Source: Kevork Djansezian / Getty
The “Gasolina” singer-rapper, born Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez, shared his leap into Christianity during the last stop of his farewell tour in his hometown, San Jan, Puerto Rico, Dec. 3. While speaking in Spanish, Daddy Yankee addressed 18,500 fans at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico amid his sold out reggaeton show.
“Family, this is the most important day of my life. I want to share it… because living a life of success is not the same as living a life of purpose,” he said, according to People. “This is why tonight I acknowledge that Jesus Christ lives for me — and I will live for him,” the King of Reggaeton added.
After encouraging the concert attendees to also get into the word and give their lives to Jesus Christ, a huge display of fireworks went off that noted, “Christ Loves You.”
Daddy Yankee said it was “the most important day in my life” on social media. In his speech and Instagram caption, he emotionally highlighted that he was embarking on a “new chapter” and going by his birth name moving forward.
The singer-rapper reportedly shared in his speech that his faith and religion were the only things fulfilling him despite his longtime successes in the music business.
“I took note of something the Bible says. ‘What good will it be for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?’” he asked the crowd, according to Variety.
Daddy Yankee announced his retirement in March 2022. At the time, he made no mention of religion being behind his step away from the spotlight.
The longtime musician also told fans about his final album, Legendaddy, and La Meta (The Goal) farewell tour.
“Today, I’m announcing my retirement from music by giving you my best production and my best concert tour,” he said in a statement. “I will say goodbye celebrating these 32 years of experience with this new collector’s item, the album Legendaddy. I’m going to give you all the styles that have defined me in one single album.”
Reggaeton music is a Black and Latin diasporic mix-up of dynamic musical elements from Jamaican dancehall, Panamanian reggae, and hip-hop. Then known as Daddy Yankee, the Puerto Rican artist made waves in the genre in 2004 thanks to his hit song, “Gasolina.”
In 2017, the musician took over the global stage with the crossover success of his and Luis Fonsi’s reggaeton smash “Despacito” featuring Justin Bieber. The catchy tune spent 16 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.
Legendaddy, the 46-year-old’s seventh studio album, reportedly garnered 175 million streams within three days of its release. Billboard’s Year End Boxscore chart claimed that the La Meta tour’s total gross earnings were over $125 million.
Good luck to Daddy Yankee on his journey with Jesus!
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