"Pongan Atención" is a song by Puerto Rican

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

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

, from her debut studio album, ''

En Mi Imperio ''En Mi Imperio'' (English: ''In My Empire'') is the debut album by Puerto Rican people, Puerto Rican reggaeton singer-songwriter Ivy Queen released on House of Music Records and distributed by Sony, Sony International Records on September 2, 199 ...

'' (1997). It was composed by Queen, produced by

DJ Nelson Nelson Díaz Martinez (born on April 7, 1972, in San Juan, Puerto Rico), known professionally as DJ Nelson is a Puerto Rican DJ and record producer who played a significant role in the development and popularization of reggaeton. He first made a n ...

, and released as the album's second single in 1997. The single was preceded by "Como Mujer", the album's lead single. Both "Como Mujer" and "Pongan Atencion" have been certified Gold and Platinum in sales.

Background

When she was eighteen, Queen moved from

Añasco, Puerto Rico Añasco (, ), named after one of its settlers, Don Luis de Añasco, is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located on the west coast of the island bordering the Mona Passage to the west, north of Mayagüez, and Las Marias; south of Rincón, ...

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

, where she met rapper and producer DJ Negro. In 1995, she joined an all-male Puerto Rican group called The Noise, at the invitation of DJ Negro. The group became part of the emerging reggaeton scene. DJ Negro began producing a series of CDs centered on The Noise. Queen made her first appearance on the fifth installment of the CD series on a track called "Somos Raperos Pero No Delincuentes". She became tired of the violent and sexual themes often used in reggaeton, and wished to write about a wider variety of subjects. DJ Negro convinced Queen to go solo, and in 1996 she began recording material for her debut studio album.

Musical composition

"Pongan Atencion", ("Pay Attention"), lyrically demands that Queen be heard on a local and national level. She sings, "Pongan atencion, pais, nacion, asociacion, que ya llego la queen", ("Pay attention, country, nation, association, the queen has arrived"). A music video for "Pongan Atención" was filmed in

Spanish Harlem East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem, or , is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City, north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, Fifth Avenue to the west, and the East and Harlem Rivers to the east ...

and was directed by Ozzie Forbes in 1997. It departs from Queen's usual appearances in music videos filmed within the island of Puerto Rico.Ayala, Hector. "Habla la reina del rap". (March 4, 1998). ''Dialogo''. Retrieved June 28, 2014.

Reception

The song, along with "Como Mujer" has been certified Gold and Platinum in sales, according to the ''

Lakeland Ledger ''The Ledger'' is a daily newspaper serving Lakeland, Florida, and the Polk County area. History The paper was founded on August 22, 1924, as the ''Lakeland Evening Ledger''. In 1927, it bought its main competitor, the morning ''Lakeland S ...

''. As of February 2004, the album has sold over 80,000 copies in the United States, and over 100,000 copies in Puerto Rico. It, along with the two singles, however, have not been certified by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

.American album certifications – Ivy Queen

. ''If necessary, click'' Advanced, ''then click'' Format, ''then select'' Album, ''then click'' Type, ''then select'' Latin, ''then click'' SEARCH. In 2004, Queen revealed that she did not receive any profits from the album's sales due to her inexperience in the music business.''The Best of Ivy Queen'' (DVD).

Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

: ''Perfect Image Records'', a division of

Universal Music Latino Universal Music Latin Entertainment, a division of Universal Music Group, is a record company specialized in producing and distributing Latin music in Mexico, the United States, and Puerto Rico. UMLE includes famous Latin music labels such as Uni ...

. 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pongan Atencion 1997 singles Ivy Queen songs Songs written by Ivy Queen 1997 songs Songs with feminist themes