Marc Anthony was born Marco Antonio Muniz, on September 16, 1969 in New York City . Today he is considered to be one of the leading salsa and latin pop music performers in the world.

Marc Anthony began his career as a session vocalist for pop and dance acts. His Puerto Rican parents boasted a strong Latin music heritage and named their son after a Mexican singer. Under his new name, Marc Anthony worked as a songwriter and backup vocalist for pop acts including Menudo and the Latin Rascals. He subsequently collaborated with House producer Vega, Little Louie, who featured the singer on the Latin-flavoured club hit "Ride On The Rhythm" and "When The Night Is Over".

In 1992, Vega and Marc Anthony opened for Puerto Rican bandleader Tito Puente at New York's Madison Square Garden. Seeking new inspiration from the music of Tito Puente, Ruben Blades and Juan Gabriel, Marc Anthony performed at the Latin music convention Radio y Musica; his first step on the road to salsa stardom. He released his Spanish -language debut recording, Otra Nota, in 1993, and achieved his first taste of mainstream success performing the hit duet Vivir lo Nuestro with salsa singer La India in 1994.

Subsequent tours throughout the Americas, including an opening slot for Ruben Blades established Marc Anthony as one of the hottest new stars in salsa. His excellent 1995 collection, Todo A Su Tiempo, was nominated for a Grammy. The more traditional -sounding follow-up, Contra La Corriente, was promoted by a sell-out solo concert at Madison Square Garden, which included hits such as "Si Te Vas". Marc Anthony also appeared alongside Blades in Paul Simon's 1998 stage musical, The Capeman, which closed after only 68 regular performances.

Rebounding from that failure, Marc Anthony began working on his English language debut with a crew of leading producers, including Rodney Jerkins and Walter Afanasieff. Released in September 1999, and promoted by the US Top 5 hit single 'I Need To Know', the self-titled collection was a clear attempt to emulate the crossover success of Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin, at the risk of angering his traditional salsa fans. Marc Anthony had already appeared with Lopez on the duet "No Me Ames", taken from her "On The 6" collection.

That year also saw the release of his next album, the self-titled Marc Anthony. His first English language album, it featured hit songs "I Need to Know" and "You Sang to Me". Moreover, the album demonstrated that Anthony could deliver his great voice equally well in English as his native Spanish. While some critics maintained that the work fell short of the energy of his earlier salsa-laden Spanish language albums, it was well received in the mainstream USA market.

A wonderful compilation album, Desde Un Principio was also released that year. It included one of the most sensually haunting songs in any language: Hasta Ayer, and Anthony's rendition of the Puerto Rican classic song composed by Rafael Hernández, "Preciosa". To round out that busy year of 1999, Marc Anthony appeared alongside Nicolas Cage in Martin Scorsese's Bringing Out The Dead.

In 2001, Libre, was released in English and Spanish versions. The album follows in the spirit of his hugely successful album, Contra La Corriente. The CD has nine tracks including including the hit single "Celos" and several other wondefully crafted and executed songs, such as "Este Loco Que te Mira" and "Barco a la Deriva" and ending with the bolero, "Caminaré". ~ Music of Puerto Rico