Carlos Ponce began his entertainment career as a soap opera actor and played lead roles on Guadalupe (1993) and Sentimientos Ajenos (1996).

EMI Latin president José Behar approached Estefan to work with Ponce on the record, which the latter agreed to after listening to the artist's performance.

[3] Ponce's self-titled debut album was eventually released on May 19, 1998, which AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes as an "engaging, if formulaic, collection of Latin pop".

[7] A "percussive" tropical ballad with a "pop-meets-gospel anthem",[8] A "tale of reticent love",[7] Ponce leads a prayer in which he promises a woman that he desires that she will see "what is it like to live" when she is with him.

[11] Ponce performed the song live on Sábado Gigante,[12] the "Concert of the Century" at the Miami Arena, and on the promotional tour for the album.

[3] Mario Tarradell of the Dallas Morning News stated that "Rezo" is "one of those undeniable songs" and admired Ponce's "passionate" baritone.

[8] Writing for the Houston Chronicle, Joey Guerra felt that the track "achieves a genuine sweetness in ballad form" and that its chorus gives it a "soulful flavor".

[27] The track also reached the top of the Latin Pop Airplay chart where it spent a total of eight weeks in this position, tying with Fernández's "No Sé Olvidar" as the longest-leading number song of the year.