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Oro Solido is a New-York based music group, who focus on the musical Genre 'merengue'. Oro Solido has sold several albums, reaching household name status. Their music has even been featured on film as well as being played on tropical music stations since 1995.

Early Beginnings[link]

Oro Solido was formed by Raul Acosta, who has received the nickname 'El Presidente'. Acosta was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic on September 8, 1971. Born into a musical family, at the age of seven, he and his older brothers Iván and Rafael, in addition to local neighborhood kids, started a pre-adolescent music group called "Los Sobrinos Del Rey" a Dominican version of the Jackson 5. With this early experience, Raul was able to develop his musical talent as well as his stage presence. The group went on to perform in two nationally televised shows on the government TV station, channel four, for a show called "Amarillis con los Niños.” At 9 years old, the family relocated to the United States. With no English skills, Raul moved to Jersey City, New Jersey to start his new life. Years later, he moved to Union City where the Hispanic culture was growing stronger.

Upon graduating from high school, Raúl began his studies in music and sound engineering by joining Kennedy's Music World, a local music studio, school and store, Where he met a teacher named Kennedy Cortinas. Kennedy taught him just about everything he knows, and planted the seed of Music in his mind. There he worked retail and operated the music studio as well as helped students in their classes. In 1990, after graduating high school, he held different positions within the Hudson County government.

Rise to Stardom[link]

In 1994, Acosta formed the merengue band Oro Sólido. That same year, he released his self-titled debut album, 'Oro Sólido'.

He coninued to release albums approximately every year after that. With hits like "Ta Cache," "La Tanguita Roja," "Maria se Fue," "El Baile del Beeper," "Una Nalgadita," "La Morena," among others, Oro Sólido, positioned itself as one of the biggest Latin music groups in the world. They have surpassed various barriers when it comes to performing in the Anglo media and having their music played on English-speaking radio stations. Raul Acosta has been nominated for and won numerous awards throughout the years, including Premios Estrella, Premios ACE and Premios Lo Nuestro.

The group has performed regularly on some of Hispanic TV’s most distinguished and popular TV shows. Oro Sólido was also the first merengue band to perform on Fox 5 News New York and The Jerry Lewis Telethon. The group has also performed over 5 times in the renowned Madison Square Garden as well as other famous arenas like the Universal City Amphitheater in Los Angeles, El Zócalo de Mexico, Estadio Modelo de Ecuador, El Monumento in Dominican Republic and the Meadowlands in New Jersey. The group has shared the stage with artists such as 50 cent, LeAnn Rimes, Celia Cruz, Marc Anthony, Fat Joe, Johnny Ventura, Wilfrido Vargas, Tito Puente, El Gran Combo and The Temptations.

Philanthropy[link]

Oro Sólido also does benefit work with different organizations which include World Vision, March of Dimes, The Wheelchair Foundation, Health Plus, Verizon and the City of New York's Commission of Domestic Violence.^{[citation needed]}

Other Markets[link]

Oro Sólido is affiliated to companies such as Supercanal Caribe, a growing Latin cable station in the U.S. and Dominican Republic. The group has also launched their own Oro Sólido Long Distance Phone Card.

Discography[link]

• Oro Solido (1994)
• Y Sigue el Cache (1995)
• Internacional (1996)
• El Poder de New York (1997)
• El Presidente del Merengue (1998)
• 5th Anniversario (1999)
• Best of the Best (2000)
• Frente a Frente: Oro Solido Vs. Jossie Esteban Y La Patrulla (2000)
• Planeta Solido (2001)
• Simply the Best: Grandes Exitos (2001)
• Party Time 2001: Part 1 (2001)
• Todo Exitos de Oro Solido (2002)
• Todo Exitos de Oro Solido (Platinum Edition) (2004)
• 10th Anniversary Collector's Edition (2004)
• En Vivo (2004)
• Fantasia Urbana (2008)

and Oro Solido Top 40 CD, (live)(2011)

External links[link]

• Official Myspace
• Official site

www.twitter@orosolido Facebook (orosolido)

References[link]

• Yahoo! - Autobiography
• Google - Discography

Don Omar
Omar at Hard Rock Live in Orlando, Florida, October 4, 2008
Background information
Birth name	William Omar Landrón Rivera
Also known as	El Rey
Born	(1978-02-10) February 10, 1978 (age 34)
Origin	Puerto Rico
Genres	Reggaeton, pop, rap, R&B
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, composer, CEO, actor, rapper
Years active	1999–present
Labels	Orfanato Music Group (His Label) VI Music Universal Music Latino Machete Music
Website	Don Omar

Don Omar (born William Omar Landrón Rivera; February 10, 1978 ^[1]), a Puerto Rican reggaeton singer-rapper and actor. He is sometimes referred to by his nickname El Rey (Spanish: "The King").

