Raphael

Biography

Miguel Rafael Martos Sánchez (born 5 May 1943), known professionally as Raphael, is a Spanish singer and actor. He is widely recognized for his extensive vocal range and charismatic stage presence. He has sold over 70 million albums in up to 7 languages. His career has spanned more than six decades, leaving a lasting influence on Spanish-speaking music.
Raphael rose to fame in the early 1960s after winning the Benidorm Song Festival. He represented Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1966 and 1967 with the songs "Yo soy aquél×Yo soy aquél2000 · Album · CompilationSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 35 tracks · 2 discsDisc 11Yo soy aquél2:382Hablemos de amor2:513Ave María3:554Qué sabe nadie5:125Digan lo que digan2:406Y ¿cómo es él?4:117Cuando tú no estás3:388Mi gran noche3:009En carne viva4:1010La llorona3:4911Provocación3:3312Ámame4:0113La canción del tamborilero3:0314Balada de la trompeta3:4015A veces llegan cartas2:5216Cómo te amo4:3917¿Qué tal te va sin mí?5:18Disc 21La canción del trabajo2:142Noche de ronda3:203Estuve enamorado2:184Acualera del río2:515Le llaman Jesús4:536Aleluya del silencio3:057Desde aquel día2:548El gondolero4:399Tu nombre me lo callo4:2310Payaso2:5611Hava Nagila2:2612Amor mío4:1013El golfo2:2014A mi manera4:1715Somos3:2016Los hombres lloran también2:1417Yo sigo siendo aquél4:0318Aquarius4:01" and "Hablemos del amor", finishing in seventh and sixth place, respectively. In 1967, he performed at Madison Square Garden in New York City before an audience of 48,000 people. In 1982, he received a uranium record for surpassing 50 million records sold, making him one of the best-selling Latin music artists in history.
He remains one of the most active performers among the so-called divos of Latin ballads, regularly touring across the Americas and Europe. His accolades include the Billboard Latin Music Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022 and was named Person of the Year by the Latin Recording Academy in 2025.

Childhood

Raphael was born Miguel Rafael Martos Sánchez in Linares (Jaén), Spain. As a consequence, he is nicknamed both "El Ruiseñor de Linares" ("Nightingale of Linares") and "El Divo de Linares" ("The Divo from Linares") but is also known as "El Niño". His family moved to Madrid when he was nine months old, and he started singing when he was just three years-old. He joined a children's choir at age four. When he was 9, he was recognized as the best child voice in Europe at a contest in Salzburg, Austria. His two idols, when he was growing up, and with whom he announced, on 6 October 2014, his plans to record posthumous duets with, were said to be US singer Elvis Presley and French diva Edith Piaf.

First recordings

Raphael began his professional career by singing with the Dutch record label Philips. To distinguish himself, he adopted the "ph" of the company's name and christened himself 'Raphael'. His first singles were "Te voy a contar mi vida" and "A pesar de todo", among others. Raphael adopted his own peculiar singing style from the beginning; he is known for acting each one of his songs while on stage, emphasizing his gestures with high dramatic effect. It is not unusual for Raphael to ad lib lyrics as to localize a song depending on the venue he's singing at, wear Latin American peasant costumes and dance folk dances within a song, kicking and demolishing a mirror, or doing the moves of a flamenco dancer or a bullfighter onstage. He also possesses a wide vocal range, which he often used in the beginning of his career as to evoke a choirboy approach to some songs.

