''The Original Rude Girl'' is the second studio album by Puerto Rican

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American Hip hop m ...

recording artist A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

Ivy Queen Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez (born March 4, 1972), known professionally as Ivy Queen, is a Puerto Rican singer, rapper, songwriter, and actress. She is considered one of the pioneers of the reggaeton genre, commonly referred to as the Qu ...

released on December 15, 1998 by

Sony Discos Sony Music Entertainment US Latin LLC (often referred to as Sony Music Latin) is a record label owned by Sony Music. The label focuses on artists of Latin music. History In 1979, CBS Records (now Columbia Records) ended its partnership with ...

. It is the follow up studio album to Queen's debut effort ''

En Mi Imperio ''En Mi Imperio'' (English: ''In My Empire'') is the debut album by Puerto Rican reggaeton singer-songwriter Ivy Queen released on House of Music Records and distributed by Sony International Records on September 2, 1997. The album gained her t ...

'' released in 1997. The album includes Queen's debut single "

In The Zone ''In the Zone'' is the fourth studio album by American pop singer Britney Spears. It was released on November 12, 2003, through Jive Records. With the conclusion of her Dream Within a Dream Tour in July 2002 and the end of her relationship wit ...

" featuring

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...

, which helped to increase the album and Queen's exposure to American audiences.

Background

After the success of her debut studio album ''

'' (1997), which as of February 2004 has sold over 180,000 copies, Ivy Queen was quickly signed to the Sony label and began recording material for her second album. However, due to her inexperience in the music business Queen did not receive any profits from the sales of ''En Mi Imperio''. In 1998, while Wyclef Jean was touring

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, Ivy Queen attended one of his concerts. Wyclef then sent an invitation for fans to come up on stage if they thought they could "flow". With encouragement from her friends, Queen stepped on stage an amazed Jean enough that they later met again in New York to record a song. Following the lawsuit filed against DJ Negro, producer of ''En Mi Imperio'', Sony Discos decided to produce and develop music directly for Queen, as they were unhappy with the work produced by Negro.

Release and promotion

The album was released on December 15, 1998. Ivy Queen embarked on a tour shortly after throughout Puerto Rico and the United States. The lead single, "

" was released February 9, 1999. An accompanying music video was also shot and released. It was directed by Jeff Kennedy and produced by George Barnes. A second music video was filmed and directed by Gabriel Goldberg. A remix version was also recorded and included on the album featuring extra verses from both Queen and Jean. A second single, "Ritmo Latino" featuring Victor Vargas and WepaMan was also released in 1999. The album was reissued by Sony Discos on August 25, 1999 with an alternate remix of "In The Zone" as the closing track. In August 1998, she performed at Disney Beach Club Resort along with other artists from the Sony Discos label over the course of three days. She appeared at the 1999 Latin Alternative Music Conference before she became famous and was questioned as to why she was there. The founder, Thomas Cookman responded in her defense with "because she's valid".

Musical style and composition

The album is a bilingual set featuring music from the Hip-Hop genre, a departure from the musical styles of

featured on her debut effort. "In The Zone" was written by Ivy Queen, Wyclef Jean, and Omar Navarro, known artistically as Gran Omar. Gran Omar was Queen's then-husband at the time. The song is a hip-hop track, like much of the album. Queen's verses and chorus are sung in Spanish, and Jean's verses are sung in English.

Reception

While the album itself was not successful commercially, "In The Zone" managed to chart at number 38 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Rhythmic Top 40 The Rhythmic chart (also called Rhythmic Airplay, and previously named Rhythmic Songs, Rhythmic Top 40 and CHR/Rhythmic) is an airplay chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on ...

. David Jeffries of

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave the album a 4.5 out of 5 stars providing no review while listing the album as an "Allmusic Pick". The Spanish magazine ''

Remezcla Remezcla is an American media company focusing on the Latin American cultural sphere. It serves the millennial market. History The brand was founded by Claire Frisbie, Andrew Herrera and Nuria Net in 2006, had no outside funding; it first recei ...

'' listed the album as one of the most influential Latin music albums released in 1998. According to Patricia Meschino of the ''Miami New Times'' the song was a solid collaboration with Jean which introduced her to a new audience.

Track listing

*Standard Edition:

Credits and personnel

Adapted from AllMusic *Hugo Boss – Mixing, Producer *Don Chezina – Guest Artist *Alex D' Castro – Guest Artist *Luis Diaz – Mixing, Producer *Andy Grassi – Engineer, Mixing *Ivy Queen – Composer, Primary Artist *Wyclef Jean – Composer, Guest Artist *DJ Nelson – Producer *Omar Navarro – Composer, Director *Dr. Paul – Producer *Georgie Salgado – Congas, Guitar *Danny Vargas – Arranger, Mixing, Producer *Victor Vargas – Arranger, Mixing, Producer, Background Vocals *WepaMan – Guest Artist

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Original Rude Girl, The 1998 albums Ivy Queen albums Spanish-language albums Sony Discos albums Albums produced by Wyclef Jean