Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez (born March 4, 1972), known professionally as Ivy Queen, is a Puerto Rican singer, rapper, songwriter, and actress. She is considered one of the pioneers of the reggaeton genre, commonly referred to as the Queen of Reggaeton.
Ivy Queen began her career as a member of the otherwise all-male collective The Noise in San Juan, Puerto Rico. There, she performed her first song "Somos Raperos Pero No Delincuentes" (We are Rappers, Not Delinquents). Ivy Queen went solo in 1996, and released her debut studio album En Mi Imperio (In My Empire) which was quickly picked up by Sony Discos for distribution in 1997.
She later released The Original Rude Girl, her second studio album for Sony label, which spawned the hit single "In the Zone". However, Ivy Queen did not rise to fame until she moved to an independent record label to release her third studio album, Diva in 2003. Ivy Queen's albums Diva, Flashback, and Sentimiento have all been awarded Gold and Platinum record status by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Her seventh studio album Drama Queen was released in 2010, and spawned a top ten single "La Vida es Así". It was followed by the Grammy Award-nominated Musa in 2012. Ivy Queen's recordings often include themes of female empowerment, socio-political issues, infidelity, and relationships.
Ivy Queen is one of the wealthiest reggaeton artists and had a net worth of $10 million in 2017. She is also the host of the Spotify original podcast Loud, where she talks about the history of reggaeton and features prominent Latin artists. The 10-episode podcast debuted August 4, 2021 on Spotify, with episodes released weekly on Wednesdays.
Early life
Ivy Queen was born in Añasco, Puerto Rico. When she was young, Queen's parents moved to New York, where she was raised. She did not finish high school, reaching eleventh grade in the mainland United States, and studied music at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.
Musical career
1995–99: The Noise, En Mi Imperio and The Original Rude Girl
When she was 18, Ivy Queen moved to San Juan, where she met rapper and producer DJ Negro. In 1995, Queen joined an all-male Puerto Rican group called the Noise, at the invitation of DJ Negro. The group became part of the emerging reggaeton scene. DJ Negro began producing a series of CDs centered around the Noise. Ivy Queen made her first appearance on the fifth installment of the CD series on a track called "Somos Raperos Pero No Delincuentes". She became tired of the violent and sexual themes often used in reggaeton, and wished to write about a wider variety of subjects.
DJ Negro convinced Queen to go solo, and in 1997 she recorded her first solo album, En Mi Imperiowhich featured the hit single "Como Mujer"for Sony Discos. In 1998, Queen launched her second album, The Original Rude Girlwhich featured Don Chezina, Alex D'Castro, and Domingo Quiñonesand worked with Wyclef Jean on her debut single "In the Zone". The album is bilingual and features hip hop music, a departure from the reggaeton featured on her debut album. The Original Rude Girl was commercially unsuccessful but "In The Zone" charted at number 38 on the Billboard Rhythmic Top 40.
In 1999, after a lack of commercial success with her first two studio albums, Sony dropped Queen and she took a break from her musical career. In 2001 and 2002, Queen's music began appearing on reggaeton compilation albums, spawning hits like "Quiero Bailar" from The Majestic 2 and "Quiero Saber" from Kilates. With songs like "Quiero Bailar", Ivy Queen represented women "In a movement that took off commercially [and dominantly was led by men] with aggressively lyrics and a "doggiestyle perreo dance". Ivy Queen established herself as reggaeton's no-nonsense female conscience. (Her anthem "Quiero Baliar" warned her dance partner not to misinterpret those moves.)". In 2003, Queen and her then-husband Gran Omar signed with independent, Miami-based label Real Music, established by Jorge Guadalupe and Anthony Pérez. They appeared on the label's first album Jams Vol. 1. Queen frequently appeared and performed on the reggaeton television show "The Roof", which featured urban music and lifestyle, and was produced by Pérez.