Santo Domingo. DR
Puerto Rico records a large number of urban music duos, but the Dominican Republic has a significant number of musical duos that were popular at the time.
Before reggaeton music became popular, urban music has in its history the duo consisting of Sandy and Papo, which were a hit in the 90’s. Later came Los Pepe, Los Teke Teke, Jhon Distrito and Chombo Pana Black, Confucio and Boperó, Los Pachuché, Los Pikilao, Mr Manyao and El H2, among others.
In 1999, the life of Sandy Adalberto Carriello Rojas (1972-2020) was turned upside down when his inseparable friend Luis Deschamps (Papo) died in a car accident that year.
At the time, Sandy and Papo formed the strongest duo for merenhouse and urban music in all of Latin America. They debuted with the song “It’s time to dance” and quickly became the idols of the youth.
His punching power was so strong that four months earlier he had concluded the famous Viña del Mar Festival in Chile with a success that promised him a career of exceptional stability at international level.
The duo was an icon of merengue house, a mix of electronic music, hip hop and electronic mambo, it was one of the most successful music genres exported from Central America, with artists such as Proyecto Uno, Los Ilegales and Fulanito standing out.
Sandy then decided to live in New York City where he continued alone with the Sandy y Papo La Marca project.
On December 23, 2020, Sandy also died of a sudden heart attack.
Years later the second most popular duo in this country: Los Pepe, consisting of Doble T and El Crock, who stayed together for 15 years until they announced their permanent split in March 2019.
In 2012, Los Pepe popularized the song “Pepe”, which achieved high popularity in the country.
Los Pepe are credited with being the first Dembowseros to tour the United States, participating in the now-defunct Univisión network’s “Sábado Gigante” program, the first to be nominated for the Casandra (now Soberano). , and appearing in US Billboard magazine.
“Last year (2018) Double T and I sat down to talk and we said, ‘Well it’s time for everyone to start their own project because the moment deserves it musically,'” commented El Crock.
“Every beginning has an end,” assured El Crock in 2019 on the radio show “Alofoke Radio Show”.
He then added, “I didn’t want that to ever happen, but it should have happened at any time because this is music.”
Already in 2015 they had their first problem. “We wanted to separate. We know how to keep things low profile, we solve everything quietly,” they commented at the time.
The most recent case of urban duo formation and breakup is that of three years ago, when the Teke Teke broke up, leaving their fans with many questions.
Los Teke Teke consisted of Carlitos Wey and Crazy Design, who, prior to their split in 2016, were composing songs that featured infectious rhythms. Dominicans remember his songs “El Teke Teke”, “El lambón” and “Hasta a ti te doy”.
There were several divisions suffered in the local movement. Notable among others are Musicologist and Jey, Confucius and Boperó, Mindalo MZ3 and El Desorden (Los Pachuché), which carved a place in the genre and stayed for the story.
One of the pioneering duos of local urban music consisted of Jhon Distrito and Chombo Pana Black, Known as the Indestructible Duo for songs like “Tú ta Cabin” and “Patá volara”.
In 2010 the duo Mr Manyao (Rafael Céspedes) and H2 (Hamlet Betances) was formed, who gained ground with their music, which invaded nightclubs and some stations broadcasting urban themes.
In addition to Latin American communities in the United States, the artist duo Mr Manyao and El H2 positioned themselves even in South American countries such as Chile, who were the first Dominican urban exponents of their kind of music to perform and promote themselves in that nation.
“The Tears are Finished” and “Amiga Cerveza” are part of their urban offering that includes dembow, hip hop, reggaeton and merenhouse.
The local movement also includes the Pikilao, known today as Chamaquitos del Millero, a duo composed of Sany Eliezer Díaz and Alexander Cabral. His songs include “Bailo” and “Chamaquito tranquil”.