From Karol G’s “Bby WOW” to Danny Ocean and Ryan Castro’s “Desahógate,” a new wave of releases is looking beyond reggaeton’s defining rhythm and toward its wider Caribbean roots.
For more than three decades, dembow—made internationally famous by Jamaican dancehall star Shabba Ranks—has been the rhythmic engine of Latin urban music. Its instantly recognizable pulse helped carry reggaeton from the Caribbean to the center of global pop, becoming so ubiquitous that it can sometimes feel inseparable from the genre itself.
But a growing number of Latin artists are exploring a broader Jamaican musical vocabulary. Instead of relying exclusively on the familiar reggaeton pattern, they are reaching further into dancehall’s multi-use riddim culture—sometimes through new fusions and sometimes by reviving instrumentals with histories stretching back decades.
Karol G’s “Bby WOW,” featuring Spanish artists Judeline and RUSOWSKY, is No. 1 this week on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart. The achievement gives Karol G her 11th No. 1 on the ranking while delivering the first Billboard chart-topper for both Judeline and RUSOWSKY. It also makes Karol G the first artist in nearly two years to replace herself at the summit. She holds 13 spots on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs this week ending August 29.
The song at No. 1 incorporates the Coolie Dance Riddim, created in 2003 by Jamaican producers Cordel “Scatta” Burrell and Everton “Eva” Burrell.
To many listeners, the track’s foundation may sound familiar even if they cannot immediately identify it. That is because Coolie Dance has traveled extensively since its creation, appearing across dancehall, hip-hop and Spanish-language urban music.
A riddim is bigger than a single song
In Jamaican music, a riddim is an instrumental framework over which multiple performers can record distinct songs. Rather than belonging exclusively to one release, the same rhythmic foundation can generate an entire family of recordings, each with different lyrics, melodies and vocal personalities.
This practice is central to dancehall culture. It also helps explain why Coolie Dance can resurface repeatedly without functioning like a conventional pop sample lifted from one definitive track.
“Bby WOW” is merely the latest song to borrow this nostalgic—and highly durable—sound.
One of the riddim’s best-known international appearances came in 2004 with Pitbull’s “Culo,” featuring Lil Jon. The song helped move the Coolie Dance Riddim into a crossover space where dancehall energy met Southern hip-hop, Miami club music and Latin identity.
“Culo” became Pitbull’s first Billboard Hot 100 entry, peaking at No. 32. It also reached No. 11 on Hot Rap Songs and No. 7 on Billboard’s Rhythmic chart, helping establish the Cuban-American rapper as an emerging crossover artist.
Sean Paul also recorded over the riddim on “Feel Alright,” placing his own interpretation within the Jamaican tradition from which Coolie Dance emerged.
The riddim’s journey did not end there. It later found new life among Spanish-speaking urban artists. Beny Jr used it in “Luna Llena,” while Cruz Cafuné identified Coolie Dance as an inspiration for the drums on “Movezz en silencio.”
Chilean artist Young Cister has similarly connected his song “QLOO” to the riddim, citing both Pitbull’s “Culo” and Beny Jr’s “Luna Llena” as reference points. These connections reveal a musical chain stretching from Jamaican producers to Miami rap and onward to urban scenes in Spain and Latin America.
The riddim even entered internet culture through the viral “dinosaur with sunglasses” meme associated on Spanish-speaking social media with the phrase “Auxilio, me desmayo.” By the time it resurfaced in “Bby WOW,” generations of listeners had encountered it in radically different contexts.
Karol G’s growing archive of borrowed sounds
Karol G herself has become a serial sampler and interpolator, frequently using familiar recordings to connect different generations of Latin and Caribbean music.
On “LATINA FOREVA,” she takes liberties with several classics. The song interpolates “Oye Mi Canto” by N.O.R.E., Nina Sky, Daddy Yankee, Gem Star and Big Mato, while also sampling or referencing Don Omar’s “Dile.”
The references came with considerable commercial returns. “LATINA FOREVA” reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart, No. 3 on Hot Latin Songs and No. 66 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Oye Mi Canto,” one of its principal sources, had previously become a major crossover hit in its own right, reaching the Top 15 of the Hot 100.
Don Omar’s “Dile,” meanwhile, samples melodic material from Colombian salsa singer Joe Arroyo’s “La Noche.” It is not a direct reggae sample, although “Dile” places that tropical source inside a reggaeton production shaped by the genre’s wider Jamaican ancestry. The song became one of Don Omar’s foundational hits and reached the Top 10 of Billboard’s Tropical Airplay chart.
