Jowell & Randy are a Puerto Rican

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...

duo composed of Joel Muñoz Martínez (born March 3, 1982) and Randy Ortiz Acevedo (born July 16, 1983). The duo have been active since the early-2000s and have become one of the most popular acts in reggaeton. They have released three studio albums, five mixtapes and twenty-three singles as of June 2017. They were also members of the short-lived group

Casa de Leones Casa de Leones (English: House of Lions), also known as Los Leones, were a Puerto Rican reggaeton supergroup. Professional career The members of the group are Miguel A. De Jesús (Guelo Star), Jaime Borges and Charlie Carlson (lead singer) and ...

alongside J King & Maximan and Guelo Star. They became the first reggaeton acts to perform in the

Principality of Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is a semi-enclave borde ...

and the first reggaeton duo to do so in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Career

1990s–2005: Early years

Joel Alexis "Jowell" Muñoz Martínez was born in

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

, U.S.A. on March 3, 1982 and was raised in

Cataño, Puerto Rico Cataño () is a Cataño barrio-pueblo, town and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the northeastern coastal plain of Puerto Rico. It is west of the capital San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan, east of Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, Toa Baja, nor ...

, one of the island's poorest municipalities. He began to take interest in music at the age of 7 through Puerto Rican rapper

Vico C Luis Armando Lozada Cruz (born September 8, 1971), known by his stage name Vico C, is an Puerto Rican rapper, singer and record producer. Regarded as the founding father of reggaeton, Vico C has played an influential role in the development of ...

and his 1989 cassette '' La Recta Final''. Vico C (born Luis Armando Lozada Cruz on September 8, 1971) is cited as a pioneer of underground rap music in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

during the mid- to late 1980s, playing a very influential role in the development of the genre. Jowell's first recording session was in 1996 for ''Los Fugitivos'' at a studio in

Levittown, Puerto Rico Levittown, a suburb in the municipality of Toa Baja, is a planned community, among the largest in Puerto Rico. Per the 2020 census, the population was 25,591. It is divided into eight sections called ''secciones'' and several sub-divisions cal ...

alongside other rappers including

Nicky Jam Nick Rivera Caminero (born March 17, 1981), known professionally as Nicky Jam, is an American singer. He is best known for hits such as " X", " Travesuras", " El Perdón", " Hasta el Amanecer", and " El Amante"; the latter three are from his 20 ...

, Master Joe & O.G. Black, Camaleón, and Buru Fat Z. During the 1990s decade, most reggaeton albums composed by various artists used to be recorded in one day because of the low-budget equipments producers had at the time. Songs had to be recorded in one-take; any mistake meant having to restart the recording all over again. Circa 1996, Jowell met Giann Arias and began organizing parties at garages, where Arias served as DJ with Jowell rapping over the beat. Jowell began building fame from his features in various reggaeton mixtapes. Giann founded a low-budget studio called Live Music in 1997 in order to record his own mixtapes with Jowell and other artists. Jowell's first commercial mixtape was ''The White'' in 1998, in which he took part with the song "No Has Encontrado" alongside Caimito-based rapper Baby Killer, who was his duo partner for some months until his retirement. Later that year, Jowell was featured on DJ Flavor's mixtape ''Megatron Sex'' with the song "Yo Tengo Una Notita", which became popular in Puerto Rican nightclubs. After that, Muñoz was tapped as

opening act An opening act, also known as a warm-up act, support act, supporting act or opener, is an entertainment act (musical, comedic, or otherwise), that performs at a concert before the featured act, or "headliner". Rarely, an opening act may perform ...

for fellow reggaeton performers including Ranking Stone, Falo, Alberto Stylee and Wiso G. Randy Ariel Ortiz Acevedo was born in

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

on July 16, 1983 and used to take part on a

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

in a Puerto Rican church, and was raised listening to

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

and

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in African-American culture, African-American African-American neighborhood, communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps ...

. He began his music career in 1998 and his first album appearance was on DJ Dice's mixtape ''In the House'' later that year. Jowell and Randy first met during a friends reunion at the former's house. Randy was a friend of Jowell's younger brother at high school, which led to him being invited to Muñoz's house in order to watch a Felix "Tito" Trinidad boxing fight on television in 2000 alongside other friends and relatives. Jowell's brother told him that his friend Randy was interested in collaborating, but intimidated by Jowell's rising reggaeton career. Jowell invited Randy to record at his studio, believing in Randy's potential as a singer. However, Muñoz noticed that Randy needed to improve his lyrics. Jowell proposed a duo, inspired by other acts including Baby Rasta & Gringo,

Héctor & Tito Héctor & Tito were a Puerto Rican reggaeton duo. They are widely regarded as one of the most influential and famous pioneering duos in the history of reggaeton. The duo caught the world's attention and expanded this genre globally, paving th ...

