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Home , Barrio Fino, Daddy Yankee, Gasolina, Vico C

HOW IGNITED A NEW LATIN STYLE

In mid - ly 2004, an titled "" jumped out of seemingly Not much has changed today. Daddy Yan- in this business that you can't trust anybody kee is to El nowhe - into the No. 1 spot of Billboard's Top Latin chart. The still signed Cartel but now has a from the outside. You have to take care of your artist w's Daddy Yankee, a Puerto Rican reggaetónero little -known out- joint venture with , which own affairs if you want to make money." markets and promotes his albums to the main- The artist's side the island at a time when reggaetón was just beginning to have given name is Raymond Ayala, stream (Yankee is still in charge of promotion and for more than a decade, he plugged away comme cial success. Thanks in part to that breakout, Daddy Yankee's and marketing in the Spanish -speaking world). in th ?. streets of , selling mixtapes upcom' g album "El Cartel: The Big Boss," featuring English -language He is still distributed by UMGD via his Inter - from his car and improvising to the beats laid guests ` d a top production team, is poised to be a major crossover hit. scope deal. And his management is still run out by popular DJs. Howevék, even after "Barrio Fino" three years ago, Daddy Yankee's ride by his brother and wife, with help from busi- Influenced by his neighborhood, Daddy Yan- ness manager to stardom was not instantaneous. At the time, the album was noted Edwin Prado. kee soon turned to hip -hop in Spanish, taking But now, event -promotion firm CMN books his cues from by the industry. After all, it was the first reggaetón the likes of , a rapper with album to debut at No. his tours, and an army of 60 employees look a strong sense of social responsibility. 1 on till chart. Moreover, Daddy Yankee was an independent artist, after the many pieces of what has become a Then, in the early '90s, he discovered reg- signed to his own label, although distributed by vast Daddy Yankee empire. The operation en- gaetcn, as it was created in Puerto Rico. Distribution (UMGD) via a deal with another indie, VI Records. But compasses a production house; El Cartel "We would do hip -hop, and the DJs would what happened next is the real twist. Records (to which newcomer Miguelito is playa vinyl with hip -hop on one side, and a signed); his publishing; a footwear deal (with vinyl with reggae and on the other," In November, nearly five months after the also all over the world. Reebok); a syndicated radio show (with ABC he says. "They would play them together and release of "Barrio Fino," the single "" The question then in everyone's mind was, Radio); an upcoming film; a clothing line in do a remix. And we would rap over the beats." entered the and Top Latin "Who is this Daddy Yankee guy ?" the works; various sponsorships; and now, his Daddy Yankee's first foray into recorded reg- Songs charts. Helped with remixes by This much was known: "Barrio Fino" was newly created foundation, Corazón Guerrero gaetór was as a guest artist on the albums of and N.O.R.E., the track peaked at No. 32 on the out on Daddy Yankee's own label, El Cartel (Warrior Heart). DJ P:ayero, broadly considered one of the Hot 100 in late January 2005. On the Latin Records. Marketing and promotion of the Daddy Yankee created Corazón Guerrero to genre's pioneers. The recordings go as far back charts it never got higher than No. 17. album was done by independents hired by the help former convicts, particularly young peo- as "P_ayero 37," released in 1992, with Daddy_ But "Barrio Fino" would become the top - artist himself, while his Puerto Rico -based com- ple, to prepare for the workplace after prison. Yankee among the featured guests. selling Latin album of 2005, scanning 1 mil- pany, run by his brother, Nomar, and wife, All told, Daddy Yankee is the most impor- The Daddy Yankee moniker signaled his as- lion copies in the United States alone. And Mireddys Gonzalez, was in charge of booking tant name in urban today and cer- pirations early on. without becoming a major hit on Latin radio, and management. His songs were signed to tainly one of the top Latin artists in the world. " ` :ankee' in Puerto Rico is the slang we use "Gasolina" became the Latin song with arguably his own publishing, Los Congri. And up until "Things are run by my brother, my wife, my for someone tall, who is big in what he does," the most mainstream appeal since "," "Barrio Fino," his third album, Daddy Yankee friends from the barrio," Daddy Yankee says. the artist told Billboard in 2005. "So the name played not only on U.S. mainstream radio, but also distributed his own releases. "I've trained them myself. I learned early on means 'Big Daddy.' " continued on »p56

54 I BILLBOARD I MAY 19, 2007

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