Luis Fonsi looked for songs for 18 months. He looked for them from within, writing like a maniac; he looked for them by writing with others; he listened to whatever was sent his way.

"I wrote some 100-120 songs for this album," Fonsi said of "Palabras del Silencio," which was released this week. "I listened to 25 songs a day."

The album is Fonsi's seventh studio set and a crucial recording for the 30-year-old Puerto Rican balladeer, who has evolved from romantic teen singer to respected musician with broad appeal and is on the brink of international success.

"He's had an incredibly solid career, taking slow but sure steps," said Universal Music Latin America and Iberian Peninsula chairman/chief executive officer Jesus Lopez, who, in an uncharacteristic move, personally had a hand in the song selection.

Early reaction bodes well. Fonsi's first single "No Me Doy Por Vencido," a ballad in 6/8 time that marries ranchera and pop, has already hit No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Latin Songs chart.

The song's title translates to "I Won't Give Up," and the track has been used by AT&T as part of its Olympic Games campaign on Telemundo and NBC. Beyond the single, Fonsi is the face of a massive Pepsi campaign in Puerto Rico that will feature his image on 15 million Pepsi bottles.

Fonsi's previous album, 2005's "Paso a Paso," has sold nearly 150,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and 2 million worldwide, according to Universal, his most successful release to date.

Despite the market's current downward turn, Universal's hopes for "Palabras" are much higher, and the album and single are being released simultaneously in 18 countries.

"We feel he's at the best moment of his career," Universal Music Latino President Walter Kolm said. "His job was bringing the hits, and he's done it with this album, the first in his career where he's either written or co-written every track."

In a sad twist, Fonsi also expanded his celebrity status when his wife, actress Adamari Lopez, was diagnosed with breast cancer three years ago. The media, infatuated with the cute, grief-stricken couple, closely followed en masse Lopez's treatment and recovery and applauded Fonsi's support.

Fonsi has taken it in stride, openly answering questions, but also clearly delineating the split between his career as a musician, his wife's career as an actress and the points where both meet.

Certainly, Fonsi's recent experiences have affected his music. "Paso a Paso," recorded during Lopez's treatment, was a darker, brooding single, contrasting with previous, more eminently romantic material. Now, "Palabras" rocks, beginning with "No Me Doy Por Vencido" and its uplifting message of perseverance.

"I'm not a social singer," Fonsi said. "But if one can make a social message via the romantic, that's a strong statement. I'm at a very stable, very happy moment in my life. But I have to search way deeper than that."