Wisin & Yandel Wisin & Yandel were a Puerto Rican reggaeton duo consisting of Wisin and Yandel. They started their career in 1998 and stayed together until 2023, winning several awards including a Grammy Award in 2009. They became the first and the only regga ...

and

Maicol & Manuel Maicol & Manuel (Miguel Muñoz and Manuel A. Pérez) were a Puerto Rican reggaeton duo. They have their origins in the first wave of reggaeton artists as early as 1991. Randy's first solo album appearance was on ''Operación Sandunga'' with the song "Siéntelo Mujer", which was going to be part of the mixtape's promotion through radio and television, but was cancelled after the producer's murder. In 2002, Jowell & Randy signed a three-year contract with Iván Joy on his record label, Diamond Music, and their first album appearance was on ''The Majestic'' through the song "Todavía Recuerdo". The duo invested for a low-budget music video and managed to include the song on Audio Activa 102.3, a radio station located in the west area of Puerto Rico, in exchange for recording jingles. In 2004, they were featured on Boy Wonder's album ''Chosen Few'', which received a 2×

platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...

(Latin) certification for over 200,000 copies sold in the United States. Jowell still displays this award in his home as a tribute to the duo's first major commercial success. However, the group struggled to gain notoriety in Puerto Rico. In 2005, Boy Wonder and Chencho Records organized a contest that consisted on an album composed by various new artists, titled '' El Draft''. The duo R.K.M. & Ken-Y was announced as the contest's winner, chosen by fan votes. Frustrated for not being able to fulfill their fame goal, Jowell & Randy began to think about retiring from music.

Late 2005–2011: Move to White Lion and international success

During late 2005, while Jowell and Randy were trying to repair the former's car at a gas station, a luxury car passed by. Randy noticed the driver was Elías de León, a well known producer in Puerto Rico, owner of White Lion Records and famous for discovering rapper

Tego Calderón Tegui Calderón Rosario (born February 1, 1972) is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer and actor. He began his musical career in 1996 (as Tego Tec) and was supported by the famous Puerto Rican rapper Eddie Dee, who invited him on his second studio a ...

, duos Calle 13 and

Zion & Lennox Zion & Lennox was a Puerto Rican music duo from Carolina, Puerto Rico. In 2004, Zion & Lennox released their first studio album titled '' Motivando a la Yal'' under White Lion Records. After their first album, Zion & Lennox decided to start thei ...

, as well as having executive produced various reggaeton albums since the mid-1990s. They approached de León with some of their

demos Demos may refer to: Computing * DEMOS, a Soviet Unix-like operating system * DEMOS (ISP), the first internet service provider in the USSR * Demos Commander, an Orthodox File Manager for Unix-like systems * Plural for Demo (computer programming ...

. He listened to three songs and gave them his number, asking them to return his call the following day. In order to sign, the duo needed to end their three-year contract with Diamond Music. An angered Iván Joy asked for an unexpected high amount of money and some of the duo's unreleased songs. Jowell & Randy accepted and were able to sign with White Lion Records. Jowell & Randy's first single released under their new record label was "Agresivo" featuring fellow Puerto Rican rapper

Arcángel Austin Agustín Santos (born December 23, 1985), better known by his stage name Arcángel, is an American rapper and singer. He is often described as one of the most influential artists in the Latin urban genre, as well in Latin music overall, ...

from the album ''La Calle, Vol. 1'' in 2006. The promotion by White Lion led to the song being broadcast on all radio stations and music-related television channels in Puerto Rico. The single became the duo's first ''Billboard'' chart entry, peaking at number 27 on

Latin Rhythm Airplay Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area around Rome, Italy. Through the expansion o ...

on September 19, 2006. On March 1, 2007, the song garnered two People Choice Reggaeton and Urban Awards for Best Collaboration of the Year and Best Song of the Year. They were also awarded as the Revelation Duo of the Year and Randy's performance on "Soy Una Gárgola" garnered him the Catchiest Chorus award. The success of "Agresivo" established the duo within the reggaeton genre, leading to guest features on

Zion Zion (; ) is a placename in the Tanakh, often used as a synonym for Jerusalem as well as for the Land of Israel as a whole. The name is found in 2 Samuel (), one of the books of the Tanakh dated to approximately the mid-6th century BCE. It o ...

's "Cuarto Nivel" from ''

The Perfect Melody ''The Perfect Melody'' is the debut solo studio album by Puerto Rican singer Zion. Production of the album was handled by several musical producers including Akon, Nely el Arma Secreta, Tainy, and others. Guest appearances include Akon, Eddie Dee ...

'',

Hector El Father In Greek mythology, Hector (; , ) was a Trojan prince, a hero and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. He is a major character in Homer's ''Iliad'', where he leads the Trojans and their allies in the defense of Troy, killing c ...

