Reggaeton (, ) is a style of popular dance music that originated in Puerto Rico from the Spanish reggae of Panama during the late 1980s. It has been popularized and dominated by artists from Puerto Rico since the early 1990s.
The culture surrounding the genre includes distinct dance styles, most notably "perreo", also known as sandungueo, which features sensual movements heavily influenced by Jamaican dancehall, salsa and merengue and another Latin rhythmic styles.
It evolved from dancehall, with elements of hip hop, Latin American, and Caribbean music. Vocals include toasting/rapping and singing or rap-singing, typically in Spanish. Reggaeton is regarded as one of the most popular music genres in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean. By the 2010s, the genre had seen increased popularity across Latin America, as well as acceptance within mainstream Western music.
While drawing early stylistic roots from reggae in Spanish and Jamaican dancehall, Puerto Rico served as the cultural and creative backbone of the genre.
Etymology There are several versions about the origin of the word reggaeton.
The word reggaeton was officially invented and coined in Puerto Rico adding the Spanish suffix ton to the word reggae.One of them states that the word reggaeton emerged in 1994 when Daddy Yankee mentioned it for the first time while "freestyling" on the mixtape Playero 34. Another version suggests that it appeared the following year when DJ Erick released the album titled Reggaetón Live Vol.1, abbreviating the words reggae and maratón (marathon).
The spellings reggaeton and reggaetón are common, although prescriptivist sources such as the Fundéu BBVA and the Academia Puertorriqueña de la Lengua Española recommend the spelling reguetón, as it conforms more closely with traditional Spanish spelling rules.
History
Afro-diasporic influences There are origins of reggaeton traced to Panama City and Afro-Caribbean canal workers. There was an influx of Jamaican and Barbados immigrants in Panama during this time in order to build the Panama Canal who brought reggae music to Panama. One of the early hits in the reggaeton genre is the song “El D.E.N.I” by Panamanian music artist Renato which communicates discrimination faced by Black Panamanians that spoke English. Later, hip-hop was introduced to Puerto Rico which influenced the development of Spanish rap. After hip-hop and reggae in Spanish syncretized, the music genre “underground” became popularized in Puerto Rico. This links back to the start of Jamaican dancehall music being translated to Spanish in Panama.
1980s–2000s: Emergence Often mistaken for reggae in Spanish, reggaeton is a genre that evolved in Puerto Rico during the early 1990s, heavily building upon the foundation of Jamaican dancehall although its technical evolution, official name, and consolidation as an independent genre took place in Puerto Rico. It had its origins in what was known as "underground rap" music, due to its circulation through informal networks and performances at unofficial venues. DJ Playero and DJ Nelson were inspired by hip hop and dancehall to produce riddims the first reggaeton tracks, which were heavily built upon the original Jamaica Dem Bow riddim created, in Kingston, which established the Puerto Rican underground genre. As Caribbean and African-American music gained momentum in Puerto Rico, reggae rap in Spanish marked the beginning of the Boricua underground and was a creative outlet for many young people. This created an inconspicuous-yet-prominent underground youth culture which sought to express itself. As a youth culture existing on the fringes of society and the law, it has often been criticized. The Puerto Rican police launched a campaign against underground music by confiscating cassette tapes from music stores under penal obscenity codes, levying fines and demonizing rappers in the media. Bootleg recordings and word of mouth became the primary means of distribution for this music until 1998, when it coalesced into modern reggaeton. The genre's popularity increased when it was discovered by international audiences during the early 2000s.
The new genre, simply called "underground" and later "", had explicit lyrics about drugs, violence, poverty, friendship, love and sex. These themes, depicting the troubles of inner-city life, can still be found in reggaeton. "Underground" music was recorded in (or carports) and at public housing complexes such as Villa Kennedy, and Jurutungo, often by creators using second-hand recording equipment. Despite that, the quality of the cassettes was good enough to help increase their popularity among Puerto Rican youth. The cassettes were sold or distributed on the streets from the trunks of cars.Mayra Santos, "Puerto Rican Underground", Centro vol. 8 1 & 2 (1996), p. 219-231. The availability and quality of the cassettes led to reggaeton's popularity, which crossed socioeconomic barriers in the Puerto Rican music scene. The most popular cassettes in the early 1990s were DJ Negro's The Noise I and II and DJ Playero's 37 and 38. Gerardo Cruet, who created the recordings, spread the genre from the marginalized residential areas into other sectors of society, particularly private schools.
By the mid-1990s, "underground" cassettes were being sold in music stores. The genre caught on with middle-class youth, then found its way into the media. By this time, Puerto Rico had several clubs dedicated to the underground scene; Club Rappers in Carolina and PlayMakers in Puerto Nuevo were the most notable. Bobby "Digital" Dixon's "Dem Bow" production was played in clubs. Underground music was not originally intended to be club music. In South Florida, DJ Laz and Hugo Diaz of the Diaz Brothers were popularizing the genre from Palm Beach to Miami.
Underground music in Puerto Rico was harshly criticized. In February 1995, there was a government-sponsored campaign against underground music and its cultural influence. Puerto Rican police raided six record stores in San Juan, hundreds of cassettes were confiscated and fines imposed in accordance with Laws 112 and 117 against obscenity. The Department of Education banned baggy clothing and underground music from schools. For months after the raids local media demonized rappers, calling them "irresponsible corrupters of the public order."