From Benidorm and Eurovision to becoming an international star

When he was nineteen, he won first, second, and third awards at the Benidorm Song Festival, in Benidorm, in 1962 and 1963 with the songs: "Llevan×Llevan1962 · EPSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracksA1LlevanA2LazarilloB1Cada cualB2Inmensidad", "Inmensidad", and "Tu conciencia×Tu conciencia1963 · EPSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Tu conciencia2Alta costura3Me dirás4Precisamente, tú". After a brief relation with Barclay record label, who produced just an EP, he signed a contract with Hispavox recording company, and began a long artistic relationship with the musical director of this label, the late, talented Argentinian orchestrator Waldo de los Ríos and intensify the partnership with outstanding Spanish songwriter Manuel Alejandro.
Raphael represented Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest 1966 and 1967 singing "Yo soy aquél×Yo soy aquél2000 · Album · CompilationSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 35 tracks · 2 discsDisc 11Yo soy aquél2:382Hablemos de amor2:513Ave María3:554Qué sabe nadie5:125Digan lo que digan2:406Y ¿cómo es él?4:117Cuando tú no estás3:388Mi gran noche3:009En carne viva4:1010La llorona3:4911Provocación3:3312Ámame4:0113La canción del tamborilero3:0314Balada de la trompeta3:4015A veces llegan cartas2:5216Cómo te amo4:3917¿Qué tal te va sin mí?5:18Disc 21La canción del trabajo2:142Noche de ronda3:203Estuve enamorado2:184Acualera del río2:515Le llaman Jesús4:536Aleluya del silencio3:057Desde aquel día2:548El gondolero4:399Tu nombre me lo callo4:2310Payaso2:5611Hava Nagila2:2612Amor mío4:1013El golfo2:2014A mi manera4:1715Somos3:2016Los hombres lloran también2:1417Yo sigo siendo aquél4:0318Aquarius4:01" in Luxembourg, and "Hablemos del amor" in Vienna, placing seventh and sixth, respectively. This marked Spain's strongest showing in the contest at the time, leaving the door open for victory the following year, which Spain achieved with "La, la, la" performed by Massiel. This served as a turning point in Raphael's career, making him an international star. He traveled and performed worldwide in Europe, Latin America, Puerto Rico, the United States, Russia and Japan. Songs such as "Que Tal Te Va Sin Mi", "Como Yo Te Amo", "En Carne Viva×En carne viva1981 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Se me va4:15A2Qué sabe nadie5:13A3Por una tontería3:23A4Estar enamorado4:53A5Zuray-Zurita4:48B1Que tal te va sin mi5:23B2Pregunta a pregunta3:58B3En carne viva4:09B4El amor3:14B5De México a California4:54", "Digan Lo Que Digan×Digan lo que digan1967 · Album · SoundtrackSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracksA1Digan lo que digan2:44A2Mi gran noche3:04A3Cierro mis ojos3:35A4Hoy mejor que mañana2:39A5Mi hermano2:24A6Un hombre vendrá2:50B1Al margen de la vida2:53B2Acuarela del río2:55B3Tema de amor2:32B4Llorona3:51B5Verano2:18B6Que nadie sepa mi sufrir3:25", "Estar Enamorado", "Estuve Enamorado×Estuve enamorado1966 · EPSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracksA1Estuve enamorado2:21A2Desde aquel día2:57B1No vuelvas2:23B2Mi regalo2:03", and "Desde Aquel Día" cemented his status as a major international singing star.
Raphael also began a lucrative film career, appearing in, Cuando tú no estás (Mario Camus, 1966), which was followed by Al ponerse el Sol (Mario Camus, 1967), Digan lo que digan (Mario Camus, 1968, filmed in Argentina), El golfo (1969, filmed in Mexico), El ángel (1969), Sin Un Adiós (1970, partially filmed in England), and Volveré a nacer (1972).

Latin American popularity

As Raphael became a success in Latin America, he made a habit of recording Latin American folk standards including "Huapango torero", "Sandunga", and "Llorona"; they were hits in Mexico. In 1967 Raphael began a tour throughout America.

American and Spanish television appearances

He appeared live on The Ed Sullivan Show with great success on 25 October 1970, singing (in Spanish, English, and Italian) "Hallelujah" and "Hava Nagila". He appeared again on 27 December 1970, with the songs "Maybe" (Somos), "When my love is around" (Cuando llega mi amor) and "The sound of the trumpet" (Balada de la trompeta).
In 1975, Raphael began his own successful program on Spanish Television called El Mundo de Raphael, where he sang with international stars. He also had a radio program, where he and his wife spoke with and interviewed outstanding personalities, and he starred in soap operas, starting with the Mexican production Donde termina el camino, shown in the spring of 1978 and later in other countries like Peru and Chile.