's "Hola Bebé" from '' The Bad Boy: The Most Wanted Edition'',

Julio Voltio Julio Voltio (also known simply as Voltio; born as Julio Irving Ramos Filomeno on June 11, 1977) is a Puerto Rican former rapper. An early pioneer of reggaetón—a modern genre of Latin music originating primarily in Panamá and Puerto Rico, ...

's "Pónmela" from '' En Lo Claro'', and the remix version of

Tito El Bambino Efraín David Fines Nevares (born October 5, 1981), known professionally as Tito El Bambino, is a Puerto Rican singer and songwriter who rose to fame as part of the duo Héctor & Tito. In 2010, his song " El Amor", written with Joan Ortiz Espa ...

's " Siente El Boom". "Pónmela" was included on the 2008 video game ''

Grand Theft Auto IV ''Grand Theft Auto IV'' is a 2008 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the sixth main entry in the Grand Theft Auto, ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2004's ''Grand Theft Auto: San And ...

'' and peaked at number 41 on ''Billboard''s Hot Latin Songs on January 26, 2008. "Siente El Boom (Remix)" was also included on the video game, giving credit only to Tito El Bambino and Randy, performers of the original version. 2007's guest features by Randy on De La Ghetto's "Sensación del Bloque" and Tito El Bambino's original version of "Siente El Boom" are cited by Jason Birchmeier of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

as the collaborations that significantly improved the duo's international profile. The latter peaked at number 14 on ''Billboard''s Hot Latin Songs on June 16, 2007 and at number 9 on Tropical Airplay on July 28, 2007. Randy was also featured on Tego Calderón's '' El Abayarde Contraataca'' with the single "Quitarte To", which peaked at number 10 on Hot Latin Songs on December 8, 2007.

Casa de Leones and ''Los Más Sueltos del Reggaetón''

In 2006, Elías de León along with A&R of White Lion Records Carlos "Karly" Rosario proposed to assemble a reggaeton quintet composed by Jowell & Randy, J King & Maximan and

Guelo Star Miguel de Jesús (born September 19, 1981, Ponce, Puerto Rico), also known as Guelo Star, is a Puerto Rican reggaeton rapper, singer, lyricist, occasional producer and promoter. In his musical career, he has worked with artists such as Daddy Yan ...

. The group was named

and remained active until 2008, releasing one namesake studio album on June 26, 2007, under Black Lion Entertainment Inc and

Warner Music Latina Warner Music Latina Inc. (formerly WEA Latina) is a record label part of Warner Music Group that focuses on Latin music. The record label was established in 1987. List of artists currently on Warner Music Latina *Alaya * Alex Ubago * Andrés Ca ...

. ''

'' peaked at number 3 on ''Billboard''s

Top Latin Albums Top Latin Albums (formerly Latin 50) is a record chart published by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine and is labeled as the most important music chart for Spanish language, full-length albums in the United States, American music market. ...

chart on their debut week on July 7, 2007, in which it also reached number 126 on the ''Billboard'' 200. The album received a five out of five score by Evan Gutierrez of AllMusic, stating that the group "may have created the most listenable reggaeton album to date". He described Casa de Leones as a "house of songwriters" and praised the use of live instruments instead of "the typical 808 drum machine and cheap-sounding synth melodies". The album's lead single, " No Te Veo", was released on June 12, 2007 and became a major hit across American Latin radio stations, peaking at number 4 on

Hot Latin Songs The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin music, Latin songs, published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart ranki ...

on August 4, 2007 and at number 2 on

Tropical Airplay The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

on October 27, 2007. It was originally written and recorded in 2004 by Jowell, Randy and Puerto Rican producer DJ Blass, who brought the idea from France and suggested a fusion between urban and

soca music Soca music, or the "soul of calypso", is a genre of music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago in the 1970s. It is considered an offshoot of Calypso music, calypso, with influences from Afro–Trinidadians and Tobagonians, Afro-Trinidadian a ...

. The duo feared to release it at the time for being "different". The song was taken up again three years later after Casa de Leones was formed, and J King & Maximan and Guelo Star wrote their respective verses. "No Te Veo" garnered an ASCAP Latin Music Award for Urban Song of the Year in 2008 and received two nominations at the 2008 Billboard Latin Music Awards for Hot Latin Song of the Year and Reggaeton Song of the Year. The second single, "Shorty", was performed only by Randy and was released on October 16, 2007. The song peaked at number 16 on Latin Rhythm Airplay on February 16, 2008. During mid-2007, the group was featured on a remix version of " Impacto" by Puerto Rican rapper

Daddy Yankee Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (; born February 3, 1976), known professionally as Daddy Yankee (), is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor who rose to worldwide prominence in 2004 with the song "Gasolina". Dubbed the "Honorific ...

