GLOBAL STYLE

Reggaeton drum patterns.

The dembow, a kick on every beat with a snare pattern pushing ahead of it, taken from Jamaican dancehall in Panama and Puerto Rico.

92 grooves
1990–2025
5 landmarks

The Reggaeton timeline

19 of 19 grooves

1990
Landmark
Dem Bow Open Dem Bow in a new tab
Shabba Ranks
Cross-genre root: the Jamaican hit on Steely & Clevie's Poco Man Jam riddim that gave dembow its name and loop
1991
Landmark
Te Ves Buena Open Te Ves Buena in a new tab
El General
Panamanian reggae en español: Spanish deejaying over dancehall riddims, the bridge that carried the beat to Puerto Rico
2002
Pa' Que Retozen Open Pa' Que Retozen in a new tab
Tego Calderón
Single from El Abayarde, a debut steeped in Afro-Caribbean roots; raw early-2000s dembow before the pop boom
2003
Quiero Bailar Open Quiero Bailar in a new tab
Ivy Queen
Iván Joy production; a female-empowerment perreo anthem over a hard, classic dembow loop
2003
Dile Open Dile in a new tab
Don Omar
The Last Don single sampling Joe Arroyo's La Noche; dembow meets Colombian tropical music
2004
Landmark
Gasolina Open Gasolina in a new tab
Daddy Yankee
Luny Tunes-assisted Barrio Fino single; first reggaeton song in the US Hot 100 Top 40, taking the dembow loop global
2004
Yo Voy Open Yo Voy in a new tab
Zion & Lennox feat. Daddy Yankee
Motivando a la Yal hit; melodic duo vocals over the synth-and-dembow sound of the 2004 boom
2005
Rakata Open Rakata in a new tab
Wisin & Yandel
Luny Tunes and Nely production from Mas Flow 2; driving boom-era dembow built for clubs
2005
Atrévete-te-te Open Atrévete-te-te in a new tab
Calle 13
Built on a Colombian cumbia beat and coastal clarinet riff; showed reggaeton could absorb other Latin grooves
2010
Danza Kuduro Open Danza Kuduro in a new tab
Don Omar & Lucenzo
Adapts Lucenzo's Vem Dançar Kuduro; Angolan-Portuguese kuduro energy fused with reggaeton for a global hit
2013
Landmark
6 AM Open 6 AM in a new tab
J Balvin feat. Farruko
Medellín breakthrough: a smoother, mid-tempo romantic dembow that set up Colombia's 2010s reggaeton wave
2015
El Perdón Open El Perdón in a new tab
Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias
Slow, sung romantic reggaeton; the softer dembow that ruled mid-2010s streaming
2016
Soy Peor Open Soy Peor in a new tab
Bad Bunny
Latin trap breakout: 808s and hi-hat rolls instead of dembow, a branch that fed later reggaeton production
2019
Con Calma Open Con Calma in a new tab
Daddy Yankee feat. Snow
Reworks Snow's dancehall-pop hit Informer over dembow, closing the loop between Jamaica and reggaeton
2019
Callaíta Open Callaíta in a new tab
Bad Bunny & Tainy
Tainy's minimal, spacious dembow sampling Zion's Alócate; the airy late-2010s production style
2020
Landmark
Dákiti Open Dákiti in a new tab
Bad Bunny & Jhay Cortez
Tainy and Mora's slow-burning, futuristic reggaeton: thumping kicks under wavy synths, a template for the 2020s
2022
Delincuente Open Delincuente in a new tab
Tokischa, Anuel AA & Ñengo Flow
Dominican dembow crossover: the faster, choppier Santo Domingo cousin of the reggaeton beat
2022
De Carolina Open De Carolina in a new tab
Rauw Alejandro & DJ Playero
Saturno track with 90s underground pioneer DJ Playero; a modern nod to the mixtape era's raw dembow
2025
DtMF Open DtMF in a new tab
Bad Bunny
A plena song with reggaeton touches: Puerto Rico's hand-drum tradition folded into a global hit