Consuelo Velasquez Pop singer, author Date of Birth: 22.11.1924 Country: Mexico

Biography of Consuelo Velasquez

Consuelo Velasquez was a Mexican pianist and composer. At the young age of 16, she composed the captivating Mexican melody "Bésame Mucho" (translated as "Kiss Me Much") in 1941. The sincerity and simplicity of Velasquez's emotions resonated with people from all countries and continents, and her song has been performed and listened to by generations.

Official records indicate that the record sales of "Bésame Mucho" reached over 100 million copies in more than a hundred countries, translated into 120 languages. Renowned artists such as The Beatles, opera tenor Placido Domingo, jazz stars Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald, actor Frank Sinatra, and Soviet pop artists Gleb Romanov, Ruzhena Sikora, and Nikolay Nikitsky have all performed the song.

During one of her visits to Moscow, a taxi driver recognized Velasquez as the composer of "Bésame Mucho" and refused to accept payment for her fare. According to Velasquez herself, she had never been kissed when she composed the song, making "Kiss Me Much" a dream, a premonition, and a desire.

After the death of her husband, Consuelo Velasquez lived a solitary life in a small house on the outskirts of Mexico City with her artist son. Interestingly, while the 20th century is known for its bloody wars, space exploration, the creation of the atomic bomb, and the popularization of miniskirts, its symbol became a simple, sincere, and melancholic song about the anticipation of first love.