. At some point in 2008, each member decided to focus on their own careers. Jowell & Randy's debut studio album as duo, titled '' Los Más Sueltos del Reggaetón'', was released on December 18, 2007, under White Lion and Warner Latina. The album peaked at number 42 on Top Latin Albums and at number 21 on Heatseeker Albums on January 19, 2008. Its lead single, "Un Poco Loca", was released during late 2007 and featured fellow reggaeton singer and songwriter De La Ghetto, but did not enter any ''Billboard'' chart. The second single, "Let's Do It", was released in March 2008 and peaked at number 32 on Hot Latin Songs on April 5, 2008. Both singles were accompanied by a music video; "Un Poco Loca" was filmed at a

fast food restaurant A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast food, fast-food cuisine and has minimal Foodservice#Table service, table service. The food served ...

Isla Verde, Puerto Rico Isla Verde ( Spanish for ''green island'') is an urbanized, beachfront resort and residential district with various upscale hotels and condominiums in the municipality of Carolina, where the main airport of Puerto Rico, the Luis Muñoz Marín I ...

and "Let's Do It" was filmed at a nightclub. The track "Agresivo II", a sequel to their first single, peaked at number 35 on ''Billboard''s Latin Rhythm Airplay chart on March 15, 2008.

''El Momento''

During early 2008, they were featured alongside De La Ghetto on the remix version of " Inalcanzable" by Mexican Latin pop group

RBD RBD was a Mexican Latin pop group that gained popularity from Televisa's telenovela ''Rebelde'' (2004–2006). It was composed of Anahí, Dulce María, Maite Perroni, Alfonso Herrera, Christopher von Uckermann and Christian Chávez. The group ac ...

. The song received a Premio Juventud for The Perfect Combo on July 17, 2008. After the expiration of their contract with Warner Latina, the duo received various offers by record labels including

Sony Music Latin Sony Music Entertainment US Latin LLC (often referred to as Sony Music Latin) is an American record label owned by Sony Music. The label focuses on artists of Latin music. Sony Latin was also a division of the Sony Discos label. History In ...

Machete Music Machete Music is an urban music label owned by Universal Music Group. The label was once largely associated with reggaeton music, but in recent years, it has also signed non-reggaeton artists such as Malverde, Mala Rodriguez and Chino XL. The l ...

and

WY Records WY Records was a record label founded in the United States by popular reggaeton duo Wisin & Yandel. Artists * Wisin & Yandel * Gadiel Veguilla Producers and composers * Tainy * Wisin & Yandel * O'Neill * Chris Jedi * Jumbo el Que Produce Solo ...

. During mid-2009, Jowell & Randy signed with the latter, founded by

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

-winners Wisin & Yandel, who were the most interested in them, according to Jowell. On January 12, 2010, the duo released their first mixtape, titled '' Tengan Paciencia'', which served as a prelude to their second studio album, scheduled to be released during the rest of the year. The mixtape compiled various duo and solo guest features by Jowell and Randy, as well as songs that were discarded for the final tracklist of their next album. ''

El Momento ''El Momento'' (English: ''The Moment'') is the second studio album of Jowell y Randy which was released by WY Records. Its 15 tracks include collaborations with Wisin & Yandel, Plan B, Guelo Star, Yaviah, Franco "El Gorila", De La Ghetto, Cosc ...

'' was released on May 4, 2010, under White Lion and WY, with Elías de León and Wisin & Yandel as executive producers. It featured reggaeton artists Wisin & Yandel, Franco El Gorila, Tico El Inmigrante, Yaviah, Gadiel, Guelo Star, Cultura Profética, De La Ghetto, Plan B and

Cosculluela José Fernando Cosculluela Suárez (born October 15, 1980) is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer and songwriter. In 2018, he was caught up in a controversy after fellow rapper Anuel AA released a diss track. Early life and education Cosculluela ...

Latin Grammy Award The Latin Grammy Awards (stylized as Latin GRAMMYs) are awards presented by the Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from any ...

-winner

Tainy Marco Efraín Masís Fernández (; born August 9, 1989), known professionally as Tainy, is a Puerto Rican record producer, songwriter and record engineer. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he entered the world of reggaeton with his wor ...

was among the producers of the album. In the United States, ''El Momento'' peaked at number 112 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and at number 2 on Top Latin Albums on May 22, 2010. Internationally, the album peaked at number 53 in Mexico on May 25, 2010, and remained on the chart for five weeks. The album garnered the duo a People en Español Award for Best Urban Singer or Group on August 13, 2010 and a Billboard Latin Music Award nomination for Latin Rhythm Albums Artist of the Year – Duo or Group in 2011. The promotion for the album was accompanied by El Momento World Tour, which last from November 2010 to December 2011. In the Americas, Jowell & Randy performed in Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Venezuela and the United States. In Europa, the duo performed in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland. The lead single, " Loco", was released on March 30, 2010, accompanied by a music video filmed in San Juan, Puerto Rico. A remix version featuring Wisin & Yandel was released on June 15, 2010. "Loco" became Jowell & Randy's biggest hit single as duo at the time, peaking at number 22 on ''Billboard''s Hot Latin Songs chart on August 7, 2010 and at number 3 on Tropical Airplay on August 14, 2010. The single's chart performance on Tropical Airplay garnered them a Billboard Latin Music Award nomination for Tropical Airplay Artist of the Year – Duo or Group in 2011. Four other tracks from ''El Momento'' were released as singles, accompanied by their respective music videos. "Un Booty Nuevo" (featuring Yaviah) premiered on August 16, 2010, was filmed in

