Daddy Yankee
| Daddy Yankee | |
|---|---|
Ayala in 2016
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| Born |
Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez February 3, 1977 San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1991–present |
| Notable work | |
| Spouse(s) | Mireddys González (m. 1994) |
| Children | 3 |
| Awards | |
| Website | daddyyankee |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instruments |
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| Associated acts | |
Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (born February 3, 1977), known by his stage name Daddy Yankee, is a Puerto Rican singer, rapper, songwriter, actor and record producer. Ayala was born in Río Piedras, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and was raised in the neighborhood of Villa Kennedy Housing Projects.
Ayala aspired to be a professional baseball player, and tried out for the Seattle Mariners of the Major League Baseball. Before he could be officially signed, he was hit by a stray round from an AK-47 rifle while taking a break from a studio recording session with reggaeton mix tape icon DJ Playero. Ayala spent roughly one and a half years recovering from the wound; the bullet was never removed from his hip, and he credits the shooting incident with allowing him to focus entirely on a music career. Since then, he has sold over 18 million albums.
Daddy Yankee first appeared on the 1992 DJ Playero's Mixtape, Playero 34, with the song "So' Persigueme, No Te Detengas". Ayala was originally going to become a professional baseball player but he was shot in his leg while taking a break from a studio recording session. The bullet was never removed and he credits this incident with allowing him to pursue a musical career. He made a few songs talking about the shooting incident, but his most "complete" song about it was "6 De Enero", released in 2012. His first official studio project as a solo artist was No Mercy, which was released on April 2, 1995 through White Lion Records and BM Records in Puerto Rico. Early in his career he attempted to imitate the style of Vico C. He went on to emulate other artists in the genre, including DJ Playero, DJ Nelson, and DJ Drako, taking elements from their styles in order to develop an original style. In doing so, he eventually abandoned the traditional model of rap and became one of the first artists to perform reggaeton.
In 1997, Daddy Yankee collaborated with the rapper Nas, who was an inspiration for Ayala, in the song "The Profecy", for the album Boricua Guerrero. He released two compilation albums: El Cartel and El Cartel II, in 1997 and 2001, respectively. Both albums were very famous around Puerto Rico, but were not very successful around Latin America. Between those years, Ayala released a total of nine music videos, including "Posición" featuring Alberto Stylee, "Tu Cuerpo En La Cama" featuring Nicky Jam and "Muévete Y Perrea".
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Wikipedia