Akon Follows 50 Cent's Lead Into Latin Music

When 50 Cent teamed up with Wisin y Yandel to collaborate on the reggaeton duo's single, "Mujeres en el Club," he may have started a trend, as more urban artists seem to be popping up on Spanish-language tracks. Now Akon has joined in, making his foray into the Latin genre by dropping not one but two new singles. The hitmaker recently recorded a remix of his latest smash "Beautiful", featuring Spanish vocals by ex-RBD member Dulce Maria. And last week he joined Bachata stars Aventura to shoot a video in Miami for their blazing new single "All Up to You," along with Wisin y Yandel. "Working with Akon, it was an experience," Aventura frontman Romeo told MTV News from the video set. "We've never worked with an artist this huge." According to Romeo, it was Akon who first approached the Bronx, New York-based foursome about working together. And when we asked Akon if we could expect to see more of these collaborations, he said it was only the beginning. "I think you're gonna see a lot more of that kind of [collaboration between] the whole hip-hop, R&B and the Latino community," Akon said at last month's Billboard Latin Music Awards, where he performed the song live. "We were always connected, we just never actually worked together. So now we're going to start doing that." It isn't the first time the worlds have collided. Other recent pairings include Daddy Yankee, who scored a hit in 2007 with his "Impacto" remix featuring Black Eyed Peas' Fergie. And Latin pop singer David Bisbal also hit the studio to record a Spanish remix of Rihanna's hit, "Hate That I Love You." There are also a lot more hot collaborations on the horizon. Aventura, for instance, have teamed up with Ludacris and Wyclef Jean for a track called "Spanish Fly" on their next album, The Last, which drops on June 9. Plus, Grammy-winning rap duo Calle 13 revealed exclusively to MTV News during last year's VMAs that they've spoken to Nas about laying down a joint track. Reggaeton giants Wisin y Yandel, whose new album, La Revolucion, drops late this month, say the growing Spanglish trend is a natural evolution as urban music becomes less about language. "We're breaking the language barrier working with Akon, working with 50 Cent," Wisin said. "It's about making good music, and I think that's what we're trying to do."

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Akon Follows 50 Cent's Lead Into Latin Music

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