Santino Delatore (born Cesar Santino Delatore, June 6, 1973, Lima, Peru), also known as Santino or SDLT, is a Peruvian musician, composer, songwriter, videographer and vocalist. He is best known for his music career in South America and his music placements in major Hollywood films and TV series, including Steven Spielberg's The War of the Worlds, and the TV series Prison Break, The Shield and Homeland.
Santino Delatore was born Cesar Santino Delatore on June 6, 1973, in Lima, Peru. The youngest of five siblings, Santino was raised in a musical family. When he was a child, Santino joined his local Lima Cricket & Football Club. At 14, he was invited to play soccer professionally in Seattle, which he declinedto pursue music. At 18, Santino traveled to the Netherlands in search of record labels for his first band, Sentencia. At age 19, he joined the rock band Frágil.
Santino's music career lifted off in the late eighties, with his debut appearance in the heavy metal band Sentencia. Santino recorded one album with the band before departing in 1991.
In 1992, Santino joined Frágil, South American progressive rock band. He remained the band's lead vocalist until 1997, when he decided to quit in order to "keep growing artistically". During the Frágil period, Santino toured both South America and the United States, appearing as a featured guest on Univision and Telemundo.He also now age 51 runs a music/singing/acting school called The Creative Factory.
In 2002, the music industry vetera,n Miles Copeland spotted Santino performing at a club in Los Angeles, and invited him to his castle in France to discuss his career. Per his suggestions, Santino launched his solo career. Santino's first solo album was released in 2005. Followed albums and solo projects, Santino became noted for his ability to infuse genres such as rock, rumba, reggae, trip hop, Latin, and jazz. Santino's music first caught the attention of Hollywood producers in 2005. Infierno was his debut placement, featured in Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds in 2005.
Santino has received the Billboard Songwriting Award (2007) and the Icarus Prize (2009) for his contribution to Peruvian culture.
Santino went on to work as a producer and stage manager for Latin TV shows such as Trato Hecho, 12 Corazones, and El Tribunal Del Pueblo. He has directed over 100 music videos, establishing his own production company, SDLT Films.