Juan Sabastian Martienez, better known as Juanes (born August 5, 1965 in Carolina del Príncipe, Antioquia) is a Colombian fusion musician. During the 1980s and 1990s, Juanes was a member ofheavy metal band Ekhymosis but disbanded the group in 1998 to pursue a solo career. His 2000 solo debut album, Fíjate Bien, had moderate commercial success and went on to win three Latin Grammy Awards. He has won 17 Latin Grammy awards, more than any other artist. Since Juanes started using the music of rural Colombia: a mixture of Indigenous, African and Hispanic rhythms, he became a successful and popular star in Colombia and the rest of the Americas. His second album, Un día normal, was certified platinum throughout much of the Spanish-speaking world, and its lead single "A Dios le pido" topped singles charts in twelve countries. Mi sangre, his third album, fared equally well with Juanes promoting it on a tour with over 200 performances. The album's third single, "La camisa negra", generated controversy after being used as a symbol for Italian neo-fascism. Juanes is one of the best-selling Colombian musicians, having sold more than ten million albums and won seventeen Latin Grammys. Juanes is also known for his humanitarian work, especially with aid for Colombian victims of anti-personnel mines.

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Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (born September 20, 1975, in Bogotá, Colombia) is a race car driver in NASCAR and a former Formula One and CART driver. He has enjoyed great success, most famously in top open wheel racing series. He currently drives the #42 Target/Wrigley's Chevrolet Impala for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. The highlights of his career include winning the International F3000 championship in 1998, and the CART Championship Series in 1999, as well as victories in some of the most prestigious races in the world. He is the only driver to have won the premier North American open-wheel CART title, the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Daytona, all at the first attempt. Montoya is one of two drivers to have won the CART title in his rookie year, the first being Formula One World Champion Nigel Mansell in 1993. He has also equalled Graham Hill's feat of being a Monaco Grand Prix and Indianapolis 500 race winner; Montoya is currently one of only two active drivers (along with Jacques Villeneuve) who has won two legs of the Triple Crown of Motorsport. Montoya has also become a crossover race winner by taking race victories (staring in each case in his rookie year) in Formula One, CART, IndyCar, Grand-AM and NASCAR equalling in that respect Mario Andretti's caliber of success (except for the F1 World Championship); And shares honors as well with Dan Gurney in being IndyCar/F1/NASCAR race winner. Montoya is also the only driver to have competed in all three major events at Indianapolis, finishing fourth or better in each event. He finished 1st in the Indianapolis 500, 2nd in the Brickyard 400, and 4th in the US Grand Prix. In April 2009, Montoya was ranked 29th in a list of the top 50 Formula One drivers of all time by Times Online

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• Lee Pryer

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (born: February 2, 1977) known simply as Shakira, is a Colombian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, dancer and philanthropist who emerged as a musical prodigy in the music scene of Latin America in the mid-1990s. Born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia, Shakira revealed many of her talents in school as a live performer, demonstrating her vocal ability with rock and roll, Latin and Middle Eastern influences with her own original twist on belly dancing. Shakira is a native Spanish speaker and also speaks fluent English, Portuguese,Italian, and some Arabic. She has won two Grammy Awards, eight Latin Grammy Awards, and has been Golden Globe-nominated. She is also the highest-selling Colombian artist of all time, having sold more than 50 million albums worldwide, according to BMI. She is also the only artist from South America to reach the number-one spot on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, Canadian Hot 100, the Australian ARIA chart, and the UK Singles Chart. Shakira was to be awarded with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which would have made her the first Colombian to receive this honor.

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