Daddy Yankee First Latino Number One on Spotify

The Puerto Rican superstar of reggaeton has hits that include “Gasolina,” ”Shaky Shaky” and “Despacito,” a song co-written with Luis Fonsi. He’s surpassed 44,735,586 monthly listeners to reach the first global spot, Spotify announced Sunday in an email sent to The Associated Press.

“Being the first Latin artist to reach #1 in Spotify marks a precedent not only for my career but for the industry in general,” Daddy Yankee, whose real name is Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez, said in an email. “The musical digital revolution has unified the world and this is the proof. We are all in the same boat with no labels or stereotypes.”

Image: Daddy Yankee — File photo of Daddy Yankee, who is Spotify’s first Latin artist with most streams worldwide. Paul A. Hebert / AP

He recalled that, when he started his career in 1992 in Puerto Rico, many didn’t believe he would last more than three years, much less that he would become an international sensation.

“But I never stopped,” he said. “I had to keep fighting. I had to make big sacrifices, to miss important moments with my family, to feel the prejudice of many people that didn’t open the doors for me.”