In its report, El Mundo, citing “various sources,” said the reasons for the split had to do with accounting differences and an audit ordered by Sanz.
However, Lagarrigue said in her email message, “I can confirm there has been no audit (at least not by independent experts).”Sanz, who is perhaps Spain’s biggest music star, holds the record as the biggest Grammy-winner from that country (19 Latin Grammys and 3 U.S. Grammys). Lagarrigue, founder and CEO of Rosa Lagarrigue Management (RLM), is probably the most powerful manager in Spain, helming the careers of superstar acts like pop group Mecano in the '80s and '90s, Miguel Bosé, Malú, Raphael and David DeMaría.
The two have been together since Sanz released his debut album in '91. Lagarrigue made him Spain’s biggest export in years, pairing him with mainstream acts like The Corrs and Alicia Keys.
Sanz and Lagarrigue were long considered inseparable, and as recently as February, Sanz was posting pictures with Lagarrigue for his 1.3 million and 13.9 million Instagram and twitter followers, respectively.
News of the split was uncannily reminiscent of another Lagarrigue break. In January 2014, another Spanish superstar, Miguel Bosé, parted ways with Lagarrigue after a 35 year relationship. That rupture was particularly surprising because Bosé and Lagarrigue were childhood friends and he was her first client. Bosé is now managed by management company Seitrack, which has offices in the U.S. and Mexico.
At press time, Sanz could not be reached for comment. However, prior to the separation from Lagarrigue, Sanz had entered into a relationship with Magnus Media, Marc Anthony and Michel Vega's entertainment company, for the areas of licensing, endorsement and sponsorships. With healthy business in touring, management and branding, RLM nevertheless remains an attractive company which is 70 percent owned by media conglomerate Grupo Prisa since 2008. Sources say Universal is now in the process of acquiring RLM.
