Elvis Crespo

By the end of the Billboard Latin Awards ceremony in April, the artist who once yearned to be a Menudo member had won album of the year, male; album of the year, new artist; hot Latin track of the year; and Latin dance max-single of the year in the tropical/salsa category. The much-lauded album and its title track, which he wrote, are titled Suavemente.

Further feats for the ex-lead singer of Sony Disco’s merengue ensemble Grupo Manía include salsaing away with album of the year, male artist of the year, group or duet of the year, new artist of the year and song of the year at the Premio Lo Nuestro Awards in Miami last month. Once again, Suavemente was his winning ticket.

In addition, an increasing number of English-language pop radio stations, bucking the traditional programming trend and playing what Latina women like to hear, are giving heavy airplay to his all-Spanish songs as they reach for a bilingual, bicultural audience.

But that’s not enough for the artist who began his professional career at 17 with the Willie Berrios, Lenny Perez, and Toño Rosario orchestras. Crespo told POLLSTAR that he was scheduled to start his “intensive English course” last week. “In order to be in the market,” he said, “you have to speak the language.”

And Crespo, named after Elvis Presley, has king-sized plans. “I want to continue to show consistency in my musical works and I’d love to do films in the future.”

The native New Yorker, who moved to Puerto Rico when he was 6, has already stepped in front of the small-screen camera. Two weeks ago, he shot an episode of “All My Children,” scheduled to air July 15th. In it, he sings the title cut from his second album, Pintame, which was released in April.

Like “Suavemente,” with its record-breaking No. 1 position on SoundScan’s Latin charts, “Pintame” also secured a high spot early on, grabbing and holding onto the top slot on the tropical/salsa chart for weeks.

The first merengue artist to twice scale SoundScan’s Latin charts knows the work has just begun. His strategy for gaining more exposure in the U.S. is “to keep working.” That includes promotional appearances, private functions and new releases. His fourth single, “Me Arrepiento,” will be released in August.

On this day, he flew from Puerto Rico to New York in the morning to participate in the well-attended annual Puerto Rican Day Parade in Manhattan. He was scheduled to fly back to Puerto Rico seven hours later.

His relentless schedule includes shows at home throughout June, as well as in Houston, Texas. On his plate later this summer are House of Blues in Orlando; Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, Calif.; Spain; the Honduras; Colombia; Mexico; and Peru. He’ll appear in Venezuela this fall.

“The time that I can’t be with my family is the most difficult,” said the 27-year-old who has been married nine years. “But they understand this is for the future and the well-being of the whole family.”

While Crespo and his family call Puerto Rico home, he said he is considering relocating to New York or Miami.

The 5-foot-9-inch phenomenon stands poised for global success and he credits others for his breakthrough fortune. “The public accepts my recordings and they see it’s high quality and that I put a lot of effort into what I do. I give the public the best I can and Sony has believed in me and has worked with me.”

Sony is Crespo’s second record label. His first was indie label Bombazo Records in Puerto Rico. The deal, signed when he was with Grupo Manía, marked his first big break in the music biz. The year was 1995 and he was 22. One of the band’s biggest hits was “Linda Es,” which Crespo wrote and sang.

Despite the group’s enormous popularity, “I wanted to break away so I could make my dream come true,” Crespo said. “My dream was to be a solo artist. The public asked it of me. They’d say, ‘Why don’t you go solo?'”

After four years with Grupo Manía, he did. Last year, backed by Sony, he was showcased at the annual International Latin Music Conference in Miami. His solo debut soon crested and 10 months after its recording, he received a Grammy nomination for best tropical Latin performance. Fellow Puerto Rican artist Ricky Martin walked away with the award, but musical doors opened for Crespo.

The gruff-voiced performer with the trademark slow, teasing song intros that dive into a frenetic refrain, seized the opportunity to showcase his versatility. He recorded a salsa, a ballad and a midtempo song he penned about a child beaten to death by his father.

“I want people to not only hear good music,” Crespo said, “but I want them to understand the lyrics and the meaning, and that I don’t sing a merengue that’s disrespectful.”

As the momentum builds and the pace quickens, the gold-album singer said he “takes every day one day at a time,” and the force that drives him is his son.

What a winning hand for beating the odds.