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Menudo music biography continued...

consisted of Puerto Rican teenage brothers Carlos, Oscar, and Ricky Melendez, as well as Nefty and Fernando Sallaberry, Menudo toured Puerto Rico performing at shopping malls, fiestas patronales (a citywide yearly celebration), and other events. In 1977, they released their first album titled Los Fantasmas. The title track was a hit for the group, and they were able to get even a regular TV show on Telemundo Canal 2 every Saturday night. After that, they followed with a second album called Laura, but the boy band wouldn't truly break through until a whole new lineup came out with Quiero Ser in 1982. The album included hit songs like "Subete A Mi Moto", "Ella A-A", "Claridad", "Mi Banda Toca Rock", and a Spanish version of ABBA's song "Voulez-Vous," which made the band famous throughout Latin America. In 1983, Menudo signed with RCA International and their American fan base grew, especially among the young, as evidenced by "Menudo on ABC", a series of four-minute music spots that aired during the fall 1983 season of the ABC's youth-oriented Saturday morning programming block. In July 1984, Ricky Martin joined the group, and they became even more popular, reaching their peak in the US when they were seen on Pepsi, Scope, McDonald's and Crest television commercials.



Beginning in 1987, the group started facing some internal conflicts, and the line-up changed several times amidst various legal disputes. They were dropped by RCA and endured an image makeover into more of a rock group, only to have all the members except one depart the group in 1991. In 2007 it was announced that Menudo would return after signing a multi-album contract with SonyBMG label Epic Records. They would be managed by Johnny Wright and their music will be a fusion of urban contemporary, pop, and rock music, both in English and Spanish. The recasting of the band was profiled in a MTV reality series entitled Making Menudo, and with a whole new line-up they are poised to hit the big time once again.