Luis Vargas
Luis Rafael Valdez Vargas (born 23 May 1961) is a Dominican musician and singer. He became involved in popular music after meeting a local musician who taught him how to play guitar.
Also recorded as El rey supremo "el borrachon" · Luis Rafael Valdez Vargas
Luis Vargas

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- Name
- Luis Vargas
- Birth Name
- Luis Rafael Valdez Vargas
- Born
- 23 May 1961
- Birthplace
- Monte Cristi Province, Dominican Republic
- Occupation
- * Musician
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Luis Rafael Valdez Vargas (born 23 May 1961) is a Dominican musician and singer. He became involved in popular music after meeting a local musician who taught him how to play guitar.
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museum · 646eebe8-1fd7-4464-b0f4-910ae51ee1ab · wikidata · Q6701187
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Luis Vargas • Birth Name — Luis Rafael Valdez Vargas • Born — 23 May 1961 • Birthplace — Monte Cristi Province, Dominican Republic • Genre — * Latin • Bachata • Occupation — * Musician • singer • Instrument — * Vocals • guitar • Years Active — 1980–present • Label — * Jose Luis Records • JVN Music, Inc. • Sony Music Latin
Early life
Early life
Vargas was born in 1961 in Las Matas de Santa Cruz in the Monte Cristi province. He grew up in a poor household. He became involved in bachata music after meeting a local musician who taught him how to play guitar. He developed his style with influences from Blas Durán and Eladio Romero Santos.
Career
Career
• Illustration — Luis Vargas rey supremo - un verano paseando en ny • Illustration — Luis Vargas rey supremo - un verano paseando en ny Vargas entered onto the bachata scene in the early 1980s. He was one of the first bachata artists to go into the Latin mainstream. Vargas is credited as the first bachatero to use guitar pedals, who he got the idea from bachata sound engineer Rafael Montilla. Montilla added a chorus pedal to Vargas guitar while recording his album El Maiz in 1991. He is also credited as the first bachatero to implement the use of humbucker pickups on acoustic electric guitars. Luis Vargas self-produced, promoted and sold his first albums in the early 1980's. Supported by local artists Pedro Pimentel, Artemio Sánchez, and Antonio Carrasco, his music began being played by local radio stations. After issuing his music through an independent label called José Luis Records, Sony Discos (now Sony Music Latin) signed him in 1996, releasing Volvio el Dolor in 1997. He is the first bachata artist signed to Sony Music Latin. Antony Santos, considered by some to be one of the most influential bachata musicians of all time, was his güira player. Vargas was Santos guitar mentor. After Santos left Vargas group to form his own, they soon became rivals. They even released diss tracks to one another, including "El Envidioso", "El Brazo Largo", "El Gato Seco", "El Charlatan", among others. Vargas became famous for his guitar licks and double entendres. He is known as "El Rey Supremo de la Bachata," ("the supreme king of the bachata") not to be confused with Aventura, "Los Reyes de la Bachata Moderna" ("the kings of modern bachata"). Aventura has credited Luis Vargas as one of the groups inspirations, although they had conflicts with Vargas in the past.
Studio albums
Studio albums
• El Debate: Merengues de Verdad (1983) • El Rey Supremo (1988) • Sin Hueso (1989) • El Tomate (1990) • La Maravilla (1990) • El Maíz (1991) • Candela (1992) • En Serio (1993) • Loco de Amor (1994) • Fuera de Serie (1995) • Rompiendo Corazones (1996) • Volvió el Dolor (1997) • Desamor (1999) • Inocente (2000) • En Persona (2001) • Supernatural (2002) • La Sangre Llama (2003) • Mensajero (2004) • Inolvidable (2005) • Urbano (2007) • The Legend (2010) • Los 5 Sentidos (2012) • Un Beso En Paris (2015) • La Raíz (2019) • El Campeón (2023)
Live albums
Live albums
• En Vivo: Hablando Crudo (2002)
Compilation albums
Compilation albums
• Super Caliente (1997) • Disco De Oro (1998) • Disco De Oro, Vol. 2 (1998) • Yo Soy Así (2002) • Luis Vargas: 12 Exitos, Vol. 1 (2003) • Luis Vargas: 12 Exitos, Vol. 2 (2003) • Todo Éxitos (2004) • Éxitos De Luis Vargas (2005) • UniqueHits (2014) • 1 (2015) • Mi Historia Musical (2019) • 40 Años De Trayectoria "Desde El Principio" Vol. 1 (2022) • 40 Años De Trayectoria "Lo Que Continuo" Vol. 2 (2022)
Collaborative albums
Collaborative albums
• Dobletazo Vol.1 (with Teodoro Reyes) (1995) • María Díaz y Luis Vargas (with María Díaz) (1997) • Mano A Mano (with Antony Santos) (2002) • Grandes de La Bachata: Vol. 4 (2008) • Quiero Morir Haciendo El Amor (with Mery Peña) (2016)
Works and production
Works and production
The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count. Recorded with the occupation guitarist. It is also recorded that luis Vargas is recorded as a citizen of Dominican Republic. Recorded with the gender male. Born on 23 May 1961. It is also recorded that luis Vargas is recorded with the occupation musician.
Films
• En Persona (2001) • Santo Domingo Blues (The Bachata Story) (2004)
Primary material
Documents and archives
Institutional database
- MusicBrainz artist record for Luis Vargas
Scholarly · MetaBrainz Foundation
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q6701187: Luis Vargas
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Rojas, Eunice. Sounds of Resistance: The Role of Music in Multicultural Activism [2 volumes]: The Role of Music in Multicultural Activism. ABC-CLIO. 8 October 2013. 978-0-313-39806-3.
- 2.Catsoulis, Jeannette. A Musical Style Goes From Bordello to National Treasure. The New York Times.
- 3.Catsoulis, Jeannette. A Musical Style Goes From Bordello to National Treasure. The New York Times.
- 4.David Wayne. Luis Vargas – Bachata pioneer. IASO Records.com.
- 5.Catsoulis, Jeannette. A Musical Style Goes From Bordello to National Treasure. The New York Times. 30 September 2005. 0362-4331.
- 6.Bachata Sound Technician Rafael Montilla Music and Guitar.
- 7.Sellers, Julie A. The Modern Bachateros: 27 Interviews. McFarland. 7 February 2017. 978-0-7864-9882-6.
- 8.Luis Vargas Biography & History. AllMusic.
- 9.Luis Vargas iASO Records. www.iasorecords.com.
- 10.Luis Vargas – Bachata pioneer iASO Records. www.iasorecords.com.
- 11.Aventura broke the rules of bachata iASO Records. www.iasorecords.com.
- 12.Santo Domingo Blues: Los Tigueres de la Bachata.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
Institutional database
MusicBrainz artist record for Luis VargasMetaBrainz Foundation
Institutional witnessauthority record
General reference
People, houses and institutions
Knowledge graph
People, houses and institutions
Teachers, collaborators, publishers and institutions recorded against this person, each on a stated basis.
Born at
1- Monte Cristi ProvincePlace
Established from a fact already recorded on a verified source.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 19 August 2026.
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