[1] Cretu had released several solo records, collaborated with various artists, and produced albums for his then-wife, German pop singer Sandra, before he conceived the idea of a new-age, worldbeat project.

The album remains Enigma's most successful, helped by the international hit single "Sadeness (Part I)", which sold twelve million units alone.

[3] According to Cretu, the inspiration for the creation of the project came from his desire to make a kind of music that did not obey "the old rules and habits" and presented a new form of artistic expression with mystic and experimental components.

Enigma's fourth album The Screen Behind the Mirror (2000) started a slight departure from the previous world music themes towards a heavier electronic atmosphere.

[6][7] Seven Lives Many Faces (2008) followed and contained a mixture of classical and modern elements ranging from ethnic chants to rap and dubstep influences.

[11][12] By the late 1980s, Romanian-born German musician and producer Michael Cretu had collaborated with several musicians, produced albums recorded by his then-wife, German pop singer Sandra, and released solo albums under his name for Polydor and Virgin Records, to varying levels of commercial success across Europe.

Studios, was built, and Cretu began work on a new, worldbeat and new-age musical project named Enigma with David Fairstein and Frank Peterson.

[13] The first Enigma album, MCMXC a.D., was recorded in eight months and incorporated Gregorian chants mixed with atmospheric music and dance beats.

[15] The album earned over 50 platinum sales awards worldwide, and made Enigma the most successful act signed to Virgin at the time of release.

[24][25] 2003's Voyageur saw a change of direction for the project, with most of the prominent Enigma signature elements (the ethnic and Gregorian chants, the Shakuhachi flutes) no longer employed.

[26] To commemorate the fifteen years of Enigma, a limited-edition album called 15 Years After was launched, which was the size of an LP vinyl disk, with Leonardo da Vinci's art in the cover, a big booklet with extra art, and featured eight compact discs: all the previous albums, the DVD Remember the Future, and a special and exclusive bonus CD, The Dusted Variations, which included chill-out versions of several of the project's greatest hits.

[28] On 26 September 2006, Enigma's sixth album A Posteriori was released worldwide, containing a new version of "Hello and Welcome" and the new song "Goodbye, Milky Way".

A DVD version of A Posteriori was released on 16 December 2006, which featured kaleidoscope images in synchronization with the multi-channel remastered music.

[29] In late March 2007, a Private Lounge remix album version of A Posteriori was released on the iTunes Music Store.

The public was then asked to vote, with the winning submission "Fei mea" being provided by Latvian singer Fox Lima (real name Alise Ketnere)[32] for the chorus.

Spring from Spain, and Rasa Serra from Lithuania, provided other important parts of the vocals like the bridge, backing and verse of the final version of the single.

Fans also influenced further stages of the song's creation by voting on elements such as a lead instrument, general mood, and style of the track.

It features guest musicians Brazilian singer-songwriter Mark Josher, Indonesian singer Anggun, female voice Nanuk, and English electro-pop duo Aquilo.

From 1988 until 2001, Cretu lived in Santa Eulària des Riu followed by, from 2001 to 2008, a villa near Sant Antoni where the studio was redesigned and built by Gunter Wagner and Bernd Steber.

[45][46][47] The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount of money and all further releases of the song were credited (including royalties) to the Kuos.

[51]Enigma's first album, MCMXC a.D., combines Gregorian chants[21][52] and religious overtones with atmospheric synths,[53] a hypnotic music-set, and a dance-like beat,[54] along with elements of pop and ambience[1] all accompanied by French-like whispers and somewhat erotic gasps, provided by Sandra.

[17] Soon after working with Michael Cretu on the first Enigma album, German producer Frank Peterson left the project to focus on Gregorian, a band that performs mostly covers of modern pop and rock songs with Gregorian-like vocals and symphonic instruments.

[59] Likewise, French musical project Era features Gregorian chants mixed with pop-rock arrangements and is also frequently compared in scope to Enigma.