Don Omar Biography

Don Omar or El Rey is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the most notorious reggaeton artists in the Latin community.

Early Life 

William Omar Landrón Rivera was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico on February 10, 1978. He showed interest in music early on, frequently attending the Bayamón Protestant church.

Career and Leap to Stardom

Don Omar started off with collaborations and back-up vocals for various artists. However, the release of his first studio album The Last Don would catapult him to national fame. Besides being certified platinum in the US, the record got Omar awards for Latin Pop Album of the Year and New Artist & Latin Rap/Hip-Hop Album of the Year by Latin Billboard. More importantly, he received his first Latin Grammy nomination for Urban Music Album in 2005. The reggaeton inspired King of Kings released 2006, was one of the most successful albums of its genre. It debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Latin chart, thus winning the Billboard award for Reggaeton Album of the Year.

Decreasing Popularity and Minor Comeback

For his next album, Don Omar opted for a more electro-dance vibe with iDon. Less popular than its predecessors, the album was however nominated for a Billboard award for Latin Rhythm Album of the Year in 2010. In 2012 he revealed Don Omar Presents MTO2: The New Generation which was well received. Consequently, the album won the Grammy for Best Urban Music Album the same year.

Photo credit: Universal Musica