# Draco Rosa
**Draco Rosa** (born Robert Edward Rosa Suárez, 1969) is a Puerto Rican-American singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist known for his experimental rock en español recordings and for co-writing and co-producing [Ricky Martin](https://www.edgepedia.org/ricky-martin)'s biggest hits, including "Livin' La Vida Loca" and "María".[1](https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/interpreter/draco-rosa/1012590) • [2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) A former member of the boy band [Menudo](https://www.edgepedia.org/menudo-group), he built a solo career that moves between hard rock, Latin funk, progressive pop, and ambient experimentation, and he has won a Grammy and multiple Latin Grammy awards.[3](https://www.iheart.com/artist/draco-rosa-540914/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | Robert Edward Rosa Suárez, 1969, Long Island, New York; grew up in Peñuelas, Puerto Rico[1](https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/interpreter/draco-rosa/1012590) |
| Menudo | Member of the Puerto Rican boy band from 1984 to 1987, replacing Johnny Lozada[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [4](https://menudo.fandom.com/es/wiki/Robby_Rosa) |
| Signature songwriting | Co-wrote and co-produced Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca" (1999), which drew three Grammy nominations including Record of the Year; also wrote "María" and "La Copa de la Vida"[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [5](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1999/BB-1999-07-24.pdf) |
| Landmark solo albums | Frío (1994), Vagabundo (1996), Mad Love (2004), Vida (2013), Monte Sagrado (2018)[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) |
| Illness and return | Diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2011, with a relapse seven months later; Vida (2013), an album of 16 duets, was recorded after the diagnosis[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [6](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa/) |
| Major awards | First Latin Grammy in 2004 for "Más y Más" (Best Music Video); first Grammy in 2014; Best Pop/Rock Album at the 2024 Latin Grammys for Reflejos de Lo Eterno[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [7](https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/s3.laprensa.com.ni-bq/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/21163919/LP20140128.pdf) • [8](https://apnews.com/article/a1320963a36cc848ea4a8d7b521a0cba) |
| Recent work | Olas de Luz (2026), 12 songs in 59 minutes, his first album of new songs since Sound Healing 1:11 (2021), recorded without electric guitars[9](https://music.apple.com/us/album/olas-de-luz/1868535527) • [10](https://www.latimes.com/espanol/entretenimiento/articulo/2026-05-09/draco-rosa-encuentra-la-luz-esquiva-y-se-reconecta-con-el-rock-sin-necesidad-de-guitarras) |
## Early life and Menudo
Rosa was born on [Long Island](https://www.edgepedia.org/long-island), New York, and moved to Puerto Rico as a child, growing up in Peñuelas.[1](https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/interpreter/draco-rosa/1012590) He joined Menudo, one of the most popular youth groups of its era, in 1984, replacing Johnny Lozada, and appeared on the album *Evolucion*, which earned him a Grammy nomination that year for Best Latin Pop Performance.[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [4](https://menudo.fandom.com/es/wiki/Robby_Rosa) He left the group in 1987 at 17 and was replaced by Rubén Gómez.[4](https://menudo.fandom.com/es/wiki/Robby_Rosa) • [11](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/)
After Menudo he moved to Brazil, recorded two Portuguese-language solo albums under the name Robby, and starred in the film *Salsa*, where he met his future wife, the actress Ángela Alvarado.[12](https://notablepeopleproject.org/draco_rosa) • [11](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/) He relocated to Los Angeles in 1990 and co-founded the alternative funk rock band Maggie's Dream, which released a self-titled album in 1990 before disbanding.[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [12](https://notablepeopleproject.org/draco_rosa)
