Daddy Yankee

Considered as one of the pioneers of reggaetón, Daddy Yankee is a multi-award-winning Puerto Rican artist. Also known as the 'King of Reggaetón.” Yankee made his worldwide breakthrough with songs like ‘Gasolina’& ‘Despacito.’ He started singing and rapping at 13, right when the rap scene began taking root in Puerto Rico and has done more than anyone else to establish reggaetón as a marketable music style during the early 21st century.

Yankee grew up immersed in music, watching rap music videos of Dr. Dre and Rakim. Despite not knowing English, he felt connected to the music, and at 13, he gave himself the new moniker Daddy Yankee, which means a ‘powerful man.’ A year later, he began recording himself rapping in Spanish. At the young age of 21, Yankee launched his own label called El Cartel Records. In 2004, Yankee broke into the mainstream scene with his breakthrough album Barrio Fino along with its hit track 'Gasolina.' Time Magazine ranked Yankee as one of the top 100 influencers in the world in 2006. Yankee has been the most-streamed musician on Spotify in 2017. He and Luis Fonsi collaborated on the single ‘Despacito’ The song has become a chart topper in close to 50 countries and become the most-watched YouTube video ever.