Chayanne: Photos From the Billboard Español Cover Shoot

Chayanne strides into a rehearsal space at Blue Dolphin Studios in Miami, dressed in black from head to toe — tight pants and shirt, crisp blazer, formal leather shoes — and warmly embraces his manager, his assistant, his creative director. He then extends his hand to greet the photographer waiting for a cover shoot. “Nice to meet you,” he says with a broad smile. “I’m Chayanne.”

“I think we all know who you are here,” I say lightly, but Chayanne stops and turns to look at me.

“No,” he tells me without reproach, his smile intact and his voice firm. “My dad taught me that no matter where you are, you say hello and introduce yourself. You can’t assume people know who you are.”

And just like that, this encounter becomes another among a long list of anecdotes about Elmer Figueroa Arce, better known as Chayanne. The artist who goes out to dinner and gets up multiple times to greet his fans. The performer who’s first to arrive at rehearsals and the last to leave. The star who greets housekeepers by name and dances with them in the hallways. The guy who runs in the mornings, alone.

“He is an exemplary father, an exemplary husband; good-looking, tall; he dances; he’s the perfect man,” says Henry Cárdenas, CEO of Cárdenas Marketing Network, which has produced Chayanne’s tours for decades, including his upcoming global arena trek. “He’s been a guy untainted by scandal. [Chayanne has been married to Marilisa Maronesse for over 30 years and has two children with her: Lorenzo and Isadora, the latter also a singer.] I’ve known him for years. I’ve spent a lot of time with him, and what you see is who he is. He’s the guy who interrupts his golf game to take a photo with a fan.”

Check out the exclusive photos below and read the Billboard Español cover story by Leila Cobo here.