## Solo career
**Frío and Vagabundo.** Rosa's Spanish-language solo career began with *Frío* (1994), recorded in Spain, a darker and more introspective rock album that contrasted sharply with his pop past.[12](https://notablepeopleproject.org/draco_rosa) *Vagabundo* (1996) followed, an experimental record that Sony reportedly did not know how to market at the time but that has since been described as a classic of [Latin rock](https://www.edgepedia.org/latin-rock).[13](https://www.latinolife.co.uk/articles/lease-life-interview-draco-rosa) • [14](https://www.allmusic.com/album/monte-sagrado-mw0003210978) *Songbirds & Roosters* (1998) reworked the songs of *Frío* in English.[15](https://www.vice.com/es/article/todo-lo-que-debes-saber-de-draco-rosa-antes-de-rock-al-parque/)
**Mad Love and the 2000s.** *Mad Love* (2004) was his most commercially visible solo moment, propelled by the single "Más y Más", which won his first Latin Grammy, for Best Music Video.[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) The compilation *Cómo Me Acuerdo* (2004) gathered his hits with four new songs, and he closed the Rock al Parque festival in Colombia that year, a stage he had first played in 1998 and would return to in 2017 to perform *Vagabundo* in full for its 20th anniversary.[11](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/) • [16](https://backend.uniagustiniana.edu.co/server/api/core/bitstreams/349093cd-1e94-4f3d-a085-2d79f542a3f0/content) Later projects included the album *Vino* (2007) and *Teatro*, based on a concert called Teatro del Absurdo, which won a Latin Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Album.[11](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/) *Amor Vincit Omnia* (2009) explored folkloric roots and drew a Grammy nomination.[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [15](https://www.vice.com/es/article/todo-lo-que-debes-saber-de-draco-rosa-antes-de-rock-al-parque/)
## Songwriting for Ricky Martin
Rosa's behind-the-scenes work made him one of the architects of the late-1990s [Latin pop](https://www.edgepedia.org/latin-pop) explosion. He co-wrote and co-produced "Livin' La Vida Loca" (1999) with [Desmond Child](https://www.edgepedia.org/desmond-child), a song that received three Grammy nominations including Record of the Year, and he also wrote "María" and "La Copa de la Vida" and produced the single "Vuelve".[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [5](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1999/BB-1999-07-24.pdf) A 2025 MusicRadar interview with Child recounts that the pair submitted "Livin' La Vida Loca" as a [Spanglish](https://www.edgepedia.org/spanglish) song at the label's request, and Child credits it with opening the door for urban Latin music's crossover.[17](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/we-called-it-slow-tools-i-mean-wed-have-19-breakdowns-a-day-how-the-producer-of-ricky-martins-livin-la-vida-loca-overcame-troublesome-tech-to-make-recording-history-with-the-first-all-digital-number-one-single) Rosa has also written under the pen names Dolores del Infante, Ian Blake, and Robi Rosa.[11](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/)
## Cancer, Vida, and recovery
Rosa was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2011 and suffered a relapse seven months after his first treatment course.[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [6](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa/) The diagnosis reshaped his career: the biggest names in Latin music, including Shakira, Marc Anthony, Juanes, Rubén Blades, Juan Luis Guerra, Maná, and Ricky Martin, joined him for *Vida* (2013), an album of duet versions of 16 of his songs from 1993 to 2009.[2](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/) • [13](https://www.latinolife.co.uk/articles/lease-life-interview-draco-rosa) It became his best-selling solo album and his first gold record as a solo artist, and it won him his first Grammy in 2014.[13](https://www.latinolife.co.uk/articles/lease-life-interview-draco-rosa) • [7](https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/s3.laprensa.com.ni-bq/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/21163919/LP20140128.pdf) He later announced he was cancer-free.[11](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/)
