Daddy Yankee Surprised by Janet Jackson Upon Receiving his POTY Award: ‘Your Music Has Inspired an Entire Generation’

Daddy Yankee received the Latin Recording Academy’s 2026 Person of the Year award in Las Vegas, where Janet Jackson surprised him by presenting a tribute. She praised his role in taking reggaeton to audiences worldwide and opening doors for Latin urban artists, saying his music had inspired a generation. The reunion was especially meaningful because the pair recorded “Made for Now” together in 2018.

Yankee thanked Jackson and reflected on reggaeton’s rise from underground music, recalling that it began on cassette tapes and was once treated with suspicion. The ceremony also featured a medley spanning his career, including “Gasolina” and “Despacito”, with appearances by Bizarrap, Bad Gyal, Feid and others. After announcing his retirement in 2022, he returned in 2025 with faith-inspired music; his “Sonríele” reached No. 1 on the Latin Airplay chart in October.