Even if you haven’t hummed along with his music in a hot minute, you know who Ricky Martin is. The singer is a worldwide musical sensation, and for many of us, his songs were a big part of our teenage soundtrack.
As you may or may not know, Ricky Martin had twins many years ago. Now that these twins are mostly grown-up, they are stunning the world. It’s not hard to see why: they are the spitting image of this lyrical superstar!
Just how did Ricky Martin realize his dream of having children, and how has parenthood been very different from what he originally imagined? Keep reading to find out!
Ricky Martin’s initial rise to fame
Ricky Martin obviously became famous due to his music, but his path to superstardom was a bit different from most musical celebs. That’s because Martin first became a star in Latin America, and after the release of his third album A Medio Vivir, he was embraced by many countries throughout Europe.
His real breakout success came with the 1999 release of his self-titled English album Ricky Martin. This included the song “Livin’ la Vida Loca,” and both the song and album topped the charts. It wasn’t long before seemingly everyone knew the words to his breakout tune, just as everyone knew the name of the singer. Just like that, Ricky Martin had become a household name.
A complicated dream of fatherhood
Believe it or not, Ricky Martin dreamed of being a father for a long time before it happened. However, he faced a particular difficulty in making this dream happen. As reported by People, the singer once said, “Many years I dreamt of being a father, and many, many, many times I went through this grieving process of ‘I am gay, I am a closeted gay man, and I’m not going to be able to be a daddy.”
However, Martin eventually decided to take the plunge. Thanks to a surrogate, he was able to become a single father. His twins were born in 2008 and soon became the light of his life. For a time, he thought he’d have to face parenthood alone, but that (at least temporarily) wasn’t the case.
Discovering the joys of marriage and parenthood
For nearly a decade, Ricky Martin ended up raising his twins by himself. However, in 2017, he married a man named Jwan Yosef. Together, these two ended up having two more children of their very own. Early on, Martin wasted no time making his husband part of the twins’ lives as well, explaining to them that having two fathers was just part of being a modern family unit.
Sadly, the marriage didn’t last. In July 2023, the once-happy couple announced that they were getting divorced. While that’s obviously sad to hear, it’s clear that Martin will be spending even more time bonding with the children who have come to define his life.
Following dad to work
Most of what we know about Ricky Martin’s twins comes from the singer’s social media posts. On Instagram, for example, he frequently regales fans with stories of what the children have been up to. Perhaps our favorite example of this is that the kids sometimes accompany their father to work.
Of course, when you’re a musical legend, “bring your kid to work day” is always a treat. In this case, Martin has posted about how the twins sometimes come to the set to watch their dad film a new music video. Once you see young Matteo just chilling out in the director’s chair, it’s quite clear these kids are having serious fun.
Daddy’s little critics
Interestingly, the twins do more than just watch Ricky Martin’s music videos getting produced. They also offer feedback on his latest musical stylings. And as you might expect from the teenage sons of a rock star, their feedback can be downright brutal!
At one point, Martin casually mentioned how his kids would bluntly ask him why he was singing worse that day when he sounded so much better the day before. They offer similar criticisms of his dance moves. You might think this would offend Martin (after all, it was his talents as a singer and dancer that made the family wealthy), but he says he respects the honesty his children bring with their criticisms.
The spitting image of their father
For fans of Ricky Martin, the most eye-catching detail about his twins is how much they resemble their famous father. Now that the children are nearly grown up, nobody can deny that they are the spitting image of their dad!
Simply looking like Ricky Martin, however, doesn’t mean the twins want to follow in his footsteps. They actually have very different interests, both from their dad and from each other. According to the singer, Matteo is more interested in artistic pursuits, but Valentino has dreams of becoming a breakout star on YouTube. No matter what these kids choose to do, we’re certain they’ll be “living la vida loca” with the full support of their loving father.