Reggaeton is the most contagious and successful music style to have emerged in recent years. Like any lively and flexible musical direction, it developed year after year, merging with other underground music in the discos of Cuba to finally make a vigorous breakthrough in Puerto Rico and Cuba. Reggaeton has sounds of many other “street” developed musical directions, similar to Hip Hop, rap, Jamaican reggae and, of course, plena, salsa and bomba.

Cubaton (also known as Reggaeton a lo Cubano) is a sub-genre of Reggaeton. It is a fusion of Cuban percussions or Timbales, Salsa, Timba and Reggaeton. The Cubaton comes from the words "Cuba" and "Reggaeton"

Cubaton was born due to the popularity of reggaeton among youth in Cuba. Some of the leading Cuban reguetoneros started to mix local sounds and Riddles with imported Reggaeton and Rap, helping Cubaton develop its distinctive sound. Cubaton is also known as Timba-Reggaeton. Eddy K, Gente de Zona, Leyenda Urbana, Clan 537, CandyMan and Control Cubano are considered to be the pioneers of Cubaton in the new school scene of Reggaeton.

History

Reggaeton's started off as Spanish reggae music in Panama. Panama was the first country to sample reggeaton thru reggae en espanol rapper "El General” The music eventually made its way and continued evolving and coming to prominence in Puerto Rico where it became reggaeton. Reggaeton started as an adaptation of Jamaican reggae to the Spanish language and overall culture in Panama.

The start of Reggaeton began with the first reggae recordings being made in Panama during the early 1970s. Reportedly, the Jamaican influence on Panamanian music has been strong since the early 20th century when Jamaican labourers were used to help build the Panama Canal. Afro-Panamanians had been performing and recording Spanish-language reggae since the 1970s. Artists such as Chichoman, El General, Nando Boom, Renato, and Black Apache are considered the first raggaeton DJs from Panama. El General is often considered the father of reggaeton, blending Jamaican reggae into a Latinised version It was common practice to translate the lyrics of Jamaican reggae song into Spanish and sing them over the original melodies, a form termed "Spanish reggae" or "Reggae en español." Then, during the 1980s the Puerto Rican rapper Vico C released Spanish-language hip hop records in his native island. His production of cassettes throughout the 1980s, mixing reggae and hip hop, also helped spread the early reggaeton sound, and he is widely credited with this achievement. The widespread movement of "Spanish reggae" in the Latin-American communities of the Caribbean and the urban centres of the United States help increase its popularity