Arcangel

Born in the New York district of Spanish Harlem, the eldest of three children, Santos’ early musical upbringing had the youngster listening to rock music including Robi Draco Rosa and later artists including Tefo Calderón and Tempo. With the move to Puerto Rico in 2002, the singer hoped to utilise the increasingly popular reggaeton scene and went on to form the underground act Arcángel & De La Ghetto, who subsequently signed with the record label Baby Records.

The duo became involved with the label Machete Music, known for producing reggaeton compilations, of which in 2006 aided their rise to fame. With the hit single “Ven y Pegate”, on the compilation album “Sangre Nueva” the pair became instantly popular later appearing on the Luny Tunes-hosted compilation “Mas Flow: Los Benjamins”. Arcángel & De La Ghetto then sued their record label Baby Records after they recorded an album at their own expense, which the company failed to release and were said to have leak the tracks onto the internet.

The partnership came to an end in early 2007, and Arcángel went solo, appearing on a whole host of reggaeton artists’ compilation albums. One of the singer’s most popular and recognisable songs “Chica Virtual” featured on the compilation “Flow la Discoteka 2”, and became a popular chart hit, reaching No. 9 on the Billboard Latin Rhythm Airplay chart.

In 2008 the singer founded his own label Flow Factory Inc. and hired his mother as his manager. Arcángel’s debut album “El Fenómeno” was issued in late 2008 and featured the hugely successful single “Por Amar a Ciegas”. Subsequently the singer embarked on a European tour in 2009, highlighting his popularity and increasing the exposure of reggaeton music. In 2010 Arcángel released the mixtape “The Problem Child” and subsequently signed with Pina Records based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. “Sentimiento, Elegancia & Maldad” the singer’s third full-length album arrived in 2013 topping the US Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart released through Pina Records.