Martin's concert canceled due to 'poor' political conditions

JAKARTA (JP): A planned charity concert by American pop star Ricky Martin was canceled because of the unrest in Jakarta.

Puerto Rico-born pop idol Martin was due to stage his show, called Ricky Martin Live in Concert, as part of the South East Asian leg of his tour, at Plenary Hall, Jakarta Convention Center, on Nov. 24.

Martin is the second international singer to cancel a concert in Jakarta. Julio Iglesias, scheduled to perform in a Jakarta hotel earlier this week, canceled his show for similar reasons.

Adrie Subono, an executive of Java Musikindo, which organized Martin's concert, said that he regretted the cancellation, but it would be insensitive to stage the concert during the current social and political conditions.

"We realize that Indonesians are now going through a very difficult and vulnerable situation, so we canceled the concert because we felt it would be inappropriate to stage the show," he said.

Born Enrique Martin Morales, the 26-year-old singer stole the hearts of young and old music lovers throughout the world when he composed and sang the theme song, entitled La Copa de La Vida (The Cup of Life), for World Cup l998, held in France from June to July.

La Copa de La Vida, along with a number of other songs, was chosen by the Federation of International Football Association, CFO, and Sony Music Entertainment for the theme song of the World Cup. The song has sold millions of copies worldwide.

Martin, well-known for his catchy, party songs, started his music career at a very young age. He joined the popular Latin music group Menudo when he was 12 years old. He also carved out an acting career in Mexico, appearing in several Latin soap operas, including Mom Loves Rock and Alcanzar Una Estrealla.

Martin moved to Los Angeles, where he had a role in the popular soap opera General Hospital. He also tried a theater career in New York, playing student activist Marius in the Broadway production of Les Miserables.

The Latin Lover, as Martin's fans call him, produced a number of albums, including Ricky Martin, Me Amaras and A Medio Vivir. He was also awarded a number of prestigious awards, such as The Gaviota of Plata, for his contributions to the development of Latin Music.

Martin's fans who have already bought tickets for the concert will be given refunds. "We will immediately reimburse all the sold tickets and vouchers. But if anybody wants to donate their money, we would be glad to distribute the money to the needy," Subono said.

He also said that the organizer had planned to donate the money from the concert to needy people in Jakarta and other cities in the country. The money would have been used to buy various basic commodities, and would have been distributed to several subdistricts in Jakarta.

Martin is scheduled to hold his next concert on Nov. 25 in Singapore.

Previously, a concert by Spanish heartthrob Julio Iglesias was canceled.

Iglesias, who had already performed in Jakarta several times, initially planned to promote his latest album, My Life: The Greatest Hits.

Sony Music Indonesia, the concert's organizer, said Iglesias, was due to arrive in Jakarta last Friday (Nov.13), but decided to go to Bali instead.

The singer spent four days on the Indonesian resort island, producing a video of a duet, To All The Girls I've Loved Before, with Indonesian singer Andre Hehanusa.

The artist expressed concern over the troubles Indonesians were facing, saying he is familiar with Indonesia and is concerned by the situation.

The Spanish singer left Bali on Tuesday for Shanghai, another stop on the tour to promote his latest album. (raw)