NEW YORK – Daddy Yankee said goodbye to New York City this Tuesday with a Latin party in style: a two-hour concert that condensed the history of reggaeton, from his classic “Gasolina” to songs from his latest album, “Ledaddy. “.
The “king of reggaeton” transformed the Madison Square Garden stadium into a lively nightclub with a super-sharp resolution mega-screen, flashes, laser beams and a group of tireless dancers who “twerk” incessantly moving on a two-story stage.
To the cheers of a room with space for 20,000 people and all the tickets sold, Yankee made his grand entrance pretending to get off a plane, dressed in a gold sequined jacket and sunglasses, and debuted with the emblem. of his retirement, “Champion”.
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 20: Daddy Yankee performs at Madison Square Garden on September 20, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Astrida Valigorsky / Getty Images)
For the Puerto Rican singer, who described himself as a “man of few words and lots of action”, this leg of his “Last Return” tour had a special value, as he closed the first phase of the United States with his return to a key city of the urban genre.
“Since this movement was activated, it has been an immediate reaction in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, and the first city we have had a quick impact on since the 1990s, starting with, was here in New York,” he said. , confessing that he feels “an emotional shock”.
Yankee has gifted a legion of erudite fans of her catchy, sexual and funny lyrics with those songs they have played on summer nights for the past two decades, such as “Rompe”, “Lo que pasa” and “Ella me levanto”, and others still recent including “Despacito”.
With typical reggaeton swagger, he announced that he would sing “the song of the decade” and confessed that he was proud to have fulfilled one of his aspirations as a “kid”: “If we can sing great songs in other languages, why can’t we sing them in Spanish? ? “
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After the first guitar chords, the singer Luis Fonsi, who accompanies him in that song that marked a before and after in the reception of Latin music in the United States, appeared virtually on the screen, joining a group of stars with whom he collaborated.
Therefore, “Big Boss” shared the limelight with other pioneers of the genre who were portrayed while performing songs like “Mami, don’t leave me alone”, with Wisin and Yandel; “Your Prince”, with Zion and Lennox; “Dance dance dance” with Ozuna; “La santa” with Bad Bunny or “Agua” with Rauw Alejandro.
In a very physical show, as required by reggaeton and its lyrical content, Yankee took advantage of the breaks so that the dancers performed “twerking” movements in short dresses, while the dancers, in covered dresses, were disguised as giant heads.
The big heads fluttered near a huge inflatable doll made in the image of the singer who was on stage in the last few songs, complementing some impressive images that dazzled audiences sometimes more interested in recording on cellphones than dancing.
But as expected, the veteran artist, after 34 years of experience, knew what the final fireworks of his performance must be: “The song that changed music forever, that went viral without social networks, the song who made world reggaeton “, he advanced.
In case there were any doubts, he added: “it’s expensive!” before the basses of “Gasolina” revolutionized the stadium and an incendiary staging, with fire and gas cylinders, brought up a devoted audience that left their voices asking for more, as dictated by the chorus of that 2004 hit.
The Yankees walked away in a shower of glitter and thanked the Latinos for their “support from day one,” who showed up en masse to greet with tour shirts and national flags, and roared whenever their idol called their countries all night long.
One of them was Johanna, a Puerto Rican-born New York fan who was encouraged to go alone after buying the ticket at the last minute and singing all the songs: “It was the last chance,” added the woman. , expressing the general feeling of the event.
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