Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (born February 3, 1976), known professionally as Daddy Yankee, is a retired Puerto Rican rapper, singer, composer, and actor. Known as the "King of Reggaetón" by music critics and fans alike, he is the artist who coined the word reggaeton in 1991 in the mixtape Playero 34 in the song "So persigueme, no te detengas" to describe the new music genre that was emerging from Puerto Rico that synthesized American hip-hop, Hispanic Caribbean music, and Jamaican reggae rhythms with Spanish rapping and singing. He is often cited as an influence by other Hispanic urban performers.
Ayala was born in Río Piedras and was raised in the Villa Kennedy Housing Projects neighborhood. He aspired to be a professional baseball player and tried out for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball. Before he could be officially signed, he was hit by a stray round from an AK-47 rifle while taking a break from a studio recording session with reggaeton artist DJ Playero. Ayala spent roughly a year and a half recovering from the wound; the bullet was never removed from his hip, and he credits the shooting incident with allowing him to focus entirely on a music career.

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