How Reggaeton Conquered Global Pop Music

The rise of reggaeton from Caribbean underground music to the dominant sound in global pop represents one of the most remarkable cultural stories of the 21st century. What began in the working-class neighborhoods of Puerto Rico in the 1990s has become the rhythmic foundation of mainstream pop worldwide, reshaping not just what music sounds like but how the music industry operates.

The genre's global breakthrough was driven by a combination of musical innovation, streaming technology, and demographic shifts. Reggaeton's irresistible rhythmic patterns, built on the dembow beat that traces its origins to Jamaican dancehall, proved to be universally appealing across language and cultural barriers. Streaming platforms, which don't discriminate by language the way radio traditionally has, allowed Spanish-language music to reach global audiences on equal footing with English-language content.

The influence extends far beyond Latin music. Pop producers across genres now routinely incorporate reggaeton rhythms and production techniques into their work, and the collaborative culture that has always been central to reggaeton has reshaped how artists across genres approach feature collaborations and cross-pollination.

Perhaps most significantly, reggaeton's success has permanently altered the power dynamics of the global music industry. Latin American artists and executives now wield influence that would have been unthinkable two decades ago, and the industry's center of gravity has shifted from its traditional English-language base to a more globally distributed model. The genre that Nashville and New York once ignored has become the sound that defines the era.