During recovery he settled at a property in Utuado, in Puerto Rico's interior, where he built the Phantom Vox studio, wrote the plant-based recipe book *El Secreto de la Vida* with Nena Niessen, and launched a coffee brand, Draco Rosa 100% Café de Puerto Rico, supporting local coffee farming.[6](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa/) • [18](https://www.globalartslive.org/sites/default/files/Biography_134.pdf)
## Later albums
**Monte Sagrado (2018).** After nine years without new material, Rosa returned with *Monte Sagrado*, a collection of darkly tinged rock songs meditating on rage, gratitude, and struggle, recorded live to analog partly in the [Hollywood Hills](https://www.edgepedia.org/hollywood-hills) after Hurricane María interrupted sessions in Puerto Rico.[19](https://www.allmusic.com/album/sound-healing-1-11-mw0003629727) • [6](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa) Rosa has said the album is a celebration of life that also confronts death, and its title refers to the sacred [Taíno](https://www.edgepedia.org/taino) ceremonial ground near his land in Utuado.[6](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa) It was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 2019 Latin Grammys.[20](https://as.com/us/us/2019/11/13/tikitakas/1573675522_895903.html)
**Sound Healing 1:11 (2021).** Recorded mostly at his home studio during the pandemic, this digital-only companion to *Monte Sagrado* was tuned to frequencies Rosa described as beneficial to the body and wove in field recordings of birds, rivers, and seas; the song "Fragancia de Una Flor" grew from a piano line recorded on an iPhone while he was bedridden with lymphoma.[19](https://www.allmusic.com/album/sound-healing-1-11-mw0003629727)
**Reflejos de Lo Eterno (2024) and Olas de Luz (2026).** *Reflejos de Lo Eterno* is an album of covers of emblematic rock en español songs from 1988 to 2003, including works by [Soda Stereo](https://www.edgepedia.org/soda-stereo), Café Tacvba, Jarabe de Palo, and [Los Fabulosos Cadillacs](https://www.edgepedia.org/los-fabulosos-cadillacs), performed without electric guitars; it won Best Pop/Rock Album at the 2024 Latin Grammys, where "No Me Preguntes (Live)" also won Best Rock Song.[21](https://www.allmusic.com/album/reflejos-de-lo-eterno-mw0004288528) • [8](https://apnews.com/article/a1320963a36cc848ea4a8d7b521a0cba) • [22](https://elpais.com/us/2024-11-15/latin-grammy-2024-la-lista-completa-de-ganadores.html) *Olas de Luz*, released April 24, 2026 on Sony Music US Latin, is his first album of new songs since 2021, inspired by a 2024 journey through the [Dominican Republic](https://www.edgepedia.org/dominican-republic) and Spain's Costa Brava with his partner, and like its predecessor it uses no electric guitars.[9](https://music.apple.com/us/album/olas-de-luz/1868535527) • [23](https://www.independentespanol.com/noticias/olas-de-luz-de-draco-rosa-surge-de-un-viaje-introspectivo-b2976907.html) It received 2026 Latin Grammy nominations for Best Pop/Rock Album and Best Rock Song for "Montserrat".[24](https://www.thereviewermag.com/musica/2026/10/13/draco-rosa-ntimo-completo-y-sin-filtros-en-el-tiny-desk-de-npr-music)
## Recognition
As of 2024, Rosa counted four Latin Grammys and one Grammy across four decades in music, and he is a member of the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame.[25](https://www.independentespanol.com/noticias/draco-rosa-comparte-su-sentimiento-de-gratitud-en-reflejos-de-lo-eterno-b2569638.html) • [6](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa) Critics have compared his stylistic range to [David Bowie](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-bowie) and Prince, and *Vagabundo* is frequently cited as a high-water mark of Latin pop.[3](https://www.iheart.com/artist/draco-rosa-540914/) In October 2026 he opened NPR's Tiny Desk concert series' Latin-focused season.[26](https://es.rollingstone.com/draco-rosa-lleva-los-ritmos-latinos-y-la-esencia-del-rock-psicodelico-a-su-tiny-desk/)
## References
1. [Draco Rosa Discography, Qobuz](https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/interpreter/draco-rosa/1012590)
