Despite recording only in Spanish, he continued to be the best selling Latin artist in the 1990s, and was credited for popularizing the bolero genre into the mainstream market. He has sold around 60 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling Latin music artists.
Latin pop music, along with his personal life and showmanship on stage, has made Luis Miguel popular for nearly his entire career, which started in Mexico in 1982. Having won his first Grammy Award at the age of fourteen for his duet "Me Gustas Tal Como Eres" with Sheena Easton, he is the youngest male artist in music history to have received this accolade. In 1991, the RIAA recognized the high sales for his 1991 album Romance, itself being the third best-selling music album in Mexico, and one of the best-selling Spanish language albums of all time. He was the first Latin artist to have been awarded two Platinum certified Spanish-language albums in the United States with ‘‘Romance’’ and ‘‘Segundo Romance’’ the latter earning him 35 platinum records throughout Central and South America. He is also recognized by Billboard, as the artist with the most top 10 hits on the Billboard's Hot Latin Songs chart. His album Complices was released in 2008 and peaked at No.10 on the Billboard 200; it is the highest position a fully Spanish composed album has reached. His most recent album ¡México Por Siempre! was released in 2017, and it earned him his second No. 1 on the Billboard Regional Mexican Albums and achieved double platinum status.
Luis Miguel is also known for his high-grossing live performances. He is the first-highest grossing Latin touring artist since Boxscore began tracking touring data in 1990, with a towering total of $278.5 million. With the Luis Miguel Tour, which took place in 2010, he visited 22 countries in North America, South America and Europe, where he performed in a three-year span with a total of 223 shows all over the world, making it the longest and highest-grossing tour ever made by a Latin artist. He also holds the record for the most consecutive presentations in the Auditorio Nacional (National Auditorium) with a total of 30 consecutive concerts as well as the record for the most presentations in the same venue with a total of 258 concerts.
El Rey
Luis Miguel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Pero el día en que yo me muera
Sé que tendrás que llorar
(llorar why llorar, llorar why llorar)
Dirás que no me quisiste
Pero vas a estar muy triste
why así te vas a quedar
Hago siempre lo que quiero
why mi palabra es la ley
No tengo trono ni reina
Ni nadie que me comprenda
Pero sigo siendo el rey
¡Échale!
Una piedra en el camino
Me enseño que mi destino era rodar why rodar
(Rodar why rodar, rodar why rodar)
Después me dijo un arrielo
Que no hay que llegar primero
Sino hay que saber llegar
Con dinero why sin dinero
Hago siempre lo que quiero
why mi palabra es la ley
No tengo trono ni reina
Ni nadie que me comprenda
Pero sigo siendo el rey
The lyrics of Luis Miguel’s song El Rey speak to themes of power, fate and ultimately, self-determination. The first verse portrays a sense of being “outside” – perhaps ostracized from a relationship – and the inevitability of sadness when the singer dies. The repeated phrase “llorar why llorar” (to cry and cry) emphasizes the weight of the loss that will be felt. The second verse contrasts this feeling of being outside with a declaration of power – regardless of money, the singer always does what they want and their “palabra es la ley” (their word is the law). Yet, this is juxtaposed with loneliness – no throne, queen, or anyone who understands them. Despite the loneliness, the singer remains “El Rey” – the king.
The chorus ties into the themes of power and fate, with the idea of finding one’s destiny through perseverance. The singer learns from a “piedra en el camino” (a stone on the road) that their destiny is to keep “rolling” along, and from an “arrielo” that it’s not necessarily about being the first to arrive, but about knowing how to arrive. In this way, the chorus encourages the singer (and perhaps, the listener) to embrace their own ability to shape their fate by persisting through obstacles and trusting their own instincts. The repetition of “rodar why rodar” reinforces this idea.
Overall, El Rey presents a complex portrait of power, loneliness, and perseverance, encouraging listeners to take control of their own lives and destinies, even with the understanding that there will be ups and downs along the way.
Line by Line Meaning
Yo sé bien que estoy afuera
I know very well that I am an outsider
Pero el día en que yo me muera
But the day I die
Sé que tendrás que llorar
I know that you will have to cry
(llorar why llorar, llorar why llorar)
(Cry and cry, cry and cry)
Dirás que no me quisiste
You will say that you didn't love me
Pero vas a estar muy triste
But you will be very sad
why así te vas a quedar
And that's how you will remain
Con dinero why sin dinero
With or without money
Hago siempre lo que quiero
I always do what I want
why mi palabra es la ley
And my word is the law
No tengo trono ni reina
I have no throne or queen
Ni nadie que me comprenda
And nobody who understands me
Pero sigo siendo el rey
But I continue to be the king
¡Échale!
Let's do it!
Una piedra en el camino
A stone on the road
Me enseño que mi destino era rodar why rodar
Showed me that my destiny was to roll and roll
(Rodar why rodar, rodar why rodar)
(Roll and roll, roll and roll)
Después me dijo un arrielo
Then a donkey driver told me
Que no hay que llegar primero
That it's not about arriving first
Sino hay que saber llegar
But about knowing how to get there
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Alejandro Lora Serna
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Carolina Hernández
Definitivamente está canción fue hecha para Luis Miguel, porque a pesar de ser uno de los artistas más criticados, es de los artistas más exitosos de los últimos tiempos 🐣✨
Caritobebe
Si,Cuando alguien es tan conocido a esa altura el riesgo más grande es la crítica.
Roberto Garcia
No hay nadie que represente a México como el y que viva orgulloso de su país. Merece respeto Don Vicente pero solamente, solo se le escucha en las fiestas y con unas copas emcima
Claudia Trana
A me mi Busta luis miguel el Dene o vos boneta
Javier Franco
Viva mi hermoso y lindo México 🇲🇽 querido caray!
Salud 🍻 puuuuuues
Raúl Bernal
A pesar de las críticas, de todas las cosas que te han dicho, sigues siendo grande SOL!, UN ÍDOLO PARA NUESTRO PAÍS, Interpretación magnífica del Rey más grande; José Alfredo Jiménez, pero tú también lo eres Sol!, Nadie podrá igualarte jamás! 🇲🇽❤️
Diaz Clemente Yabin
Cómo siempre Warner Music México alegrando la noche
GladysElizabeth Brito
Ayer hoy mañana y por los siglos de los siglos, serás "El Rey" #LuisMiguel
Mercedes Silvia Navas Guillardoy
Échale ... que eres el Rey como
siempre lo serás!. Porque estabas destinado a vivir este
camino y darnos todo lo que nos das
GRACIAS SR WARNER.
angela Dosantos
Hermosa música 😍