Now a father, Ricky Martin no longer lives "La Vida Loca"
Fatherhood has changed international superstar Ricky Martin in many ways. One of them is that he can no longer live the “La Vida Loca” lifestyle, he tells Tracy Smith in an interview for CBS’ “Sunday Morning,” to be broadcast April 16.
Martin, who has been in the spotlight since he was a teenaged member of the Latin boy band Menudo, hit it big with his 1999 English-language debut album and its chart-topping “Livin’ la Vida Loca.” The song title (Spanish for the crazy life) is about doing whatever one wants. Martin tells Smith at the time the song hit the charts, he was living that way.
But no more!
“No, definitely the decisions that I make today, even for my career, are based on the well-being of my children,” he tells Smith.
Martin, the father of nine-year-old twin boys, says fatherhood has changed everything in his life. “It’s not about you anymore; every decision that I make [is] based on them -- and there’s no more sleeping late,” he says.
“And I’m only starting. I want a big family. I like the noise of children running around the house. I want Daddy’s little girl.”
Martin opens up to Smith about plans for expanding his family, a wedding, his fiancé, his decision to reveal his sexuality in 2010, and his new residency at Park Theater at Monte Carlo in Las Vegas. Smith talked with Martin as he prepped for the opening in Las Vegas and in California as he and his team tested wardrobe combinations.
“The artist just walks on stage ready for fire,” Martin tells Smith of his Las Vegas shows. “I’m talking about me as an artist. I don’t settle for little things.”
It’s been that way since he was six years old, singing into a wooden spoon. Martin, now 45, says he still has the same excitement about performing.
“I’m addicted, yes, I am. I am hooked on this,” Martin says of performing. “It forces me to analyze my emotions, because that’s what the audience wants. The audience wants you to be transparent, to be real, to be honest. And even when I had to hide things about my persona on stage, I wasn’t. On stage I was just completely open.”
The Emmy Award-winning “CBS Sunday Morning,” hosted by Jane Pauley, is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison.
Follow the program on Twitter (@CBSSunday), Facebook, Instagram (#CBSSundayMorning) and at cbssundaymorning.com. “Sunday Morning” also streams on CBSN beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET, and is available on cbs.com, CBS All Access, and On Demand. You can also listen to “Sunday Morning” audio podcasts at Play.it.
For more info:
- Ricky Martin at the Park Theater at Monte Carlo, Las Vegas | Tickets
- rickymartinmusic.com
- Follow Ricky Martin on Twitter and Facebook
