Ricardo Arjona was born in Antigua, Guatemala in January, 19^th of 1964. Early in his life Ricardo characterized himself as an inquisitive child. From his early beginnings, Ricardo started to question long established doctrines. The nature of his questions often got him into trouble. For example, by the age of 8, Arjona wanted to find out if Jesus Christ had ever had a girlfriend. Having been brought up in a traditional Catholic system where questions of such a nature were considered blasphemy, Ricardo found himself rebelling against a system of long established beliefs. Except for his rebellious nature , Arjona was a normal child. However he grew increasingly rebellious during his adolescent years. After being graduated from college , he taught in rural schools in his native country, Guatemala. Later in life, Arjona became a basketball player. He played for his country , during the next few years. He then decided to start his career as a guitarist and composer. In search of new frontiers, Ricardo moved to Mexico City where he attempted to contact various record companies. After being turned down by various major record labels, Ricardo finally found a company which was willing to produce his music. His music, although controversial, started to spread throughout Central and South American countries. Ricardo's music started to ascend the ranks of the more popular songs. His unique compositions started to touch the hearts and lives of different people.

 

 

 

 

Ricardo works by observing people. He walks through the streets of different countries with the sole purpose of finding stories to write about. Ricardo uses the stories that he finds in the streets and turns them into musical compositions. His controversial compositions have given rise to critical remarks from journalists and religious leaders as well. One of his songs ”Jesus Verbo No Sustantivo”(Jesus a Verb not a Noun), was censored in many Central and South American countries. Ricardo states in many interviews that he writes to express his own point of view. When he writes, he invites people to think abut the simplicity and complexity of life’s issues. His compositions usually involve people in all walks of life. For example, one of his songs describes the daily experiences of a taxi cab driver as he goes about doing his job. The song then becomes a story that narrates the driver’s feelings and attitudes towards his encounter with a female passenger. Each story expressed as a song is thought provoking in that it allows the listener to stretch the limits of his own imagination. When Arjona writes, he doesn’t necessarily write about his own personal experiences in life. His passion for his career as a musician is a clear example of how productive we all could be if we lived our lives doing what we loved the most.