2. [Exclusive GRAMMY.com Interview With Draco Rosa, Recording Academy (2014)](https://www.grammy.com/news/exclusive-grammycom-interview-with-draco-rosa/)
3. [Draco Rosa, iHeart](https://www.iheart.com/artist/draco-rosa-540914/)
4. [Robby Rosa, Wiki Menudo (Fandom)](https://menudo.fandom.com/es/wiki/Robby_Rosa)
5. [Songwriters & Publishers, Billboard (July 24, 1999)](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1999/BB-1999-07-24.pdf)
6. [How I Made It: Draco Rosa, Latino USA (2018)](https://www.latinousa.org/2018/11/01/dracorosa/)
7. [Grammy también para música latina, La Prensa (2014)](https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/s3.laprensa.com.ni-bq/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/21163919/LP20140128.pdf)
8. [Juan Luis Guerra 4.40 wins album of the year at the 2024 Latin Grammys, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/a1320963a36cc848ea4a8d7b521a0cba)
9. [OLAS DE LUZ, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/olas-de-luz/1868535527)
10. [Draco Rosa encuentra la luz esquiva y se reconecta con el rock sin necesidad de guitarras, Los Angeles Times (2026)](https://www.latimes.com/espanol/entretenimiento/articulo/2026-05-09/draco-rosa-encuentra-la-luz-esquiva-y-se-reconecta-con-el-rock-sin-necesidad-de-guitarras)
11. [Draco Rosa, Sony Music Latin](https://www.sonymusiclatin.com/artists/draco/)
12. [Draco Rosa, Notable People Project](https://notablepeopleproject.org/draco_rosa)
13. [Lease of Life: an interview with Draco Rosa, Latinolife](https://www.latinolife.co.uk/articles/lease-life-interview-draco-rosa)
14. [Monte Sagrado review, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/monte-sagrado-mw0003210978)
15. [Todo lo que debes saber: Draco Rosa para 'dummies', Vice (2017)](https://www.vice.com/es/article/todo-lo-que-debes-saber-de-draco-rosa-antes-de-rock-al-parque/)
16. [Barrios Sánchez, Ana María (2017), Universidad Agustiniana](https://backend.uniagustiniana.edu.co/server/api/core/bitstreams/349093cd-1e94-4f3d-a085-2d79f542a3f0/content)
17. [How the producer of Ricky Martin's Livin' La Vida Loca made recording history, MusicRadar (2026)](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/we-called-it-slow-tools-i-mean-wed-have-19-breakdowns-a-day-how-the-producer-of-ricky-martins-livin-la-vida-loca-overcame-troublesome-tech-to-make-recording-history-with-the-first-all-digital-number-one-single)
18. [Draco Rosa biography, Global Arts Live](https://www.globalartslive.org/sites/default/files/Biography_134.pdf)
19. [Sound Healing 1:11 review, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/sound-healing-1-11-mw0003629727)
20. [Todo lo que necesitas saber sobre los Latin Grammy 2019, AS](https://as.com/us/us/2019/11/13/tikitakas/1573675522_895903.html)
21. [Reflejos de Lo Eterno review, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/reflejos-de-lo-eterno-mw0004288528)
22. [Latin Grammy 2024: la lista completa de ganadores, El País](https://elpais.com/us/2024-11-15/latin-grammy-2024-la-lista-completa-de-ganadores.html)
23. ["Olas de Luz" de Draco Rosa surge de un viaje introspectivo, Independent Español (2026)](https://www.independentespanol.com/noticias/olas-de-luz-de-draco-rosa-surge-de-un-viaje-introspectivo-b2976907.html)
24. [Draco Rosa íntimo en el Tiny Desk de NPR Music, The Reviewer Magazine (2026)](https://www.thereviewermag.com/musica/2026/10/13/draco-rosa-ntimo-completo-y-sin-filtros-en-el-tiny-desk-de-npr-music)
25. [Draco Rosa comparte su sentimiento de gratitud en "Reflejos de lo eterno", Independent Español (2024)](https://www.independentespanol.com/noticias/draco-rosa-comparte-su-sentimiento-de-gratitud-en-reflejos-de-lo-eterno-b2569638.html)
26. [Draco Rosa lleva los ritmos latinos y la esencia del rock psicodélico a su Tiny Desk, Rolling Stone en Español (2026)](https://es.rollingstone.com/draco-rosa-lleva-los-ritmos-latinos-y-la-esencia-del-rock-psicodelico-a-su-tiny-desk/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Music scenes › Latin American and Caribbean scenes › Latin pop, balada, and rock en espanol (including Spain) › Artists, groups, and people: Latin pop, balada, and rock en espanol (including Spain) › Rock en español and Latin rock*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license