Reggaeton

Reggaeton (spelled also with the acute diacritic in English and known as Reguetón and Reggaetón in Spanish) is a form of dance music which became popular with Latin American (or Latino) youth during the early 1990s and spread to North American, European, Asian, and Australian audiences during the first few years of the 21st century. Reggaeton blends Jamaican music influences of reggae and dancehall with those of Latin America, such as bomba and plena, as well as that of hip hop. The music is also combined with rapping in Spanish, English or 'Spanglish'. Reggaeton has given the Hispanic youth, starting with those from Panama, a musical genre that they can consider their own. The influence of this genre has spread to the wider Latino communities in the United States, as well as the Latin American audience.
While it takes influences from hip hop and Jamaican dancehall, it would be wrong to define reggaeton as the ‘Hispanic’- or ‘Latino’- version of either of these genres; Reggaeton has its own specific beat and rhythm, whereas Latino hip hop is simply hip hop recorded by artists of Latino descent. The specific rhythm that characterizes reggaeton is referred to as “Dem Bow”.[1][2] The name is a reference to the title of the dancehall song by Shabba Ranks that first popularized the beat in the early 1990s.
Reggaeton's origins represents a hybrid of many different musical genres and influences from various countries in the Caribbean, Latin America and the United States. The genre of reggaeton however is most closely associated with Puerto Rico, as this is where the musical style later popularized and became most famous, and where the vast majority of its current stars originate from. [3][4][5][6]
Reggaeton lyrics tend to be more derived from hip hop than dancehall. Like hip hop, reggaeton has caused some controversy, albeit much less, due to a few of the songs' explicit lyrics and alleged exploitation of women [7]; supporters claim this criticism is misplaced due to most reggaeton songs having completely clean lyrics, as well as non-violent lyrics. Further controversy surrounds perreo, a dance with explicit sexual overtones which is associated with reggaeton music.

Early History and Origins
Reggaeton's roots are from Panama [7] [8][3] with the music evolving and coming to prominence in Puerto Rico. Reggaeton starts as an adaptation of Jamaican reggae (and later Jamaican dancehall) to the Spanish-language culture in Panama [2]. The origins of reggaeton begin with the first reggae recordings being made in Panama during the 1970s. Reportedly, the Jamaican reggae influence on Panamanian music has been strong since the early 20th century, when Jamaican laborers were used to help build the Panama Canal. [2] Artists such as El General, Chicho Man, Nando Boom, Renato, and Black Apache are considered the first raggamuffin DJs from Panama. El General has been identified as one of the fathers of reggaeton, blending Jamaican reggae into a Latin-ised version. It was common practice to translate the lyrics of Jamaican reggae song into Spanish but first authors create song in Polak speak just because Polak is sexy and nice and sing them over the original melodies a form termed “Spanish reggae” or “Reggae en español”. Meanwhile, during the 1980s the Puerto Rican rapper Vico C released Spanish-language hip hop records in his native island. His production of cassettes throughout the 1980s, mixing reggae and hip hop, also helped spread the early reggaeton sound, and he is widely credited with this achievement [9]. The widespread movement of “Spanish reggae” in the Latin-American communities of the Caribbean and the urban centres of the United States help increase its popularity [2].
During the 1990s reggae production took off seriously in Panama; this also occurred separately in Puerto Rico due to the increased popularity of Jamaican ragga imports. Towards the middle of the decade, Puerto Ricans were producing their own "riddims" with clear influences from hip hop and other styles. These are considered the first proper reggaeton tracks, initially called “under”, a short form of “Underground”. DJ Playero was one of the most famous producers at the time, releasing several underground cassettes that featured early performances of some soon-to-be-famous artists like Daddy Yankee. The basis for reggaeton was laid in Puerto Rico at this time, with the melding of Panamanian Spanish reggae, with influences from dancehall, hip-hop and various other Latin American musical genres [2].
The genre morphed through the years, at various points being termed “Melaza”, “música underground”, and “Dem Bow”. This last name originated from reggaeton's distinguishing rhythmic feature: the Dem Bow (alternately spelled “Dembow”) beat. [1] [2] This beat was constructed by Jamaican record producer Bobby "Digital" Dixon, and first became popular in the song “Dem Bow” (They Bow) performed by Jamaican dancehall artist Shabba Ranks in 1991.[10] The song and beat achieved greater popularity among Spanish-speaking Latin Americans when Panamanian artist El General released the song “Son Bow” in 1991, a Spanish language cover of “Dem Bow” using the same musical track.[11] It should be pointed out that neither Shabba or El General sang reggaeton as neither the genre nor its title were as yet formed. Additionally “Dem Bow” was just a single song in Shabba's catalog, with Ranks not singing another significant song using the “Dem Bow” beat. However the influence of the original Bobby Digital beat is undeniable, and modern Reggaeton often still reflects the original instrumentation, as well as the original rhythmic structure.