Ivy Queen (born Martha Ivelisse Pesante on March 4, 1972 in Añasco, Puerto Rico) is a composer and singer known as "La Diva", "La Gata", "La Caballota", and "La Reina del Reggaeton", "The Queen of Reggaeton".
At a young age Ivy's parents moved to New York where she was raised. When she was in her teens, her parents returned to their hometown, Añasco. Ivy went to school and graduated from high school.
When Ivy was 18, she moved to San Juan and met rapper and producer, DJ Negro. DJ Negro helped her and introduced her to a group called "Noise". With "Noise" she wrote and performed her first song "Somos Rapperos Pero No Delincuentes" (We're Rappers, Not Delincuents). Soon, DJ Negro convinced Ivy to go "solo" and in 1997, she made her debut with the recording of the album "En Mi Imperio" (In My Empire) for the Sony International Records label which sold over 100,000 copies. In the same year, Ivy traveled to Panama where she represented Puerto Rico in "The Battle of Rap". She also did some presentations in the Dominican Republic, which were all "sold out" and later that year, she participated in "The First National Festival of Rap and Reggae". There, Ivy was proclaimed the "Rap Singer of the Year". Also, in 1997, Ivy was awarded the "Artista '97" award, naming her "The Peoples Favorite Rap Singer", by Artista magazine.
In 1998, Ivy recorded her second album, for the Sony Label, titled "Original Rude Girl" which carried the following hit songs "Interlude in the Zone", "Que Sabes Tu" (What Do You Know?) and "The King and The Queen". It sold more than her first album and was highly acclaimed by her growning fan base.
Ivy's third album "Diva", was released in 2003. The songs were originally written by her and performed with the participation of various artists.
Ivy Queen's style does not include the crude language so common in that genre. Instead she focuses on her lyrics which contain positive messages for her generation. Ivy usually speaks in her songs about Puerto Rico and about the abuse that many women suffer.
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