Yuridia Valenzuela Canseco, known mononymously as Yuri, is a Mexican singer, actress and television presenter. She began her career as a teenager. In 1978, she released her debut album titled Tú Iluminas mi Vida. She later gained recognition for participating in the OTI Festival in 1980. In the 1980s and early 1990s, Yuri established herself as one of the most popular pop music singers in Mexico and Latin America. Her vocal quality and versatility allow her to be incorporated into other musical genres, ranging from pop to dance, ranchera and tropical music genres. In the mid-1990s, Yuri paused her musical career to convert to Protestantism, and for a few years she devoted herself to Christian and gospel music. In 2002, she returned to commercial music with much greater impact than her first season as a pop singer. Since the mid-2000s and during this decade, Yuri has established herself as one of the most successful recording artists of Spanish-language music. She has released 29 studio albums and has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, making her one of the best-selling Latin artists in history.