"Manu Chao might just be the most interesting man in the entire world. He sings in seven languages, French, Spanish, Galician, Portuguese, Arabic, English and Wolof, and his music is influenced by the genres of rock, salsa, reggae, ska and Algerian rai. He has traveled as a nomad throughout the French countryside and lived alongside peasants in Mesoamerica and has most likely visited more places in one year than many of us can fill in a lifetime. Manu Chao doesn't just have the standard first, middle and last names. He has a first, second, third, forth and fifth name, and Jose-Manuel Thomas Arthur Chao is fascinating, intriguing and is credited with jumpstarting the Latin alternative movement back in the 1980s.Chao was born on June 26, 1961 in Paris to Spanish parents, and he spent his early childhood growing up in the Parisian suburbs of Boulogne-Billancourt and Sevres. He hung around the likes of artists and intellectuals, and many of his thoughts revolved around social justice and multicultural diversity, two elements that would eventually become recurring themes in his music. Chao appeared on the music scene in the early 1980s and became a local name in alternative music in Paris nightclubs and bars tucked down quaint alleyways. In 1987, Chao, his brothers and his cousin founded the band that would help carry them to the top. Mano Negra released their first hit ""Mala Vifa"" and subsequently toured most of world, making stops in port cities and using ships' platforms as their stage.The sounds that wafted from those crowded bars and colorful streets that weaved through the world's most romantic city were drifting outward. The songs demanded freedom, justice and equality, and gradually people started to listen. After Mano Negra disbanded in 1995, Manu Chao formed a new group called the Radio Bemba Sound System. He released Clandestino followed quickly by Proxima Estacion, Esperanza. They both were released under Manu Chao's own name and became immediate successes, spawning hits like ""Me Gustas Tu,"" ""King of Bongo"" and ""Denia."" Manu Chao can be found, still drifting around, strumming his guitar and delivering up colorful eclectic hits. These days, though, the stadiums are much more packed."