Daddy Yankee is officially retiring from reggaeton to devote his life to his religious faith, the rapper said after ending his farewell tour, La Meta (The Goal), Sunday night in his homeland Puerto Rico.
The 46-year-old singer made the announcement in a lengthy speech following a larger-than-life performance of his global hit “Gasolina,” a song that marked the beginning of the globalization of reggaeton and catapulted him into mainstream success back in 2004.
"My people, this day for me is the most important day of my life. And I want to share it with you because living a life of success is not the same as living a life with purpose," the artist, who also popularized the 2017 megahit “Despacito” with Luis Fonsi, said in Spanish.
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Despite wearing stylish sunglasses onstage, the tears streaming down his face were visible to the thousands of fans around the world who watched him closely via livestream.
In his message, Daddy Yankee cited this Bible verse in Spanish: “What good will it be for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?”
"That is why tonight, I recognize, and I am not ashamed to tell the whole world that Jesus lives in me and that I will live for him," the singer said with his hand to the sky, adding that he would embark on "a new beginning" as Ramón Ayala, his birth name.
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