Maunabo, Puerto Rico Maunabo () is a Maunabo barrio-pueblo, town and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Maunabo Valley on the southeastern coast, northeast of Patillas, Puerto Rico, Patillas and south of Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, Ya ...

and was directed by Ulysses Terrero, brother of Dominican director

Jessy Terrero Jessy Terrero (born October 7, 1972) is a List of people from the Dominican Republic, Dominican Film director, film and music video director. Career Terrero appeared as an extra on the 1992 film ''Juice (1992 film), Juice'' starring Tupac Shakur ...

. "Mi Dama de Colombia" was published on November 8, 2010, and was filmed in Colombia. "Goodbye" was released on March 9, 2011, was filmed in Bogotá, Colombia and was directed by Marlon Peña. "Solo Por Ti" (featuring Cultura Profética) premiered on August 15, 2011, was filmed in Medellín, Colombia and was directed by Flickmotion company. None of them managed to enter any ''Billboard'' chart. The track "Suave y Lento" (featuring Wisin, Tico El Inmigrante and Franco El Gorila) peaked at number 21 on ''Billboard''s Latin Rhythm Digital Songs chart on May 22, 2010.

2012–Early 2015: Third studio album and underground phase

In 2011, the duo announced the release of a third studio album, titled ''El Momento 2''. According to Jowell, it was going to be a re-issue of their previous production, composed by remix versions of "Dile a Él" featuring Puerto Rican group

N'Klabe N'Klabe is a Puerto Rican people, Puerto Rican salsa music, salsa group formed in 2003. History N'Klabe was formed in 2003 by Félix Javier "Felo" Torres. They have released several albums, including their debut album, ''Salsa Contra Viento y Mar ...

, "Loco" featuring Wisin & Yandel, "Mi Dama de Colombia" featuring Colombian singers Pipe Bueno, Pipe Calderón and

J Balvin José Álvaro Osorio Balvín (born 7 May 1985), known professionally as J Balvin, is a Colombian singer. He is one of the best-selling Latin artists, with 35 million records sold worldwide. Balvin was born in Medellín. At age 17, he moved to th ...

, "Goodbye" featuring Colombian singer

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...

, among others. The idea was scrapped after Wisin suggested them to make an album with brand new songs and the duo focussed entirely on their following studio album, ''Sobredoxis''. It was going to be released under WY Records in April 2012 but the duo left the record label and the album's release date was postponed. That month, Jowell & Randy became the first reggaeton duo to perform in Australia. They sang in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, and stated that performing there was "a real honor". In January 2012, Jowell & Randy were featured alongside Julio Voltio on " Ella Lo Que Quiere Es Salsa", a track by Puerto Rican-American

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (food), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: Arts and ent ...

musician Victor Manuelle from his thirteenth studio album, '' Busco un Pueblo''. Its music video, directed by Steven Tapia and filmed in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, was released on July 29, 2012. The song topped the ''Billboard''s Tropical Airplay chart on June 23, 2012, becoming the duo's first number 1 on any major ''Billboard'' chart. It also became a success on Hot Latin Songs, peaking at number 29 on July 28, 2012. During late 2012, Puerto Rican disc jockey and producer DJ Secuaz approached Jowell & Randy in order to convince them to record underground reggaeton tracks. On December 25, 2012, was released ''Pre-Doxis'', the duo's second mixtape, composed entirely by underground reggaeton songs produced by DJ Secuaz and featuring Falo, De La Ghetto, J.Q., Julio Voltio, Polaco, Luigi 21 Plus, Maicol & Manuel, Frankie Boy, Tony Tun Tun, Chyno Nyno and Don Chezina. The album became an inflection point in their musical style, starting to support old school reggaeton acts from the 1990s through a series of underground mixtapes titled ''Back to the Underground'' as a tribute to their contribution to the genre. Both ''Pre-Doxis'' and the original ''Back to the Underground'' became popular in Puerto Rico and enhanced DJ Secuaz's career as record producer. Secuaz died on March 12, 2013, after being shot in the head on March 9. Five days later, Jowell & Randy reunited with various reggaeton acts including Julio Voltio, J King & Maximan, Falo,

Yomo Jose Alberto Torres Abreu (born June 17, 1980 in Chicago), known professionally as Yomo, is an American reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Pa ...

