“When I was, like, 12, I remember grabbing a mic, pretending it was a guitar, and performing in front of my friends. I didn't know at the time I wanted to be an artist.”

Colombian singer

J Balvin is a Colombian singer. Born José Álvaro Osorio Balvín in Medellín, he became known as a leading figure in Latin music and is among its best-selling artists, with 35 million records sold worldwide. He moved to the United States at 17 to study English, living in Oklahoma and New York before returning to Medellín. He later built his audience performing in clubs there, and his career has been shaped by that cross-border experience and his rise from the Medellín music scene.