Translated from the original Spanish article. Read in Spanish
Karol G fills stadiums all over the world. But she almost ended up being called Tomás.
These are ten things you probably didn't know about "La Bichota".
10. She was going to be called Tomás
According to her mother, the ultrasound seemed to show a boy, and the family already had the name ready: Tomás.
But a girl was born, in Medellín, on February 14: Valentine's Day, 1991.
9. Her real name and the "G"
Her real name is Carolina Giraldo Navarro. "Karol" comes from Carolina, and there are two versions about the G: that it stands for Giraldo, or for the rap group G-Unit, which she was a huge fan of at school.
8. Music from age five
She started studying music at five, together with her sister, and later studied music at the University of Antioquia.
7. The X Factor didn't pick her
As a teenager she auditioned for The X Factor in Colombia, and wasn't chosen. But that failure opened a door: a producer who saw her offered her her first record deal.
She was turned down on The X Factor, but that's where the producer who gave her first contract saw her.
6. Her dad is her manager
Her father, Guillermo Giraldo, isn't just her dad: he's also her manager and one of her biggest supporters.
5. She learned the business in New York
In 2014 she moved to New York. Riding the subway, she saw ads for music management courses, and signed up to understand the business from the inside.
4. Closed doors
She herself has said that, for years, doors were closed to her because she was a woman in a male-dominated genre: reggaeton.
3. "Mañana será bonito" made history
In 2023, her album "Mañana será bonito" became the first all-Spanish-language album by a woman to reach number one on the Billboard 200.
The same album won the Latin Grammy for Album of the Year, and later the Grammy for Best Música Urbana Album.
2. Billboard's Woman of the Year
In 2024, Billboard named her Woman of the Year. She was the first artist who sings mainly in Spanish to receive that award.
1. A 313-million-dollar tour
According to Billboard, her first stadium tour grossed more than 313 million dollars, with 2.3 million tickets sold across 65 concerts.
Her stadium tour: more than 313 million dollars and 2.3 million tickets.
From the girl who was almost named Tomás to one of the biggest artists in the world.
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Watch the video on YouTubeIs Karol G already Colombia's biggest artist, or is that still Shakira?
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Sources (in Spanish)
- Nombre «Tomás» (según su madre, Martha Cecilia Navarro): La Prensa (Nicaragua), «Diez datos curiosos sobre Karol G».
- Nacimiento, nombre real, origen de la «G», estudios de música, Universidad de Antioquia, Factor X y primer contrato: Wikipedia (Karol G), El Tiempo, Hoy (República Dominicana) y Univision.
- Su padre, Guillermo Giraldo, como mánager: Hoy (República Dominicana).
- Nueva York (2014) y cursos de administración musical: Wikipedia (Karol G).
- Primer álbum 100 % en español de una mujer en el número uno del Billboard 200: Billboard (marzo de 2023).
- Grammy Latino al álbum del año 2023 y Grammy 2024 al mejor álbum de música urbana: AP y Latin GRAMMY.
- Mujer del Año de Billboard 2024: Billboard.
- Gira de estadios (313,3 millones de dólares, 2,3 millones de entradas, 65 conciertos): Billboard Boxscore.
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