata, ranchera and Uruguayan candombe. His career has brought him a Latin Grammy nomination (2001, Best Sound Engineering) and a Goya nomination for Best Original Song. Influenced by Joaquín Sabina, Joan Manuel Serrat and Cuban trovador Silvio Rodríguez, he weaves socially charged lyrics with poetic depth. His live shows — often stripped back to guitar and voice — carry a strong theatrical quality and have taken him to London, Dublin, Berlin, Brussels and Buenos Aires.