, Guelo Star, Isaak, Watussi, Chyno Nyno and Divino in order to record a tribute song titled "Que Descanses En Paz" (Spanish for "Rest in Peace"). The music video of the remix version of "Hey Mister", a track from ''Pre-Doxis'', premiered on April 13, 2013, and featured Falo, Mr. Black, Los Pepe and Watussi, and was dedicated to DJ Secuaz. It remains as their most-viewed YouTube video, with more than 80 million views. Old school reggaeton artists Falo, Frankie Boy, Maicol & Manuel, O.G. Black and Polaco had their own ''Back to the Underground'' edition, released between October 2013 and January 2014. Jowell & Randy were involved on every edition of the series, serving as guest features and executive producers, financing various music videos. In March 2014, Jowell criticized Daddy Yankee, Don Omar and Wisin & Yandel for not having supported the project despite their economic power. During 2012, Jowell & Randy took part on '' El Imperio Nazza'' mixtape series by Los de la Nazza, Daddy Yankee's producers from 2008 to 2014. '' El Imperio Nazza: Doxis Edition'' was released on January 26, 2013, and featured Daddy Yankee, De La Ghetto,

Ñengo Flow Edwin Rosa Vázquez Ortiz (born October 15, 1981), known professionally as Ñengo Flow, is a Puerto Rican rapper and singer. He was born in San Juan and grew up in Bayamón where he started in the music business. At the age of 14, Ortiz firs ...

, Luigi 21 Plus, Polaco,

Reykon Andrés Felipe Robledo Londoño (born 12 December 1986), better known as Reykon "El Líder" "Pel mazo", is a reggaeton performer from Colombia. He is considered one of the biggest proponents of Latin America's reggaeton music genre. He is from En ...

Angel & Khriz An angel is a Spirit (supernatural entity), spiritual (without a physical body), heaven, heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with Bird wing, bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the Transce ...

, Tony Lenta,

J Álvarez Javid David Álvarez Fernández (born December 13, 1983), also known by his stage name J Álvarez is a Puerto Rican singer. He is best known for hit singles such as "La Pregunta", "Junto al Amanecer", "Sexo, Sudor y Calor" and "Regálame Un ...

and Jory. The track "Mucha Soltura" (featuring Daddy Yankee) peaked at number 13 on ''Billboard''s Latin Rhythm Airplay on May 25, 2013.

''Sobredoxis''

Their third studio album, '' Sobredoxis'', was released on June 4, 2013, under White Lion Records and featured

3Ball MTY 3BallMTY (pronounced "Tribal Monterrey") is a Mexican pop DJ group from the city of Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. The "DJ Collective" (the name its members have formally given themselves) was formed in 2009 by two teenage DJs – Sergio Zavala ...

, Daddy Yankee, Arcángel, De La Ghetto,

Farruko Carlos Efrén Reyes Rosado (born May 2, 1991), known professionally as Farruko, is a Puerto Rican singer. He rose to fame collaborating with Daddy Yankee, J Balvin, Don Omar, and J Álvarez. He came to prominence in 2010 with his first solo alb ...

Divino Daniel Velázquez (born August 7, 1977), better known by his stage name Divino, is a Puerto Rican reggaeton singer. Early life, family and education Divino and his family moved from The Bronx, New York, to Ponce, Puerto Rico. Divino, age fi ...

and Tony Tun Tun. The album was recorded with a production budget of more than $100,000 (US$106,983 in 2017 dollars). In the United States, the album was less successful than ''El Momento'', peaking at number 10 on ''Billboard''s Top Latin Albums chart on June 22, 2013. Its first three singles, "Ragga Dub", "Sobredoxis" and "Sobredosis de Amor", did not enter any ''Billboard'' chart. The fourth single, "Báilalo A Lo Loco" (featuring Mexican trio 3Ball MTY), peaked at number 12 on ''Billboard''s Latin Rhythm Airplay chart on January 4, 2014. The fifth single, "Las Nenas Lindas", peaked at number 18 on Latin Rhythm Airplay on May 10, 2014. The sixth and final single, "Living In Your World", peaked at number 18 on Latin Rhythm Airplay on October 11, 2014. ''Sobredoxis'' garnered Jowell & Randy a Billboard Latin Music Award nomination for Latin Rhythm Albums Artist of the Year, Duo or Group in

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

. The duo traveled around various countries to film the singles' music videos. "Ragga Dub" premiered on July 24, 2012, was filmed in San Juan, Puerto Rico and was directed by José "Javy" Ferrer. "Sobredoxis" was published on November 29, 2012, was shot in

, U.S.A. and was directed by JC Yurnet and Steven Tapia. "Sobredosis de Amor" was released on January 31, 2013, was filmed in

