Yuri

Yuri is an award-winning singer, actress, and television host from Mexico. Possessed of a classically trained alto voice, her recordings traverse pop, R&B, and traditional Mexican music. She has sold millions of records. Yuri launched her career in 1980 with “Tú Iluminas Mi Vida” (a cover of Debby Boone’s “You Light Up My Life”). She has been a ubiquitous presence on Latin America’s popular culture scene since the early ’80s. In 1981, her album Llena de Dulzura was the first by a Latin singer to be certified gold in Spain. In 1987, her single “Hombres al Borde de un Ataque de Celos” topped radio and sales charts across Latin America. 1991’s Soy Libre was certified gold and platinum simultaneously, while 1996′s Más Fuerte Que la Vida offered her hits re-recorded in ranchera style; 2002′s Enamorada re-established her presence on the pop charts after a hiatus from secular music. In 2006, after spending three seasons hosting the Puerto Rican reality competition Objetivo Fama, Yuri returned with the platinum-certified Acompáñame, while 2010′s Inusual was certified gold after only two days. In 2012, the popular live outing Mi Tributo al Festival topped the charts. In 2017, Yuri served as a coach for La Voz Kids, and repeated her role as a coach for the sixth season of La Voz. The next year, Yuri ventured into musical theater, playing Grizabella in the Mexican version of hit musical Cats; she was also awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by The Latin Grammy Academy.
Latin pop singer Yuri was born Yuridia Valenzuela Canseco in Veracruz, Mexico, on January 6, 1964. A musical prodigy, she was offered a scholarship at age nine to study dance with the Bolshoi Ballet — she declined — and as a teen fronted the group Yuri & the Electric Apple. After relocating to Mexico City in 1978, she cut her debut single, a Spanish-language rendition of “You Light Up My Life” (“Tu Iluminas Mi Vida”), which doubled as the title of her first LP. A co-starring role in the film Milagro en el Circo followed before Yuri scored a hit with the title track of her 1980 sophomore LP, Esperanza. Llena de Dulzura followed a year later, becoming the first record by a female Latin American singer to earn a gold record in Spain. The single “Maldita Primavera” made Yuri an international sensation, selling over a million copies worldwide; another smash, “El Pequeño Panda de Chapultepec,” soon followed.
After a 1983 self-titled LP, she returned a year later with Karma Kamaleon, highlighted by a Spanish rendition of the Culture Club hit; in 1985, Yuri starred in the film Canta Chamo, releasing the album Un Corazon Herido the following year. After 1987′s Aire, she recorded a duet with Don Johnson on “A Better Place/Un Lugar Mejor.” After moving from EMI to Sony, she issued the LP Isla del Sol. Yuri’s next LP, Soy Genesis, did not appear until 1990; Soy Libre followed in 1991, and after 1993′s Nueva Era she began hosting a TV variety series, No Te Muevas. Another series, Volver a Empezar, soon followed, as did the 1995 LP Espejos del Alma. Subsequent projects included the 1997 autobiographical film Yuri, Mi Verdadera Historia, the 1998 gospel album Huellas, and 2001′s Que Tu Fe Nunca Muera.
Yuri made a great comeback in the mid-2000s, recording a popular duets album with Mijares titled Acompáñame (2006), the live album and video Vive la Historia (2007), and a studio album, Mi Hijita Linda (2008).
Inusual, a contemporary dance-pop album, followed in 2010 and performed well, charting for almost 20 weeks in Mexico. Mi Tributo al Festival, released in late 2011, hit number one there and spent nearly half of 2012 on the charts; it also led to a sequel, Mi Tributo al Festival II, in 2013 that also registered in the Top Five. She issued Primera Fila (En Vivo) in 2017, a record comprising her hits with guest performers including the band Pandora, Carlos Rivera, and Carlos Vives. A retrospective box set entitled Tesoros de Coleccion was released in 2020. ~ Jason Ankeny