Ana Belén

From her birthplace in Madrid, Spain, Ana Belén launched a multifaceted path as singer and actress. Early on she channeled her creative impulses through dance and song, frequenting radio outlets and entering youth competitions. At twelve she cut her debut single, which promptly led to a screen part in Zampo y Yo opposite Fernando Rey. She later pursued formal dramatic training at TEM (Teatro Estudio Madrileño), where her first stage appearance came in Cervantes’ Numancia and her initial leading film role arrived in the 1970s production Españolas en Paris.

In 1973 she began a romance with singer Victor Manuel, and the pair married later that year. Around the same period Juan Carlos Calderón oversaw her inaugural album. Her career-defining moment arrived with the 1982 release Ana en Rio, cut in collaboration with Brazilian musicians and featuring the smash single “Balancé.” March 1986 brought official recognition from the French government for her impact on popular culture.

Belén ventured into directing with the 1991 feature Cómo Ser Mujer y No Morir en el Intento, an effort honored five years later by the Spanish Cinematographic Academy with a gold medal. The year after that honor she joined Miguel Rios, Joan Manuel Serrat, and Victor Manuel for an extensive tour across Spain. Mírame appeared in 1997. Over the subsequent decade she issued further recordings, among them 2003’s Viva L`Italia and 2007’s Anatomía, while sustaining an active presence in film, television, and theater as both performer and director.