Ricky Martin's rise to global stardom came at a cost. He recalls how he once travelled across three continents in 24 hours, performing in each one. On another occasion, he counted 70 interviews in a single day, changing his wardrobe between stops to accommodate different markets.
Those were the demands of an international career taking off, when the Puerto Rican singer was promoting hits such as “María” to audiences around the world. Looking back, Martin remembers the pace as exhausting, but not something he would change.
“It was crazy, but I don’t regret it at all,” he tells Rolling Stone Canada, as he rolled into Niagara Falls for a sold-out performance at Fallsview Casino.
The music industry that propelled Martin to international stardom has changed considerably since those days. One of the biggest differences, he says, is that Latin artists no longer have to record in English to reach audiences outside their home markets.
“Before, in order to get played on the radio, we had to sing in English,” Martin says. “Now, we can reach audiences all over the world singing in our own language.”
He credits digital and streaming platforms with helping Latin music reach listeners in places that once seemed difficult to penetrate. The shift has taken years of work from artists across the genre, but Martin believes the results are now unmistakable.
“The barriers that kept us apart are now gone, and Latin music is stronger than ever on a global scale,” the 54 year-old artist explains. “It has taken a lot of work and many years to get here, but I feel that our music and culture are truly being embraced, so we are not going anywhere.”
Social media has also changed how Martin experiences the relationship between his music and its audience. Rather than waiting for sales figures, radio play or other industry indicators, he can see listeners' reactions almost immediately after releasing a track.
“For me as an artist, social media is one of the greatest gifts, because I get to see in real time what the audience is thinking and feeling about what I’m sharing,” he says. “I can release a song, and two minutes later I can read the reactions. That’s priceless.”
He also sees the continued appeal of his older material as proof that songs can outlast the circumstances in which they were recorded. When people of different ages sing along to his catalogue, Martin says, it reminds him that music can keep finding new listeners long after its initial release.
His own live show continues to evolve with those audiences. Martin's current tour began a couple of years ago with an intended one-year run, but strong audience response has led to extensions across multiple territories. For the 2026 dates, he has made adjustments to the setlist, tailoring the repertoire to the places he visits.
“Depending on where I’m performing, I sing more songs in English, while in other places I sing entirely in Spanish,” he says. “It’s good for me as well to have a little bit of variety within the same show.”
Martin has also revealed he plans to release a new album next year, which will bring a complete overhaul of the live production.
His latest single, “pikito pikito,” featuring Brazilian DJ and producer Pedro Sampaio, offers a preview of his continuing interest in musical collaboration across borders. Martin had followed Sampaio's work for some time before the NFL invited him to perform at its Rio de Janeiro halftime show. He saw an opportunity to make a track that combined his sound with Brazilian rhythms that have been part of his life for years.
Its live debut before 70,000 people at Rio's Maracanã Stadium was a highlight for Martin.
While no new dates have been announced, Ricky Martin says Canada has been another constant in his touring career. He has performed in the country on every tour since 1998, and returning still feels familiar. “Every time I get to perform here, it feels like I never left,” he says. “I feel the love, and all I want to do is give it back.”
