Daddy Yankee Quits Music For God

Puerto Rican reggaeton star Daddy Yankee is leaving his career in music to devote his life to Christianity; he told the audience while on stage at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico last week.

In a video posted to his Instagram, translated to English from Spanish, the Gasolina singer said, “My people, 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 continued to tell his fans that despite his success, following his faith has led to filling a void. “This is why tonight I acknowledge that Jesus lives for me — and I will live for him,” he said. “All of the tools that I have within my power – like music, social media, my platform, the mic, everything that God gave me is now for him.”

He concluded, “I am human, and everyone that follows me should follow Jesus Christ.”

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As People reports, Daddy Yankee announced his retirement from music last year. However, his statement didn’t mention religion.

Latin urban surged in the mainstream throughout the 2010s – Luis Fonsi's 2017 smash hit Despacito alongside Daddy Yankee was ubiquitous during that decade and became one of the most-played videos on YouTube of all time.

In July, Melbourne metalcore band Future Static covered Gasolina before announcing their debut album, Liminality. The band gave Gasolina what all cover songs need: breakdowns, guitar squeals, screams, a sung bridge amongst the chaos, and representing a band member’s upbringing with something completely different.

Vocalist Amariah Cook, born in Melbourne and raised in Barcelona, doesn’t only connect with her Spanish roots but provides a wholly electrifying and somewhat unhinged vocal performance to the Puerto Rican hit.

Cook explained, “Apart from connecting me to my Spanish roots, doing this cover also meant blending our lives together. Even though we were all raised in such vastly different lifestyles and places, it is one of those songs which was extremely popular worldwide, and with this cover, we strive to bring back that sense of planetary community.”