Yandel

The first musical endeavour of Llandel Malavé, otherwise known as Yandel, came during high school when he teamed up with his friend Juan Luna to form a Reggaeton duo as Wisin & Yandel. The duo encountered success right off the bat, after a track of theirs featured in a compilation album put out by the Fresh Productions Label. The compilation was a success and Wisin and Yandel’s track was singled out for praise especially, leading to the duo being signed to Fresh Productions soon after the compilation’s release. Their first album was released in 2000, and “Los Reyes del Nuevo Milenio” was a critical hit for them, but mainstream success would come with their follow up album. 2001’s “De Nuevos a Viejos” was certified Gold and got them signed to the Universal Records subsidiary Machete Music.

Malavé took this opportunity to release his first solo album, 2003’s “Quien Contra Mí”, but the duo remained his main project, and was hugely succesful for the rest of the decade. Come 2013 however, both Misin and Yandel decided to part ways. Not to disband, but focus on other projects for a period of time, with Yandel’s second solo effort “De Líder a Leyenda” dropping first in November 2013. To leave behind one of the most popular Reggaeton acts the world has ever seen is a gutsy move, even if it’s only a brief diversion, but it seems to be paying off dividends for Malavé. He remains a force to be reckoned with both live and in the studio and for that, he comes highly recommended.