Il Divo (; ) are a multi-national classical crossover vocal group. The male quartet, which originated in the United Kingdom in December 2003, consists of tenors Urs Bühler, David Miller, baritone Steven LaBrie and Sébastien Izambard. It also included baritone Carlos Marín before his death from COVID-19 in December 2021, being officially replaced by LaBrie in August 2023. Il Divo was created and promoted by Simon Cowell for the label Syco Music (a subsidiary of Sony Music).
As of 2021, the group released ten studio albums: Il Divo (2004), The Christmas Collection (2005), Ancora (2005), Siempre (2006), The Promise (2008), Wicked Game (2011), A Musical Affair (2013), Amor & Pasión (2015), Timeless (2018), and For Once in My Life: A Celebration of Motown (2021); as well as a compilation album, The Greatest Hits (2012). Two other albums – An Evening with Il Divo: Live in Barcelona (2009) and Live in Japan (2014) – presented recordings of live concerts. The group has also collaborated with other artists.
Since its inception, Il Divo has enjoyed success worldwide, selling over 30 million copies of their albums worldwide. With 160 certified gold and platinum hits in 35 countries, the group has pioneered the genre of operatic pop, or "popera", in classical crossover music.
Il Divo's live concerts sold over two million concert tickets worldwide just from the group's first four albums. In its first world tour, concerts in 69 cities in 18 countries were sold out.
Members
Il Divo was composed of four singers, three of whom are classically trained, from four countries: baritone Carlos Marín; two classically trained tenors, Urs Bühler and David Miller; and pop singer-songwriter Sébastien Izambard. After Marín's death in late 2021, fellow baritone Steven LaBrie joined the band as a special guest on tour before being announced as a full-time member of the group on August 17, 2023.
Conception and name
The idea behind Il Divo came when Simon Cowell, inspired after listening to the Three Tenors, decided to form a multinational quartet of talented young singers to recreate the quality of Luciano Pavarotti, José Carreras, and Placido Domingo. Cowell searched worldwide for young singers who were willing to embark on the project from January 21, 2001, to December 16, 2003, when Miller was signed. Prior to Il Divo, each member enjoyed moderate success individually.
Career
2004–2006
The first album, Il Divo, was recorded in February 2004 in Sweden. The album was released on 1 November 2004 in three countries: the UK, Norway and Ireland. In the first few weeks the group achieved double platinum in Norway and Ireland. On 19 April 2005 the album was released in the United States and Spain.
Il Divo was launched in fall 2004 with the single "Regresa a mí", debuting with the first album of the same name. The group filmed the music video for the song in Slovenia.
In December 2004, Il Divo held its first concert at Gotham Hall in New York. The group performed five songs from the album live. The concert was made into a film that became the group's first DVD release, Live at Gotham Hall.
On 23 May 2005, the group released Mama, which features the second official video of the song "Mama" recorded in Tropea, Italy.
On 24 January 2006, Sony BMG released Encore, a concert at the Roman Theatre in Mérida, Spain, recorded on 7 October 2005.
On 25 October 2005, the group released their second studio album The Christmas Collection in seven countries: the United States, Canada, Austria, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Sweden and Finland.
Il Divo's third studio album, Ancora, was released in Europe on 7 November 2005. In the United States and Latin America it was released on 24 January 2006. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 in its first week of release in the United States.
On 9 June 2006, Il Divo gave a live performance of the official 2006 FIFA World Cup song, "The Time of Our Lives", with Toni Braxton, at half-time during the opening match between Germany and Costa Rica, and again at the closing ceremony on 9 July.
Il Divo have been on several world tours and have received 50 gold and platinum discs. Their last tour in 2014 covered five continents and over 33 countries. Having completed a six-month tour of the United States, Australia, and Europe, Il Divo participated in Streisand as Barbra Streisand's special guests. The tour was ranked second for all tours during 2006, generating $92.5 million in gross sales.