For more than two decades, Enrique Iglesias’ music has been playing wherever we go. Every song he composes becomes an instant hit — from his love songs, like “Hero,” to his more catchy tunes, such as “Tonight I’m Lovin you.” He’s the son of a very famous singer, so many assume that this is what drove and helped Enrique become an artist. Nothing could be further from the truth — the singer actually owes his huge success to his nanny.
He was born in Spain but wasn’t raised there.
Born on May 8, 1975, in Madrid, Spain, Enrique Iglesias is one of the most internationally recognized Spanish pop singers. His father is the famous Julio Iglesias, who used to be the most commercially successful European singer in the world, and his mother is the Filipino model and socialite Isabel Preysler.
After his parents’ divorce in 1978, Enrique and his siblings, Julio and Chabeli, stayed with their mother. They first lived in Spain, later spent a year in Yugoslavia. Finally, when the singer was seven years old, the children went to live with their father in the United States, where they spent most of their childhood and attended school.
Enrique and his siblings were raised by Elvira Olivares.
His father’s busy schedule meant he couldn’t be home much with his children, so they had a nanny. Elvira Olivares was the one who took care of the boys. For the young Enrique, she became like a second mother, whom he loved and trusted completely. The future artist loved music and secretly composed his own songs as a form of self-expression, and Elvira was the only one who knew about this.
As Enrique grew older, he became more and more convinced that his family would not support him if he decided to pursue a musical career. He had a rocky relationship with his father, who was demanding and expected a lot from his children. Enrique felt that he would never be able to be up to his father’s expectations and that he would always be in his shadow. Therefore, like many other children of celebrities, he decided to carve his own path by keeping the fame of his family name aside.