Karol G’s “LEYENDAS” functions as a reggaeton tribute medley, interpolating classics including Ivy Queen’s “Quiero Bailar,” Nicky Jam’s “Yo No Soy Tu Marido,” Wisin & Yandel’s “En la Disco Bailoteo,” Zion & Lennox’s “Me Pones en Tensión” and Wisin & Yandel’s “Vengo Acabando.” “LEYENDAS” reached No. 7 on Billboard’s Latin Digital Song Sales chart.
Among the older recordings it celebrates, “Quiero Bailar” achieved the most clearly documented Billboard success. Ivy Queen’s anthem reached No. 29 on Hot Latin Songs, No. 16 on Tropical Airplay and No. 8 on Latin Rhythm Airplay. It also became the first Spanish-language song to reach No. 1 at Miami rhythmic station WPOW Power 96. Its longevity has proved even more significant: Rolling Stone later ranked it No. 2 on its list of the 100 greatest reggaeton songs.
“Quiero Bailar” is also an especially direct example of the relationship between reggaeton and Jamaican riddim culture. The track uses Jeremy Harding’s Liquid Riddim, another instrumental shared by multiple dancehall performers including Sean Paul, BEENIE MAN, Elephant Man, Lady Saw, Bounty Killer and more.
The Steely & Clevie lawsuit
All five older recordings interpolated in “LEYENDAS” appear in an exhibit attached to the sweeping copyright litigation brought by Jamaican production duo Steely & Clevie and associated plaintiffs:
- Ivy Queen’s “Yo Quiero Bailar”
- Nicky Jam’s “Yo No Soy Tu Marido”
- Wisin & Yandel’s “En la Disco Bailoteo”
- Zion & Lennox’s “Me Pones en Tensión”
- Wisin & Yandel’s “Vengo Acabando”
Karol G is separately included in the plaintiffs’ list of allegedly infringing works for several songs.
The lawsuit alleges that these recordings reproduce protected elements of Steely & Clevie’s 1989 Fish Market Riddim, whether directly or through later recordings derived from it, including Shabba Ranks’ “Dem Bow” and versions of the Pounder Riddim.
Those assertions remain allegations rather than judicial findings that the individual songs infringed Steely & Clevie’s copyright. The inclusion of “Quiero Bailar” is particularly complicated because that recording is generally associated with the Liquid Riddim, not a straightforward use of Fish Market.
Beyond a strictly dembow-driven sound
Karol G is not alone in moving beyond a strictly dembow-driven sound. Danny Ocean and Ryan Castro’s latest hit “Desahógate” blends reggae, dancehall and tropical pop into a relaxed, summery production.
Danny Ocean supplies the song’s serene and melodic side, while Ryan Castro introduces a firmer urban pulse. Its lyrics focus on supporting someone through a difficult moment—listening, offering refuge and encouraging emotional honesty. The reggae and dancehall elements give that message space to breathe while preserving the record’s dance-floor appeal.
Another major Karol G collaboration, “China” by Anuel AA, which has 2.3 billion YouTube views with Daddy Yankee, Karol G, Ozuna and J Balvin, prominently reworks Jamaican artist Shaggy’s “It Wasn’t Me.” It also interpolates Daddy Yankee’s “Ella Me Levantó,” while its wider old-school reggaeton framing recalls songs such as Don Omar’s “Dile.”
“It Wasn’t Me” topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 2001. Nearly two decades later, “China” became a major hit of its own, reaching No. 1 on Hot Latin Songs and No. 43 on the Hot 100. It also topped national charts across several Latin American countries and Spain and received Latin Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Best Urban Fusion/Performance.
These releases are not isolated stylistic experiments. They belong to a continuing exchange in which Jamaican rhythms travel, change languages and acquire new meanings.
That exchange is unfolding as Latin music’s global commercial power continues to increase. The IFPI in its 2026 Global Music Report, identifies Latin America as the fastest-growing recorded-music region in 2025, with revenues rising 17.1 percent. It was the region’s 16th consecutive year of growth, with streaming accounting for 88.1 percent of recorded-music revenue. In the U.S., the segment now accounts for 8.8% of total U.S. recorded music revenue according to the Recording Industry Association (RIAA) 2025 report.
Against that backdrop, Latin artists are not merely moving beyond dembow. They are tracing the rhythm back to a larger Caribbean conversation—and discovering how much territory remains to explore.
“With rising global reach and fresh pathways connecting artists and fans, this sector just keeps delivering as labels work to grow the market with innovative new partnerships and opportunities,” said RIAA executive Rafael Fernández Jr. said in a statement.
