Tommy TorresTommy Torres, a Puerto Rican songwriter and artist known for romantic ballads, decided he wanted to create a track with one of the biggest names in reggaeton—Daddy Yankee. That's when the two created, "Tu y Yo."
This is an example of when a musical collaboration from two different genres is done right. Both Tommy and Yankee stayed true to their legendary sound but joined forces to make musical magic.
"I saw Daddy Yankee at an award show, and we talked about doing something together, that was a couple of years ago," Tommy explained to E! News. "So one day I called him and told him that I had finally found the song that we could work on after all these years. He loved it, and we immediately hit the studio."
Although the 44-year-old's songs are usually in Spanish, he draws a lot of inspiration from general market artists like Ed Sheeran, Mike Posner, John Mayer, and Sia.
Daddy Yankee says that because they're both producers as well as artists, this musical collaboration was just a natural fit, regardless of their different sounds.
"It was very important to us, that if we did collaborate musically, that Tommy would stay being Tommy and I would stay being myself. Nothing could be forced or sound fake. It needed to be authentic, and this is why I am so pleased with the final product," Yankee explained. "The video is a big contrast between the story, the romance and all that's happening within the party. It's really joining two worlds together, similar to what we did on this track."
We asked Tommy about his adorable four-year-old daughter, Amanda Zoé, that he usually shares videos of on social media, and his eyes immediately lit up.
"She loves to go to the studio and play with instruments. I really pay attention to the songs that I sing and that she will continue humming days later," he gushed. "When I write music, she's very present in my mind, even if the song is about a different kind of love. The love that I have for her is that kind of love that you didn't believe was possible, the kind that you only read about in fairy tales. I can now write about this love, because I know that this love does exist. I believe that we're all capable of this love, with other people that aren't our children, but only if we silence our fears."
Because this song joined two big Puerto Rican names in music, Yankee highlighted that the island is making a significant impact on the world in different platforms like sports, acting, and music.
"It's crazy to me that Puerto Rico is so tiny and yet we keep seeing so much talent coming out of this island. I always tell people that it's a mine of talent," Daddy says. "I think that it all comes down to our drive. We come from such a small place, but we're so determined to show the world all that we have to offer. We're just so hungry and driven to accomplish big things."