In 1995, DJ Negro released The Noise 3 with a mockup label reading, "Non-explicit lyrics". The album had no cursing until the last song. It was a hit, and underground music continued to seep into the mainstream. Senator Velda González of the Popular Democratic Party and the media continued to view the movement as a social nuisance.
During the mid-1990s, the Puerto Rican police and National Guard confiscated reggaeton tapes and CDs to get "obscene" lyrics out of the hands of consumers.John Marino, "Police Seize Recordings, Say Content Is Obscene", San Juan Star, 3 February 1995; Raquel Z. Rivera, "Policing Morality, Mano Dura Style: The Case of Underground Rap and Reggae in Puerto Rico in the Mid-1990s", in Reading Reggaeton. Schools banned hip hop clothing and music to quell reggaeton's influence. In 2002, Senator González led public hearings to regulate the sexual "slackness" of reggaeton lyrics. Although the effort did not seem to negatively affect public opinion about reggaeton, it reflected the unease of the government and the upper social classes with what the music represented. Because of its often sexually charged content and its roots in poor, urban communities, many middle- and upper-class Puerto Ricans found reggaeton threatening, "immoral, as well as artistically deficient, a threat to the social order, apolitical".
Despite the controversy, reggaeton slowly gained acceptance as part of Puerto Rican culture — helped, in part, by politicians including González who began to use reggaeton in election campaigns to appeal to younger voters in 2003. Puerto Rican mainstream acceptance of reggaeton has grown and the genre has become part of popular culture, including a 2006 Pepsi commercial with Daddy Yankee and PepsiCo's choice of Ivy Queen as musical spokesperson for Mountain Dew. Other examples of greater acceptance in Puerto Rico are religiously and educationally influenced lyrics; Reggae School is a rap album produced to teach math skills to children, similar to School House Rock. Reggaeton expanded when other producers, such as DJ Nelson and DJ Eric, followed DJ Playero. During the 1990s, Ivy Queen's 1996 album En Mi Imperio, DJ Playero's Playero 37 (introducing Daddy Yankee) and The Noise: Underground, The Noise 5 and The Noise 6 were popular in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Don Chezina, Tempo, Eddie Dee, Baby Rasta & Gringo and Lito & Polaco were also popular.
The name "reggaeton" became prominent during the early 2000s, characterized by the dembow beat. It was coined in Puerto Rico to describe a unique fusion of Puerto Rican music. Reggaeton is currently popular throughout Latin America. It increased in popularity with Latino youth in the United States when DJ Joe and DJ Blass worked with Plan B and Sir Speedy on Reggaeton Sex, Sandunguero and Fatal Fantasy.
2004: Crossover In 2004, reggaeton became popular throughout the United States and Europe. Tego Calderón was receiving airplay in the U.S., and the music was popular among youth. Daddy Yankee's El Cangri.com became popular that year in the country, as did Héctor & Tito. Luny Tunes and Noriega's Mas Flow, Yaga & Mackie's Sonando Diferente, Tego Calderón's El Abayarde, Ivy Queen's Diva, Zion & Lennox's Motivando a la Yal and the Desafío compilation were also well received. Rapper N.O.R.E. released a hit single, "Oye Mi Canto". Daddy Yankee released Barrio Fino and a hit single, "Gasolina", opening the door for reggaeton globally. Tego Calderón recorded the singles "Pa' Que Retozen" and "Guasa Guasa". Don Omar was popular, particularly in Europe, with "Pobre Diabla" and "Dale Don Dale". Other popular reggaeton artists include Tony Dize, Angel & Khriz, Nina Sky, Dyland & Lenny, RKM & Ken-Y, Julio Voltio, Calle 13, Héctor el Father, Wisin & Yandel and Tito El Bambino. In late 2004 and early 2005, inspired by the success of "Gasolina", Shakira collaborated with Alejandro Sanz to record "La Tortura" and "La Tortura – Shaketon Remix" for her album, Fijación Oral Vol. 1, further popularizing reggaeton. Four reggaeton songs were sung at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards: by Don Omar ("Dile"), Tego Calderón, Daddy Yankee, and Shakira with Sanz – the first time any reggaeton song was performed on that stage.
Musicians began to incorporate bachata into reggaeton, with Ivy Queen releasing singles ("Te He Querido, Te He Llorado" and "La Mala") featuring bachata's signature guitar sound, slower, romantic rhythms and emotive singing style. Daddy Yankee's "Lo Que Paso, Paso" and Don Omar's "Dile" are also bachata-influenced. In 2005 producers began to remix existing reggaeton music with bachata, marketing it as bachaton: "bachata, Puerto Rican style".
2006–2017: Topping the charts In May 2006, Don Omar's King of Kings was the highest-ranking reggaeton LP to date on the U.S. charts, debuting atop the Top Latin Albums chart and peaking at number seven on the Billboard 200 chart. Omar's single, "Angelito", topped the Billboard Latin Rhythm Radio Chart. He broke Britney Spears' in-store-appearance sales record at Downtown Disney's Virgin music store.
That same year, Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie", featuring Wyclef Jean of the Fugees, became "the most popular song in the genre's history", with "the dembow beat in the background, the trumpet sample of Jerry Rivera's "Amores como el nuestro" in the chorus, the obvious salsa influence.""Turning the Tables: The 200 Greatest Songs by 21st Century Women", Part 7, NPR, July 30, 2018, "Song 67" by Maria Sherman. The song would hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it the first reggaeton-influenced song to do so.