Gerardo Mejía (born April 16, 1965 Billboard.com – Biography – Gerardo Retrieved September 22, 2008.), better known by his mononym Gerardo, is an

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

ian-born

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

rapper, singer and actor who later became a recording industry executive, and more recently a pastor. Born in

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

, he moved with his family to

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

, when he was 12 years old. Based in Los Angeles, California, Gerardo became known for his bandana, skintight jeans, locking, and shirtless torso. He sometimes refers to himself as the "Latin

Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

" or the "Latin

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

Career

Gerardo's first major appearance in show business was as Ricky in the 1987 feature film ''

Can't Buy Me Love "Can't Buy Me Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in March 1964 as the A-side of their sixth single. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The song was included o ...

''. He was later cast as the character Bird in the 1988 film ''

Colors Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...

'', about

South Central Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown. It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as a ...

gang violence. This was also the first time his dance skills were showcased, in one of the party scenes; however, he did not sing at any point in the film. His hit single " Rico Suave" appeared on his 1991 debut album, ''

Mo' Ritmo ''Mo' Ritmo'' is the first album by the Ecuadorian singer Gerardo. Released in 1991 by Interscope Records as the label's inaugural album, it peaked at No. 36 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Production The album was partially produced by Michael Semb ...

''. The album peaked at No. 36 on the Billboard 200 chart in June 1991; the single had peaked at No. 7 in April. This song, as well as some others of Gerardo's, include verses with lines in both English and Spanish. Although his following single "We Want the Funk" (a semi-remake of

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

's " Give Up the Funk") peaked at No. 16, Billboard.com – Artist Chart History – Gerardo Retrieved November 15, 2012. the popularity of "Rico Suave" has made Gerardo known as a

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

via sources including

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

, VH1,Gerardo: Back And 'Still Rico' – News Story , Music, Celebrity, Artist News , MTV News
Retrieved September 28, 2008. ''Synthesis Magazine''Synthesis : Music : Gerardo : King Mac Daddy : an Interview with Rico Suave.
. Retrieved September 28, 2008. and even Gerardo himself. As an A&R executive at

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mus ...

, Gerardo signed rapper

Bubba Sparxxx Warren Anderson Mathis (born March 6, 1977), better known by his stage name Bubba Sparxxx, is an American rapper from Georgia. His singles include "Deliverance", " Ugly" (both featuring Timbaland), and " Ms. New Booty" (featuring Ying Yang Twins ...

. More recently, in a 2013 appearance on Katie Couric's show ''

Katie Katie is an English feminine name. It is a form Katherine, Kate, Caitlin, Kathleen, Katey and their related forms. It is frequently used on its own. People Sports * Katie Boulter (born 1996), British tennis player * Katie Clark (born 1994), Bri ...

'', Gerardo discussed his newest life focus as a Christian youth pastor. He was ordained as a pastor at Praise Chapel in Kansas City and now pastors a church House of Grace in

Ashland, Kentucky Ashland is a home rule-class city in Boyd County, Kentucky, United States. The largest city in Boyd County, Ashland is located upon a southern bank of the Ohio River at the state border with Ohio and near West Virginia. The population was 21,6 ...

Personal life

Gerardo is married to Kathy Eicher, a former pageant titleholder who was

Miss West Virginia USA The Miss West Virginia USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of West Virginia in the Miss USA pageant. This pageant is independently conducted and produced by Sanders & Associates, Inc., dba- Pageant Assoc ...

1989, and they have three children:

Nadia Nadia is a female name. Variations include Nadja, Nadya, Nadine, Nadiya, and Nadiia. Most variations of the name are derived from Arabic, Slavic languages, or both. In Slavic, names similar to ''Nadia'' mean "hope" in many Slavic languages: ...

, Bianca, and Jaden. Nadia is a model who competed in pageants like her mother, and won the title of

Miss California USA Miss California USA is the beauty pageant that selects the representative for the state of California in the Miss USA pageant, and the name of the title held by that winner. The pageant is directed by Crown Diva Productions. California's most ...

2016. They also have a granddaughter, Lily. They live in Kentucky.

Discography

Albums

Singles

* " Rico Suave" (1991; No. 7 US ''Billboard'' Hot 100), No. 87 in Australia. * "We Want the Funk" (1991; No. 16 US ''Billboard'' Hot 100) No. 128 in Australia. * "When the Lights Go Out" (1991; No. 98 US ''Billboard'' Hot 100) * "Latin Till I Die (

Oye Como Va "Oye Cómo Va" is a 1962 cha-cha-chá by Tito Puente, originally released on ''El Rey Bravo'' (Tico Records). The song achieved worldwide popularity in 1970, when it was recorded by American rock group Santana for their album ''Abraxas''. This ...

)" (1991) * "Love" (1992) * "Maria Elisa" (1994) * "Ae-Ah" (featuring

The Outhere Brothers The Outhere Brothers are an American hip house and Eurodance duo, composed of Keith "Malik" Mayberry and record producer Lamar "Hula" Mahone. While they achieved only moderate success in their native United States, two of their Single (music), s ...

) (1998) * "Americana" (2004) * "Sueña" (2005) * "Raperito" (featuring

Vico C Luis Armando Lozada Cruz (born September 8, 1971), known by his stage name Vico C, is an American rapper and record producer. Regarded as the founding father of reggaeton, Vico C has played an influential role in the development of Latin American ...

) (2007) * "Agua Amarga" (featuring

Funky Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mid ...

) (2021) * "Eres bueno" (featuring

Alex Zurdo Alexis Vélez Alberio, also known as Alex Zurdo, is a Puerto Rican Christian music rapper and songwriter. He has almost a dozen musical productions, and has been awarded the GMA Dove Award and Arpa Awards, having also been nominated for a Lat ...

Frankie J Francisco Javier Bautista Jr. (born December 7, 1975), better known by his stage name Frankie J, is a Mexican-American singer and former member of the musical group Kumbia Kings. Born in Mexico, he grew up in San Diego and became a freestyle ar ...

) (2021)

Filmography

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1965 births Living people People from Guayaquil Ecuadorian emigrants to the United States Hip hop singers Rappers from California 20th-century American rappers 21st-century American rappers Hispanic and Latino American rappers Naturalized citizens of the United States