Who is Lupillo Rivera?
Guadalupe ‘Lupillo’ Rivera Saavendra was born in Long Beach, California USA, on 30 January 1972 – his zodiac sign is Aquarius, he’s of Mexican ethnicity, and he holds both Mexican and American nationality. He’s a singer, songwriter and an actor, known best internationally for his album “Despereciado”.
Early life and education
Lupillo was born to Rosa Saavendra and Pedro Rivera, and was raised a devout Roman Catholic. His parents are originally from Mexico, but emigrated to US a few years before Lupillo was born.
His late older sister, Jenni Rivera, was also a famous singer; she died in a plane crash in 2012.
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His younger sister Rosie is a reality TV star, known for appearing in “I love Jenni” and “Rica, Famosa, Latina”. Lupillo also has three brothers, named Juan, Pedro and Gustavo.
Lupillo attended the local Long Beach Polytechnic High School, from which he matriculated in 1990. He didn’t enroll at a college, and originally wanted to become a restaurant owner before he discovered his talent for music.
Music career
Lupillo started singing almost accidentally -his father Pedro owned a recording studio, and one day, when a recording artist failed to show up for a session, he hired Lupillo to work for him.
He was given the task of scouting local bars, in search of new people to sign for his father’s studio. However, Lupillo wound up trying out singing himself, and became known under the nickname ‘El Torito’. Later on, he started performing under the name ‘El Toro del Corrido’, which he got from his uncle, who was a professional boxer known as ‘El Toro Rivera’.
Lupillo released his debut studio album “Selena, La Estrella” in 1995, but it failed to attract an audience outside of the local Hispanic community. Four years later, he was noticed by major record labels, and signed a deal with Sony Discos. In the same year, he released two more albums – “El Moreno” and “Puros Corridos Macizos” – under his own name.
The success of his new music launched Lupillo into stardom, and in 2001, he was rewarded with a Premios lo Nuestro, one of the most prestigious awards for Latin music artists.
On 13 February 2001, Lupillo released his perhaps most commercially successful album to date, “Despreciado”. It became his first album to reach the #1 spot on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart, and also won him two Billboard Latin Music Awards. It also charted on the Billboard 200 list, and was Lupillo’s first album to be certified gold.
By 2004, he released six more studio albums, including “Amorcio Corazon”, “De Bohemia con Lupillo Rivera” and “Con Mis Propias Manos”, which became his second album to top the Billboard Top Latin Albums Chart.
In the same year, Lupillo was nominated for his first Latin Grammy Award, in the Best Banda Album category, and again for the same award in the following year, but lost again to Banda El Recordo.
Lupillo’s career reached its peak in the late 2000’s, when he was nominated for three Grammy Awards for the Best Banda Album in three consecutive years. He won his first Grammy in 2010, for his album “Tu Esclavo y Amo”.
In 2021, he came back to releasing new music after more than 10 years, with his new single “Grandes Ligas” featuring Aleman, Santa Fe Klan, B-Real and Snoop Dogg.
Acting career
Aside from singing, Lupillo has also had roles in several movies and telenovelas.
He made his acting debut in 1995, when he appeared in the Mexican drama film “Las Nieves de Enero”, which starred Fina Coronado, Elilio Franco and Arturo Gonzalez Pudilo. In 2003, he had a voiceover role in the Spanish language version of the animated movie “The Three Wise Men”, following the story of Jesus’ birth.
Lupillo’s next film role was in the 2007 thriller comedy drama “One Long Night”, written and directed by David Siqueros. In 2013, he made his debut telenovela appearance in Televisa’s “Libre Para Amarte”. Two years later, he appeared in an episode of “Amores con Trampa”, and more recently, in 2021 he maed a cameo appearance in “La Suerte de Loli”.
Rivera family controversies
It’s no secret that the Rivera family members don’t necessarily harbor the nicest feeling for each other.
Lupillo wasn’t on good terms with his sister, Jenni, up to a few weeks before her passing, but the family always seemed to get back together until her death caused a gulf in family relations. Lupillo hasn’t been on good terms with his three brothers for more than 10 years, and the situation hardly seems to change. The public feud started shortly after Jenni passed away, as the brothers accused each other of using her death for personal gain on several occasions.
In 2013, the family made headlines after Lupillo’s brother, Gustavo, attacked him with a baseball bat, while he was sitting in an SUV with his wife and children. Gustavo later apologized, but Lupillo publicly said that he can’t forgive his brother for what he had done. This happened shortly after Lupillo refused to participate in the commemorative service for his late sister, but it’s unclear whether that’s what ultimately caused the physical altercation.
In the following year, he often publicly criticized members of his family, accusing his brother, Juan of being a thief, and voicing his grievances that Jenni’s son, Michael, had issues with the law. He also accused his younger sister, Rosie of wanting to sell the right to Jenni’s story to make a TV series.
In 2017, the situation escalated after Lupillo and his father Pedro, filmed a music video at the place where Jenni’s remains were found, which sparked criticism from the rest of the Rivera family, and the general public.
However, in 2020, Lupillo seemed to have reconciled with his brothers, but a new fight between him and Juan escalated in May 2021, for undisclosed reasons, and there seem to be no new signs of the family relations going back to normal.
Love life and wife
Lupillo was previously married to the entrepreneur, Mayeli Alonso, with whom he has two children, Karizma and Irey.
The two married in 2006, but separated in 2018, after more than 12 years of marriage. Mayeli is known for being the CEO of the online false eyelashes store, Town of Lashes, and is also running a fashion blog, called Pink Fashionista.
As of May 2021, Lupillo has been married to the social media star Giselle Soto, who is 23 years his junior. The two tied the knot in a private ceremony, and waited a few weeks to announce their marriage in an open-air press conference.
Prior to marrying his first wife, Mayeli, Luopillo was in a relationship with fellow Latin singer, Belinda, whose face he has had tattooed on his left biceps.
Height, age and net worth
Lupillo is 49 years old. He’s bald and has brown eyes, is 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, and weighs around 187lbs (85kgs).
As of January 2022, his net worth is estimated at more than $12.5 million.