Early life[link]

William Omar Landrón Rivera is the oldest son of William Landrón and Luz Antonia Rivera. He was raised in Santurce, a barrio in the Villa Palmeras area of San Juan, Puerto Rico. From an early age, he showed interest in the music of Vico C and Brewley MC.^{[citation needed]} During his youth, he became an active member of a Protestant church, Iglesia Evangélica Restauración en Cristo in Bayamón where he occasionally offered sermons. However, after four years, he left the church to dedicate himself to singing.^[2]

Career[link]

His first public performance in a night club was accompanied by disc jockey Eliel Lind Osorio. Afterwards he appeared regularly on compilation albums from popular DJs and producers including Luny Tunes, Noriega, and DJ Eric. He also worked as a backup singer for the duo Héctor & Tito. One of the members, Héctor Delgado, helped him produce his first solo album.^[2]

Don Omar's career rose to stardom with the release of his first studio album, The Last Don. Both the studio version and its live edition have been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Worldwide, The Last Don: Live [CD & DVD] has sold over one million copies, according to his official website. He earned awards for Latin Pop Album of the Year and New Artist & Latin Rap/Hip-Hop Album of the Year by the Billboard Latin Music Awards in 2003. The Last Don: Live [CD & DVD] was also nominated for Urban Music Album at the 2005 Latin Grammy Awards.

Omar's May 2006 album King of Kings, became history's highest ranking reggaeton LP in the top 10 US charts, with its debut at #1 on the Latin sales charts and the #1 spot on the Billboard Latin Rhythm Radio Chart with his single “Angelito”.^[3] Omar was also able to beat the in-store appearance sales record at Disney World's Virgin music store previously set by pop star Britney Spears.

With the highest charting debut by a reggaeton artist, Don Omar's King of Kings entered at No. 7 with 74,000, beating Daddy Yankee's No. 24 entry with 2005's "Barrio Fino En Directo". In April 2007, Don Omar received the Latin Billboard award for Reggaeton Album Of The Year for King of Kings.^[4] Billboard recognized that King of Kings was the most successful album of the decade in Latin America, besides being the most successful in the history of the genre of reggaeton. Billboard estimated that the album sold over 4.1 million copies by the end of 2009.^[5]

The album's track "Salió El Sol" is featured in the video game Grand Theft Auto IV. The songs "Los Bandoleros" and "Conteo" were featured in the movie The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift in the ending credits.

Don Omar participated in Gilberto Santa Rosa's presentation in an event titled "Concierto del Amor", presented in the Madison Square Garden on February 9, 2008. He closed the event and performed reggaeton themes.^[6]

Don Omar's third studio album, iDon, was released on April 28, 2009. This album was dedicated to his cousin Cordell Brown. "Virtual Diva" became the most requested song on Latin radio stations.^[7][8] The second official single, titled "Sexy Robotica", was released on July 6, 2009.

The album Don Omar Presents: Meet The Orphans was released on November 16, 2010. The album features the artists under Don Omar's Orfanato Music Group label and other reggaeton artists. The album includes the promotional single Hasta Abajo and the album's lead single Danza Kuduro featuring Portuguese-French singer Lucenzo, as well as collaborations from Orfanato Music Group artists including Kendo Kapponi, Syko, Plan B, Zion & Lennox, Yaga & Mackie and Danny Fornaris. He is signed to VI Music and Machete Music through Universal Music Latino.

The album Don Omar Presents MTO2: The New Generation was released on May 1, 2012. The album features newly signed to Orfanato Music Group Natti Natasha as well as many other signed artists and other reggaeton artists like Zion Y Lennox. The album includes the singles Hasta Que Salga El Sol and Dutty Love featuring Natti Natasha. The album also features collaborations with Juan Magan, Mims, Syko, Vinny el Vendito, and Yunel Cruz. The album has been well received^{[citation needed]} and is a top seller on iTunes.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

William Omar Landrón is the father of four children. He married forecaster/journalist Jackie Guerrido on April 18, 2008.^[9] Divorce rumors surrounded the couple two years into the marriage and were compounded by comments Landrón made via Twitter.^[10] In March 2011, it was revealed they had divorced.^[11]

Controversies and legal issues[link]

On September 18, 2007, Don Omar was briefly detained in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia due to a legal dispute. A Bolivian concert promotor sued him and some of his management after he canceled a concert scheduled for earlier that year in La Paz as part of the international tour Up Close.^[12][13][14] The organization claimed that he had defrauded US$70,000 due to the cancellation.^[14] Landrón responded that he canceled the concert because the company did not provide air tickets in time.^[14] After the case was presented before a local judge, both parties reached an agreement.^[14] Landrón was allowed to leave the country in order to comply with a previously scheduled appearance in Buenos Aires on Argentine television and returned the next day to hold his concert in Santa Cruz's Tahuichi Aguilera soccer stadium.^{[citation needed]}

Landrón is banned from Univision.^{[citation needed]} After Univision became involved in his marriage and its end, he is no longer allowed to attend any award shows from Univision.^{[citation needed]}

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• 2003: The Last Don
• 2006: King of Kings
• 2009: iDon
• 2010: Meet the Orphans
• 2012: Don Omar Presents-Meet The Orphans 2: New Generation

Live / special edition albums[link]

• 2004: The Last Don Live
• 2006: The Last Don: The Gold Series
• 2006: King of Kings: Armageddon Edition
• 2007: King of Kings Live
• 2012: Don Omar Present MTO 2 - New Generatio

Compilation albums[link]

• 2005: Don Omar Presenta: Los Bandoleros
• 2005: Da Hitman Presents Reggaetón Latino
• 2006: Don Omar Presenta: Los Bandoleros Reloaded
• 2007: Don Omar Presenta: El Pentágono

Filmography[link]

See also[link]

	Puerto Rico portal
	Biography portal
	Music portal

• List of famous Puerto Ricans
• List of Puerto Rican songwriters

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Don Omar

• Official website
• Official website for iDon album
• Official page at MySpace
• Official page at Facebook