India Martinez

Having honed her skills as a flamenco vocalist early on, India Martinez emerged as one of the style’s most distinctive modern voices by weaving Hindu and Arab influences into the fabric of her Andalusian heritage. She entered the world in Cordoba in 1985, commenced flamenco studies at five, and, following her family’s relocation to Almeria, performed regularly in local cafés under the moniker “La Niña del Puerto.” In 1998 she advanced to the final of the children’s television competition Veo, Veo, an appearance that opened doors to festivals, Peñas Flamencas, and contests, one of which awarded her a scholarship to the Cristina Heeren Foundation in Seville. Her first record, Azulejos de Lunares, appeared in 2003, yet she devoted most of the decade to recitals across Spanish and international stages.

That focus on live performance postponed her next studio effort until the world-music-infused Despertar in 2009. The album earned gold certification and brought Martinez a Latin Grammy nomination for Best New Artist. Trece Verdades, released in 2011, also attained gold status and peaked at number eight on the Spanish charts. A year later she issued Otras Verdades, a collection that reinterpreted songs by Gloria Estefan, Amaral, Alejandro Sanz, and Luis Fonsi in unadorned flamenco arrangements and climbed to number two. Camino de la Buena Suerte returned her to original material in 2013; the flamenco-pop fusion reached number three in Spain and featured the singles “Hoy,” a Shakira cover, and “Si Me Ves,” a duet with Manuel Carrasco.

Martinez revisited the duet and cover formats on 2014’s Dual, assembling a personal selection of well-known collaborations, contacting the original artists, and re-recording each track with her flamenco signature. The set, propelled by “Olvidé Respirar” with David Bisbal, “Déjame Soñar” with Ricardo Montaner, and “Loco” with Enrique Iglesias, again hit number two and secured her fourth consecutive gold record. Later that year she contributed “Niño Sin Miedo” to Roque Baños’s soundtrack for Daniel Monzón’s film El Niño, which collected sixteen Goya Awards, including honors for Best Song, Soundtrack, and Director.

After extensive touring the following year, Martinez reunited in the studio with longtime producers and co-writers David Santisteban and Riki Rivera. The advance single “Todo No Es Casualidad” reached number nine, while the follow-up “Angel” peaked at number 31. The resulting album, Te Cuento un Secreto, arrived in October 2016, incorporating both tracks plus “Gris,” a collaboration with Prince Royce, and debuted at number one on Spain’s album charts. That December she joined Carlos Torres for an impromptu performance of “Todo No Es Casualidad” during the La Voz Kids grand finale, eliciting exuberant reactions from several contestants. Midway through a sold-out Spanish tour the next summer, she unveiled the video single “Aguasanta,” which entered the national singles chart at number one and amassed a million views within its first fortnight.