Buenos Aires, Argentina Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

and was directed by Santiago Ruiz and Mariano Dawidson. "Báilalo A Lo Loco" premiered on August 7, 2013, was shot in India, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, the United States, Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Italy, Puerto Rico and China, and was directed by Latin Grammy-Award winner director Alejandro Santiago Ciena. "Las Nenas Lindas" premiered on February 13, 2014, was filmed in Medellín, Colombia and was directed by Andrés Villa; "Living In Your World" was published on July 14, 2014, was shot in San Andrés, Colombia and was directed by Flickmotion company. "Isla del Encanto" premiered on February 3, 2017, three and a half years after ''Sobredoxis'' was released. The music video was filmed in San Juan, Puerto Rico and was directed by Fabula Films company. Their second tour, titled Sobredoxis World Tour, lasted from July 2013 to August 2014. In the Americas, Jowell & Randy performed in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the United States and Venezuela. In Europa, they performed in France, Italy and the Netherlands. In June 2014, they received the Key to the City in La Ceiba, Honduras during the Great International Carnival of Friendship, one of the most important music festivals in Central America. On December 13, 2014, was released ''Under Doxis'', their third mixtape, which compiled guest features and the duo's songs from 2014. Its lead single, "Lo Que Quiero", peaked at number 11 on ''Billboard''s Latin Rhythm Airplay on January 31, 2015. Three tracks from ''Under Doxis'' had a music video. "Lo Que Quiero" premiered on December 24, 2014, was directed by Fernando Lugo and its ending gives a conscious message about immigrants. "Vamo' A Busal" was released on January 7, 2015, and was directed by Fernando Lugo. The song was recorded in order to promote their first concert on the Puerto Rican

José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum The ''Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot'' ( English: José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum of Puerto Rico) is the largest indoor entertainment and sports arena in Puerto Rico since its inauguration in 2004. Located in the Hato Rey business ce ...

on January 30, 2015. The show was the first date on their Doxisland U.S.A. Tour, which lasted until August 2015 and involved presentations in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

and

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. The last music video from ''Under Doxis'' was "Pa' Los Moteles", which was filmed in

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

in August 2014, premiered on April 4, 2015, and was directed by JC Seven.

2015–present: Move to independent labels and fourth studio album

In March 2015, the duo announced another studio album, titled ''Viva La Musik'', through a promotional single. "Directo al Grano" was released on March 10, 2015, and featured Puerto Rican singer Ken-Y, from the duo R.K.M. & Ken-Y. Later that month, Jowell & Randy announced their first collaboration with Vico C, to whom they gave a plaque during their concert at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum, acknowledging his contribution to reggaeton music. Shortly afterwards, the duo stopped recording for ''Viva La Musik'' in order to focus on a mixtape titled ''La Alcaldía del Perreo'' and their respective solo albums. Jowell released two solo

EPs An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

in 2015: ''The Pre-Season'' on August 22 and ''Roots & Suelto'' on December 21. Both records were published under independent label Well Done Music and separately featured Wiso G, Los Perchas, Ñengo Flow, Watussi and Trebol El Artista. Randy, on the other hand, released his first solo studio album, titled ''Roses & Wine'', on October 16, 2015. The record was composed by fusions between urban and rhythm and blues music. According to Randy, the idea of a R&B solo album was rejected by White Lion's work team in 2006, and by Wisin in 2009, when the duo signed with WY Records. Their contract with the former expired in April 2015, and Ortíz signed with Molina Records, a Puerto Rican independent label founded by

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Moder ...

player

Yadier Molina Yadier Benjamín Molina (; born July 13, 1982) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball Manager (baseball), manager and former catcher who is the manager of the Águilas Cibaeñas of the Dominican Professional Baseball League. He played his entir ...

. Randy stated that "reggaeton is not everything" and that "children should know that there are other interesting types of music with more professional lyrics". The album featured Arcángel, De La Ghetto, Álvaro Díaz, Guelo Star, John Jay, Jowell, Vinny Rivera, Ken-Y,

Mackie Mackie may refer to: Organizations * Mackie (company), American manufacturer of professional audio equipment * Mackie International, a textile machinery engineering plant and foundry in Northern Ireland * Mackie Academy, a secondary school in Sto ...

, Maicol and Rafa Pabón, and was mostly produced by Jorgie Milliano. ''Roses & Wine'' peaked at number 22 on ''Billboard''s Top Latin Albums chart on November 7, 2015. On March 19, 2016, Jowell & Randy became the first reggaeton acts to perform in the

, during the Bal de la Rosa foundation gala. They served as special guests by

Albert II, Prince of Monaco Albert II (Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi; born 14 March 1958) is Prince of Monaco, reigning since 2005. Born at the Prince's Palace of Monaco, Albert is the second child and only son of Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace. He attend ...

and

Caroline, Princess of Hanover Princess Caroline of Monaco (born 23 January 1957) is Princess of Hanover by marriage to Prince Ernst August. As the eldest child of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and Grace Kelly, she is the elder sister of Albert II, Prince of Monaco, and ...

