Jorge Drexler

Uruguayan musician Jorge Drexler first won wide recognition in 2004 for winning an Academy Award for his song "Al Otro Lado del Rio" featured in the film The Motorcycle Diaries. Before taking up music full time, Drexler followed in the family career of medicine, becoming an ear, nose and throat specialist. In 1992 he moved to Spain, where Joaquin Sabina introduced him to many important singers and songwriters. His music is influenced by traditional Uruguayan beats, bossa nova, pop, milonga and electronic music. Love, humor, reflections on identity and culture feature strongly in his lyrics, although one of his most popular songs is a Spanish cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean is Not My Girl."