Yuri

Yuri is the stage name of Yuridia Valenzuela Canseco, a Mexican singer and actress from Veracruz, Mexico, born in 1964. She begins her career at a young age, showing an early interest in the arts and being accepted by a Russian ballet company, although her parents do not allow her to leave Mexico to join it.

Early television and recording career

At 12, she appears on two Televisa children’s television programmes, including the Cepillín show. She releases her first album in the late 1970s and represents Mexico at the Festival OTI, where she places second and receives an award for best newcomer to the contest. In 1980, she signs with Gamma Records, and her profile grows across Spanish-speaking countries including Spain, El Salvador, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama and Argentina.

1980s success

She returns to the Festival OTI in 1982 and places fourth. Throughout the 1980s, her albums often reach the top of the charts in Mexico, and she earns more than 100 gold albums there. One of her best-known songs from the period is the disco-influenced Que Te Pasa.

Later work

In 1994, Yuri and Chayanne star in the telenovela Volver a Empezar. In 1995, she marries a Chilean musician. She later becomes a born-again Christian and records Christian albums, though she also faces controversy when she resumes singing non-Christian music. In 2005, she hosts a new season of the singing competition Objetivo Fama and serves as a judge on Cantando Por un Sueño, appearing as a judge in its first two seasons and performing several times on the programme. In 2006, she releases Acompáñame with Mexican singer Mijares; the title track is a romantic ballad.

Style and reputation

Yuri works in Latin pop, pop and ranchera, and is also known as a figure in Latin music more broadly. She is sometimes referred to as “La Madonna Mexicana.”