Golden 80s

Raphael succeeded in the early 1980s with songs such as "¿Qué tal te va sin mí?", "Como yo te amo", "En carne viva×En carne viva1981 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Se me va4:15A2Qué sabe nadie5:13A3Por una tontería3:23A4Estar enamorado4:53A5Zuray-Zurita4:48B1Que tal te va sin mi5:23B2Pregunta a pregunta3:58B3En carne viva4:09B4El amor3:14B5De México a California4:54" and "Estar enamorado".
In 1980 Raphael receives a Uranium disc, in recognition of his fifty million copies sold throughout his recording career.
During 1984 and 1985 he recorded two albums with songs written by José Luis Perales like "Ámame", "Yo sigo siendo aquel", "Dile que vuelva", "Y... Cómo es él" and "Estoy llorando hoy por ti".
In 1984 a parody of "Yo soy aquél×Yo soy aquél2000 · Album · CompilationSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 35 tracks · 2 discsDisc 11Yo soy aquél2:382Hablemos de amor2:513Ave María3:554Qué sabe nadie5:125Digan lo que digan2:406Y ¿cómo es él?4:117Cuando tú no estás3:388Mi gran noche3:009En carne viva4:1010La llorona3:4911Provocación3:3312Ámame4:0113La canción del tamborilero3:0314Balada de la trompeta3:4015A veces llegan cartas2:5216Cómo te amo4:3917¿Qué tal te va sin mí?5:18Disc 21La canción del trabajo2:142Noche de ronda3:203Estuve enamorado2:184Acualera del río2:515Le llaman Jesús4:536Aleluya del silencio3:057Desde aquel día2:548El gondolero4:399Tu nombre me lo callo4:2310Payaso2:5611Hava Nagila2:2612Amor mío4:1013El golfo2:2014A mi manera4:1715Somos3:2016Los hombres lloran también2:1417Yo sigo siendo aquél4:0318Aquarius4:01" was used in a radio spot in Puerto Rico's gubernatorial race. Then-governor Carlos Romero Barceló used the parody (complete with a Raphael sound-alike) namely as a jab against opponent, Raphael's namesake, (and noted Spanophile), former governor Rafael Hernández Colón. Raphael was surprised by the unauthorized use of the music, but was highly amused by the reference.
In 1987 he left Hispavox and signed a contract with Columbia (now Sony Music), where he again recorded songs written by Roberto Livi like "Toco madera" and "Maravilloso corazón". In 1991 he had a hit with "Escándalo" in Spain, Latin America, and in Japan, where it reached number one. At the end of the 1990s, after ending a contract with PolyGram, he went back to EMI. In 1998 the artist published the first part of his memoirs titled ¿Y mañana qué?, from his childhood until his marriage in 1972.
Raphael took part in the 2000 Spanish version of the stage musical Jekyll & Hyde for seven months, with great success.

Personal life

He married aristocrat, journalist and writer Natalia Figueroa, in Venice (Italy) on 14 July 1972. They have three children: Jacobo, Alejandra and Manuel.
Raphael's health faced a major setback in 2003, when his liver started failing due to a latent bout with hepatitis B; he recovered successfully after a transplant. Since then he is an active organ donation promoter.
In December 2024, Raphael was diagnosed with primary brain lymphoma while hospitalized in Madrid, Spain.

Awards and accomplishments

Raphael has received numerous awards.

He was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame in 2003.
Raphael received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2022 Billboard Latin Music Awards.

Billboard charts

https://www.billboard.com/artist/raphael/chart-history/htl/

Toco Madera (#2)
Maravilloso Corazón, Maravilloso (#7)
Escándalo (#9)
Siempre Estás Diciendo Que Te Vas (#11)
Se Muere Por Mi la Niña (#16)
Yo Sigo Amándote (#34)

Raphael Museum

The Raphael Museum is located in El Pósito, a building in the centre of Linares. It houses more than 400 pieces and original documents from the artist.