Spanish troubadour Miguel Bose has nothing to complain about with 21 genre-crossing albums under his belt.  This year, he celebrates 30 years in music with the release of Papito, a collection of his greatest hits reworked as duets with a few of his friends: Ricky Martin, Shakira, Alejandro Sanz and Michael Stipe among others. The enigmatic singer talked to Batanga.com from his home in Madrid about the album that almost never happened, staying fresh in the spotlight, and the wisdom that comes with age.

Let’s talk about your album. How did you come up with the idea and how did you get so many artists to participate..

It was my manager’s idea. I was thinking about working on a whole new album and one day she left a message: ‘You’re going on 30 years in this profession and you have to celebrate it with your friends.’ I said no at first, but I thought about it for a while and thought it could be interesting.

What did they convince you?

Nothing. They know me very well, pues plantan una semilla de veneno y esperan que crezca. I’m not the kind of person who forgets. If you tell me something, it stays.

Did you get studio time with the artists on this album? What was the recording process like?

Yes, we were always in the studio together. It was really complicated because I had to travel constantly to so many parts of the world to record duets with these [artists].

Why “Papito”?

That’s what they [friends] call me.

Who picked out that title?

Me, of course.

Who decided who would sing which songs?

[The artists] proposed to sing the songs they loved.

How was it recording with Alejandro Sanz?

Ah, fantastic. We’re so used to recording together; he’s like one of the family.

Are you going to tour for this record? Who can we expect to see?

Obviously, I’m not going to tour with everyone on the album—it’s inconceivable—but in cities to be determined there will be surprises.  It’s a greatest hits tour to celebrate 30 years of my career.  People from each city will have the opportunity to pick 20-25 songs on the web so I can have an idea of the fans’ all-time favorites.

After making music for 30 years, how do you keep yourself fresh in the spotlight?

It’s a question of character. There are people who stick to a formula all their lives, I don’t. I’ve done one thing; I do another, [I always] look for new things. Also, as time passes, you don’t think the same about certain things. You don’t have the same vision when you’re 19, 35, 45 or 50.

What do you know now that you didn’t know then?

Man, now I know exactly what I want.

What annoys you?

Stupidity annoys me and [people’s] lack of initiative to solve problems.

Can you speak to us a bit about ALAS (America Latina en Accion Solidaria)?

It’s an ambitious project in which many artists, intellectuals, businesspeople are involved but the doors are open to anyone who wants to affiliate themselves [with the organization]. We need people [to join us]. Every time people talk about music [and charity] you instantly think Africa. There has never been an important association of Latinos [for a cause]. The Latin American continent is one with so many serious issues and we’re very familiar with them [and] we have influence and authority to make an ideal Latin America.