In 1968, Julio Iglesias appeared at the Benidorm Festival with Life continues the same, a song composed by himself with which he conquered the public and led him to win the victory in the 10th edition of the contest. This iconic song, which marked the launch of the career of the Madrid artist who years later would shatter sales records, is also the title of the special live program that pays tribute to the most universal Spanish singer of all time and that Telecinco will offer tonight.
Joaquín Prat will lead Julio Iglesias. Life remains the same, a production by Mediaset España in collaboration with Producciones Mandarina and PlayTheUnit, the audiovisual production company of Unidad Editorial awarded in 2022 with the Iris Jury Prize of the Television Academy for the docuseries Rafa Nadal Academy, which through a extensive report offers a review of the professional and personal career of this legend of Spanish music, who has turned 80 and has become a global icon, a mass idol and a musical phenomenon.
Throughout the report, more than 50 personalities from social, political and cultural life – names in music such as Víctor Manuel, José Luis Rodríguez ‘El Puma’, Loquillo, Los del Río, Carlos Núñez and Pitingo; from sports, such as Pau Gasol, Xavi Hernández, Fernando Alonso and Pepe Reina; from politics, such as José María Aznar, José Bono and Abel Caballero; the comedians José Mota, Carlos Latre and Juan Luis Cano; and the journalists Luis del Olmo, Miguel de los Santos, Jaime Peñafiel, Rosa Villacastín and Nieves Herrero – reveal some of the secrets of Julio Iglesias. In addition, it welcomes the testimonies of his former managers Fernán Martínez and Joaquín Domingo Martorell and various people who shared their childhood and youth with him.
“What we have tried to do is a tribute to the figure of Julio Iglesias, moving away from the controversies of the tabloid press,” says David Castro, producer of the special program. “We were not interested in stories about skirt troubles, but we wanted to focus on his story of improvement, his professional career and the milestones in his life that conditioned him and led him to be the universal character that he is today. from today”.
Julio’s life changed when he suffered a traffic accident that seriously affected his health and left him with lifelong scars on his back. It was during that recovery process when he picked up a guitar and the artist was born. The Benidorm festival was his springboard. Then came his participation in Eurovision and later the conquest of America.
In between, he suffered a severe setback: the kidnapping of his father. Dr. Iglesias Puga is an essential figure in Julio’s life, and this is reflected in one of his hits: Un canto a Galicia. The artist spent summers there with his family when he was a child. But his attachment to this land goes further, and already being a world star, he has continued to make more than one getaway on his private plane to visit friends or enjoy a good meal.
In addition to being an artist, Julio has been the best ambassador that Spain has ever had. Not only did they open the doors of the White House to him, but personalities and presidents from all over the world have passed through his house in Miami. As José Bono recalls in his interviews, even the Zapatero Government turned to him to resolve a diplomatic incident with the United States.
Today, at 80 years old, there is not a generation that does not know Julio Iglesias. Most of us know him through his music. Many others, the younger ones, have discovered it on their mobile phones thanks to the memes that flood the chats with his face every summer.
