Wisin

Wisin is one half of reggaetón power duo Wisin & Yandel, which spearheaded the Latin urban genre and majorly contributed to its meteoric rise. Born in Puerto Rico in 1978, Wisin (née Juan Luis Morera Luna) came from humble origins, working as a barber to sustain himself after school. His earliest ventures as a rapper began in the late ‘90s with the now-defunct group Boricua Selecta. But it would be his encounter with Yandel, a kindred musical spirit, that would produce his most fruitful collaboration in the way of Wisin & Yandel. Songs like 2005’s “Rakata” and 2009’s “Abusadora” became favourites in the genre thanks to their raunchy flavour and criminally infectious hooks, placing the duo squarely among the sound’s chief representatives like Daddy Yankee and Don Omar. Parallel to his work with Yandel, Wisin began cultivating his own voice, releasing his first solo effort, El Sobreviviente, in 2004. When the twosome went on an extended hiatus in 2013, Wisin focused all his energy on his own productions, releasing back-to-back gems El Regreso del Sobreviviente (2014) and Los Vaqueros: La Trilogía (2015), which further spotlighted his penchant for collaboration. Both albums proved that Wisin works best when amplifying other voices in disparate styles and genres. In 2014’s “Adrenalina”, a high-energy floor-filler featuring Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin, the unabashed pop hooks provide a refreshing counterpoint to Wisin’s flow. Likewise, 2015’s “Nota de Amor”, which employs the talents of legendary singer/songwriter Carlos Vives and reggaetón heavyweight Daddy Yankee, adds a novel vallenato twist to Wisin’s characteristic dembow rhythms, proving that the artist refuses to be boxed in to a single sound—even one that he pioneered.