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25 Feb 2026 5:30
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  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    J Balvin named his son Rio because he wanted him to "float"

    The 37-year-old rapper - whose real name is José Álvaro Osorio Balvín - welcomed his first child back in June 2021 with model Valentina Ferrer and revealed that the inspiration behind the name Rio was because it is the Portuguese word for river


    He said: "Rio like River... I want him to just float."

    The 'I Like It' hitmaker - who is initially from Medellín, Colombia - also opened up about moving to Oklahoma to learn English as a foreign exchange student and claimed he eventually felt "inspired" to kickstart a music career once he arrived in New York.

    Speaking on 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show', he added: "I did not choose Oklahoma... I loved Oklahoma, don't get me wrong. But when I got to New York I felt inspired to conquer the world with my music."

    The revelations come just days after the Grammy Award winning star spoke out about his struggles with mental health and claimed that there is a "stigma" that stems from his culture.

    He said: "I never thought that I was going to suffer about mental health. I remember seeing people go to the psychiatric and I would be like, 'Why are they going there? They're crazy. Because that's a stigma, something that has always been in the Latino culture or even around the world and once I started suffering from anxiety and depression, I understood that it was a chemical disbalance.

    So I feel that I need to speak out because I think ... I go to that pain with myself ... because we have a voice. So I think music is the way it's helped us to send a message. And I really can feel that it's to tell other people about mental health and how to help them."

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

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     Today's News

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    Entertainment:
    Hailee Steinfeld feels "more prepared for a newborn" as time goes on 21:51

    Entertainment:
    Leigh-Anne Pinnock wants her twin daughters to "choose if they want to be famous or not" 21:21

    Business:
    Mercury's achieved a strong return to profit 21:17

    Law and Order:
    France is considering a social media ban as devastated families launch legal action against TikTok 21:07

    Entertainment:
    Judy Garland once tried to boot her daughter Liza Minnelli off stage during a joint performance 20:51

    Entertainment:
    Kelly Osbourne says grief is a "quiet weight you learn to carry" 20:21

    Entertainment:
    Eric Dane's girlfriend Janell Shirtcliff has paid an emotional tribute to the late actor 19:51

    Entertainment:
    Kurt Russell is happy to still be alive ahead of his milestone birthday 19:21

    Business:
    Auckland's been crowned the region with the worst savers, according to Westpac data 18:57


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