Photo: Jeff Pinilla / CC BY 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
J Balvin is one of the people who genuinely moved the needle for me. Born in Medellin in 1985, he went to the US at 17 to learn English, lived in Oklahoma and New York, then came back and built himself up in Colombian clubs. What I admire is that he made reggaeton in Spanish a global default rather than a niche, and he kept Medellin front and center while doing it. Multiple Latin Grammys for urban work back that up. The colorful, easygoing image hides a real ambition, and I think that mix is exactly why the music traveled so far.
Overview
José Álvaro Osorio Balvín (born 7 May 1985), known professionally as J Balvin, is a Colombian singer. He is one of the best-selling Latin artists, with 35 million records sold worldwide. Balvin was born in Medellín. At age 17, he moved to the United States to learn English, living in both Oklahoma and New York. He then returned to Medellín and gained popularity performing at clubs in the city.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- J Balvin
- Name (Japanese)
- J・バルヴィン
- Reading
- J・ばるゔぃん
- Born
- May 7, 1985 (age 41)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Taurus / Ox
- Origin
- Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- singer / record producer / songwriter / collector / rapper
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
Awards & achievements
- 2015 Latin Grammy Award for Best Urban Song
- 2018 Latin Grammy Award for Best Urban Music Album
- 2016 Latin Grammy Award for Best Urban Music Album
- 2024 Billboard Spirit of Hope Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
- Official sitehttps://jbalvin.com
- Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/jbalvin/
- Xhttps://x.com/JBALVIN
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%E3%83%BB%E3%83%90%E3%83%AB%E3%83%B4%E3%82%A3%E3%83%B3
Singer — see all → · Record producer — see all → · More people from Colombia →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.