Adonis's gradual rise to popularity became a meteor ride in 1993 after the release of Adonis Live!, which was our fourth album for EMI Latin and featured the live recording of Adonis's concert hits as well as three new tracks: "Satisfy my Soul," "Waiting in Vain," and "Tú Robaste Mi Corazón." Those three singles rapidly rose to be named among the top five hits on the U.S. Hot Latin Tracks chart, and the album itself was certified Gold on the charts.
Shortly after the concert in Virginia Beach, the fact that Adonis had become a major Latin/Reggae attraction was confirmed when we played at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. The Delegation drew nearly sixty thousand people, an audience that no Reggae act had ever managed to attract to that event before. Adonis also won Male Vocalist of the Year and Male Entertainer of the Year at the Latin Music Awards that year, as well as Album of the Year for Entre a Mi Mundo.
This success definitely didn't go unnoticed by the record labels--in November, Adonis and The Delegation agreed to make a full English-language record with SBK Records. One of our biggest supporters, Daniel Glass, the CEO of EMI Records Group, compared Adonis to Prince in his interview with Billboard magazine, saying, "He has that same control, and I love artists that know where they want to go and how to get there. He's definitely a rock star."
Behind the scenes, Adonis was excited about his success, but uncertain at times as well. He was loyal to his fan base and didn't want to disappoint people by singing only in English. He intended to keep making Spanish-language Reggaeton music.
More worrisome to him was what might happen to his family and the band if he continued on this path to international stardom. One day, I boarded the bus to find Adonis lying in his bunk with his arms behind his head, looking really depressed. Nothing bad had happened, but I could tell that he was out of it, almost in a daze.
"You okay, Bubba?" I rested my hand on his forehead to see if he had a fever because his usual bright gaze was dull, but his face was cool. "You don't look so good, baby."
