Latest Release
- 4 APR 2024
- 1 Song
- Son de Panamá (with Roberto Delgado & Orquesta) · 2015
- Siembra (Special Edition) · 1978
- Siembra (Special Edition) · 1978
- Quién Contra Mí 2 · 2020
- SALSWING! (with Roberto Delgado & Orquesta) · 2021
- Salsero Original · 1991
- The Cali Sessions · 2001
- The Cali Sessions · 2001
- The Cali Sessions · 2001
- Mundo · 2000
Essential Albums
- 1978
Artist Playlists
- The Panamanian who envisioned salsa as literate, danceable art.
Live Albums
- 2016
- 2012
- 2012
- 123 Andrés & Los Rabanes
- Ramses Araya
- Carolina Calvache
- Gaitanes, Omar Alfano, Erika Ender, Emilio Regueira, Osvaldo Ayala, Nando Boom, Ingrid De Icaza, Alejandro Duncan, Kafú Bantom & All Stars Panama
- Herencia de Timbiqui
More To Hear
- Feat. Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, and more.
About Ruben Blades
Rubén Blades Bellido de Luna is an award-winning singer, composer, actor and activist known for his foundational contributions to salsa music and Latin jazz. Born in Panama in 1948, Blades grew up in a family of actors and singers, which ignited an artistic passion that led him to New York City's flourishing Fania Records in the mid-’70s. He began working with salsa stars Ray Barretto and Héctor Lavoe, even writing the latter's signature song, “El Cantante”. He struck a tight collaborative relationship with trombonist and bandleader Willie Colón, releasing 1978's revolutionary Siembra LP, which became the best-selling salsa album of all time and includes classics “Plástico” and “Pedro Navaja”. Behind the mic, Blades often infuses his effusive dance pieces with socially conscious lyrics, while offstage he has cultivated a mighty political career, running for the presidency of Panama in 1994 and accepting an appointment as Minister of Tourism in 2004.
- HOMETOWN
- Panama City, Panama
- BORN
- 16 July 1948
- GENRE
- Salsa and Tropical