, with whom they talked about the cultural themes linking

Latinos Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spanish or Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race. According to th ...

to Europe. ''La Alcaldía del Perreo'', their fifth mixtape, was released on April 22, 2016, under independent Rimas Music and featured Tego Calderón,

Alexis & Fido Alexis & Fido, a.k.a. Los Pitbulls,Reggaetón 'Pitbulls' Ready To ...

, De La Ghetto, Luigi 21 Plus, Ñengo Flow and Mr. Williamz. The duo promoted the record traveling with a caravan through various municipalities in Puerto Rico. They highlighted the importance of voting responsibly and criticized other reggaeton acts for performing

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...

instead of

perreo Sandungueo, also known as ''perreo'', is a style of dance and party music associated with reggaeton that emerged in the late 1980s in Puerto Rico. This style of dancing and music was created by DJ Blass, hence his Sandunguero Vol. 1 & 2 albums and ...

songs, which is the mixtape's main characteristic. ''La Alcaldía del Perreo'' peaked at number 23 on ''Billboard''s Top Latin Albums on May 14, 2016. Six out of the mixtape's ten tracks had a music video. "Guadalupe" premiered on April 1, 2016, was shot in

Old San Juan, Puerto Rico Old San Juan () is a historic district located at the "northwest triangle" of the islet of San Juan in San Juan. Its area roughly correlates to the Ballajá, Catedral, Marina, Mercado, San Cristóbal, and San Francisco sub-barrios (sub-dis ...

and was directed by Fernando Lugo, parodying the 1973 horror film ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...

''. "La Pista Revienta" was published on June 17, 2016, was filmed in the Principality of Monaco and was directed by Letour. "Me Prefieren" (featuring Ñengo Flow) was released on August 31, 2016, and was directed by DiCheco. "Un Poquito Na' Más" (featuring Tego Calderón) premiered on October 14, 2016, was shot in San Juan, Puerto Rico and was directed by Carlos Martin. The last two music videos, "Guadalupe (Jamaican Remix)" (featuring Mr. Williamz) and "Posición 4" premiered on March 11 and March 30, 2017, respectively. Casa de Leones reunited during mid-2016 to record three tracks for J King & Maximan's upcoming studio album. "El Regreso" became the first song to be recorded by all members right from the start after six years. They had reunions on various occasions after their separation, including guest features on remix versions of "Iglesia del Perreo" by Juno and "En Serio" by Yomo in 2010 and 2012, respectively. In October 2012, Jowell & Randy and Guelo Star were featured on the remix version of "Que La Nota Le Suba" by J King & Maximan, in whose outro was mentioned an upcoming album by the group, scheduled to be released in 2014, but it never did so. In April 2017, J King & Maximan and Guelo Star were featured alongside Puerto Rican rapper Alexio on the second remix version of "Guadalupe" by Jowell & Randy. The quintet's first music video in nine years, "Regreso", was released on November 5, 2016, and was directed and produced by Alejandro Santiago Ciena. Casa de Leones announced a concert tour scheduled to begin during late 2017 at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum. Promotion for ''Viva La Musik'' was taken up again during mid-2017, when they released "Bonita" featuring Latin Grammy Award-winner J Balvin on June 2, 2017. The single marked Jowell & Randy's sixth ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs entry, and the first one in five years, by peaking at number 34 on July 8, 2017. Internationally, the song peaked at number 19 in the Mexican Streaming Songs chart on June 15, 2017 and at number 20 in Spain on June 22, 2017. In 2020, their fourth album was revealed to be ''Viva el Perreo'', which is the duo's first album on Rimas Entertainment.

Discography

Studio albums

*2007: ''

'' *2007: '' Los Más Sueltos del Reggaetón'' *2010: ''

'' *2013: '' Sobredoxis'' *2020: ''Viva el Perreo'' *2024: ''Viva la Musik'' *2024: ''Mazorkeo.com''

Mixtapes

*2010: '' Tengan Paciencia'' *2012: ''Pre-Doxis'' *2013: ''El Imperio Nazza: Doxis Edition'' *2014: ''Under Doxis'' *2016: ''La Alcaldia del Perreo''

Solo albums

Jowell *2015: ''The Pre-Season'' *2015: ''Roots & Suelto'' Randy *2011: ''Éxitos de un Romance'' *2011: ''Una Nota Con Elegancia'' *2015: ''Roses & Wine''

Accolades

Jowell & Randy have received six awards out of eleven nominations, including one award out of three nominations as

with J King & Maximan and Guelo Star.

Tours

*El Momento World Tour (2010–2011) *Sobredoxis World Tour (2013–2014) *Doxisland USA Tour (2015)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jowell and Randy Reggaeton duos Puerto Rican musical duos Puerto Rican reggaeton musicians Musical groups established in 2002 Warner Music Latina artists Machete Music artists 2002 establishments in Puerto Rico Rimas Entertainment artists