Going from one of Puerto Rico’s most beloved reggaeton artists to international superstar, Don Omar has proven that the beat of the islands can resonate with music lovers everywhere. Born William Omar Landrón on February 10, 1978, in Villa Palmeras, Puerto Rico, Omar became involved in the church at a young age, ultimately becoming a preacher, but soon decided that music was his true calling. His big break came with an opportunity to collaborate with the popular Puerto Rican duo Hector & Tito, while at the same time pursuing a solo career. Omar’s album debut, T
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he Last Don (2003), was a landmark for the reggaeton movement, which was then just beginning to make inroads into the rest of the lucrative United States market. The album featured extensive production work by Luny Tunes and Eliel, who would quickly become the style's go-to producers. Beyond this album, Omar was scoring further hits with Luny Tunes on their mixtape CDs, his biggest hit being “Reggaeton Latino," a rallying cry for Latinos everywhere that led to crossover radio air play and established Omar in the same league as
Daddy Yankee and Tego Calderón.
Following a live album (The Last Don: Live, 2004) and best-of/remix compilation (Da Hit Man Presents Reggaeton Latino, 2005), Omar released his second album,
King of Kings (2006). It easily debuted atop the Latin album chart; more notably, though, it reached number eight on the Billboard 200 overall album chart, the first reggaeton album ever to break the Top Ten. Omar's May 2006 album King of Kings became history's highest ranking reggaeton LP in the top 10 US charts, with its debut at # 1 on the Latin sales charts and the #1 spot on the Billboard Latin Rhythm Radio Chart with his single “
Angelito”. The star was also able to beat the in-store appearance sales record at Disneyworld's Virgin music store previously set by pop star
Britney Spears. Don Omar continues to expand awareness for reggaeton music, becoming one of the few artists in this music genre to embark on global tours through some of the largest cities in
Europe, U.S. and Central and South America.