Manuel Ortega

Manuel Ortega (born Manuel Hanke on April 8, 1980) was an Austrian pop singer of Spanish descent from Steyregg. He began his career at age ten as a member of the choir Sängerknaben Florianer. As a teenager, Ortega joined the group BAFF and performed in more than 200 concerts by 2003. At age 17, he was selected as the vocalist for a new music group following a talent search involving 1,300 participants. Ortega left the group in 2001 to begin a solo career. His recording “El Amor, La Vida” (2001) was recognized as the Austrian summer hit of that year. In 2002, he represented Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest with the recording “Say a Word”. Ortega won the second season of the television program Dancing Stars in 2006. He also participated in the third season of the Ukrainian version of Dancing with the Stars.