I'm not just selling out Yankee Stadium; I'm selling out stadiums in Mexico, in Argentina - with my bachata. I try to stay true to what I do.
In bachata, you had these guys that used to wear suits and had a really traditional style. We looked different. Baggy jeans. We had the Spanglish going on, and I knew that was going to work to our advantage.
You could be the most beautiful girl, but if you're stuck up, that doesn't do it for me.
My mother at a young age put me in bilingual, so my strength is really more in Spanish. Even though I live and I was born and raised in the States, you know, in the Bronx, in Spanish I get my point across. And when I'm writing music, when I'm doing music, it's easier for me, and I know exactly how to express myself.
I love not only the chubby ones, but also the skinny ones, black hair, the blondes... when I get up the stage, I give myself completely.
I like my music to be like a buffet. If you don't like this plate, there's another one for you.
I never think about any of my accomplishments and I always get butterflies in my stomach and I never get too comfortable with the status.
I've got a superstar like Usher singing bachata, a tune featuring Lil Wayne. I'm offering people more than just bachata. That captures a new audience that would listen to bachata because Usher is singing.
One day, my father brings a cassette. He's showing me this, and he's like, 'Look at this guy, his name is Anthony Santos, like you.' I popped it on and started hearing the songs, the music, and I was like, 'Wow, this sounds great.'
I wanted to show people I'm like a modern Romeo. I'm romantic, but I can also be seductive. I can be cool and charismatic, swagger-type.
I joined the church choir because there were these two hot chicks. Then people started giving me compliments. 'You really have a good voice.' Really? I just joined the choir for these girls.
When I was producing 'Formula Vol. 2,' I knew I needed to come hard with the features and do something I hadn't done with Aventura. Collaborating with Drake was definitely one of those big steps that helped bachata go to the next level.
I was born and raised in the Bronx, and growing up here, you would go down the block, and on one corner you would hear bachata, on another corner some salsa, and of course there was hip-hop and R&B all over the place. So for me, it is very organic to have these combinations.
I create the music, and if this artist could complement this record, I reach out.
I've learned that you can do something great, but you have to continue reinventing yourself as an artist. So by the time someone else is copying your style, you have something else to offer your audience.
I think you have a crossover when you are known to a wider audience and a different market. I've been able to sell out stadiums all over the world by doing my music. I'm lucky to be in that list without having done an official crossover. Now, will you hear me doing a little bit of R&B? Sure.
If you think of any strange fusion with bachata, most likely, we've done it. It's bachata mixed with different elements. We don't follow any style.
I grew up in my neighborhood with salsa, of course bachata, but also hip-hop, Nirvana - it was just like a mixed culture. It was a beautiful thing for me because at the moment I started creating music, having all these different sounds and elements, it was very organic because I grew up with all these types different music.
I don't like my voice, and I don't enjoy my singing voice; I do what I do to bring pleasure and diversion to the fans.
If I'm performing in the United States, I'm able to speak Spanglish, and the crowd comprehends. If I'm in the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico, then I'm completely Spanish. I feel like a New Yorker that represents all Latinos.
