美国国家公共电台 NPR--Fame came early for Reggaeton star Nicky Jam, and he admits he wasn't ready for it

Fame came early for Reggaeton star Nicky Jam, and he admits he wasn't ready for it

Transcript¹

Reggaeton is a popular style of music. Nicky Jam was one of its first stars, but fame hasn't been easy. (Story first aired on All Things Considered on Jan. 6, 2023.)

DWANE BROWN, HOST:

It's one of the most popular styles of music in the world right now, but reggaeton has been around for decades. And one of its first stars was Nicky Jam.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EN LA CAMA")

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

BROWN: Fame came early for Nicky Jam, and he admits he wasn't actually ready for it. So he took a step back from music - that is, until recently. NPR's Enrique Rivera reports.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "YO NO SOY TU MARIDO")

NICKY JAM: Yo, yo. Nicky Jam, yo.

ENRIQUE RIVERA, BYLINE²: It's a hot afternoon in Medellin, Colombia, and one of the founding fathers of reggaeton music has just been dealt a harsh bit of news.

NICKY JAM: The doctor told me, bro, you take drugs, you die.

RIVERA: The night before was the 30th birthday of one-time reggaeton superstar Nicky Jam. His career had long been over, but he was now on the verge³ of losing his life, too. He had hit bottom.

NICKY JAM: I did a lot of cocaine⁴.

RIVERA: Nicky Jam said he woke up partially⁵ paralyzed the next morning. A doctor performed a brain scan, and it didn't look good. Things seemed grim at the time, but this moment proved to be the catalyst⁶ that shot Nicky Jam back to the top of the music charts and even to the A-list of big-budget Hollywood productions. Nicky Jam's story begins in Massachusetts. Like an increasing number of kids in 1980s Lawrence, his parents were migrants from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. According to the study, "The Latinization Of Lawrence," immigration was encouraged by mechanization in Puerto Rico's U.S.-dominated sugar industry and fallout from the bloody⁷ reign⁸ of the Dominican Republic's Rafael Trujillo, the U.S.-backed dictator. Migrants found work in small manufacturing towns in southern New England, but those low-paying jobs brought high social costs to the area.

NICKY JAM: Crack cocaine was taking over and literally⁹ killed a lot of people and messed up a lot of families.

RIVERA: One of those families was his own. Nicky Jam says that, after his father was busted¹⁰ for drug possession, he went on the lam.

NICKY JAM: In his mind, he was like, OK, well, Nicky's mom - she's not in her best moment, you know? She was dealing¹¹ with drug addiction¹² and all that. He took us to Puerto Rico, and he went to raise us over there as a fugitive¹³.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON")

N W A: You are now about to witness the strength of street knowledge.

RIVERA: Always a lover of hip-hop and someone who rapped for fun in Lawrence, 10-year-old Nicky Jam continued freestyling and rapping after moving. He learned Spanish and started gaining fans in Puerto Rico's emerging hip-hop and dancehall scenes. He was discovered by a local music producer and released an unheralded album at the age of 14. Soon after, the amalgamation¹⁴ of hip-hop and reggae was complete. Reggaeton was born, and Nicky Jam became one of the genre's biggest stars.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DONDE ESTAN LAS GATAS")

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

RIVERA: In 2000, he teamed up with another reggaeton legend, Daddy Yankee, forming a duo known as Los Cangris. Nicky Jam released a second EP, "Haciendo Escante," in 2001. The over-the-top raunchiness of songs like "En La Cama," In Bed, marked a new epoch¹⁵ in the young history of reggaeton music.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EN LA CAMA")

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

RIVERA: Although hits like this one made Nicky Jam and Daddy Yankee the kings of Puerto Rico, wherever Nicky Jam went, drugs followed.

NICKY JAM: I was making money just to, you know, maintain the drug addiction.

RIVERA: He stopped making music and struggled to hang onto odd jobs in San Juan's tourism industry. In 2007, he was offered a gig in Colombia - one that went so well, he decided¹⁶ to stay. Things were going well - that is, until the day after his 30th birthday in 2011.

NICKY JAM: I called my dad and I just - I told him, yo, bro, I got to stop these Percs (ph), bro, 'cause I'm going to die.

JUAN DIEGO MEDINA: (Through interpreter) And that's where I come in.

RIVERA: That's Juan Diego Medina, Nicky Jam's manager.

MEDINA: (Through interpreter) I saw potential in him. I said, this is Nicky Jam, and he's not where he needs to be.

RIVERA: Medina says it took a while to earn Nicky Jam's trust, but things moved fast once he did. In 2014, after seven years of living in Colombia and without having released a single song, Nicky Jam came out with a hit.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PIENSAS EN MI")

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

RIVERA: "Piensas En Mi" was both a throwback and a step forward. In it, Nicky Jam engages in his standard bravado¹⁷ - singing to his lover about how she thinks of him when she's in bed with her partner. But he also introduces a new side to his music, with the use of melodic¹⁸ singing that was a breakaway from cruder cadences¹⁹ that typified his earlier songs.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "VOY A BEBER")

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

RIVERA: Later that year, Nicky Jam hit it big with "Voy A Beber," which continued his renovated²⁰ style and broke him into U.S. and Puerto Rican markets. Nicky Jam was officially back. His return album, "Fenix," was released in 2017, 10 years after his previous one. The album didn't just cement Nicky Jam's comeback. It carried his stardom to new heights. His collaborations, like Shakira's 2017 song "Perro Fiel," became some of the biggest hits in Latin music.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PERRO FIEL")

SHAKIRA: (Singing in Spanish).

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

RIVERA: The phone wouldn't stop ringing. And among those calling was Hollywood. Nicky Jam landed cameos in action films like "XXX" and "Bad Boys For Life." He released an autobiographical series called "El Ganador," The Winner, on Netflix and Telemundo, and Universal Pictures announced that he'll be performing in his first starring role, an action comedy called "Regulators." But the music keeps coming, as do the accolades²¹.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED AUDIENCE MEMBER: We love you, Nicky.

(CHEERING)

NICKY JAM: (Speaking Spanish).

RIVERA: "Help me with this, Dad."

At his emotional 2022 induction²² into Billboard's Hall of Fame, Nicky Jam's father, Jose Manuel Rivera, the former fugitive who got him clean so many years ago, handed him his award. Nicky Jam is also giving back.

NICKY JAM: Music saved my life, so I wanted to give something to the young kids that I never had when I was young.

RIVERA: Through a partnership²³ with the Latin Grammys, he's provided full rides to Boston's prestigious²⁴ Berklee School of Music. The award was given to four students who performed with him at the 2022 awards.

Nicky Jam has a new life, and it's a good one.

NICKY JAM: You could say it's a beautiful story. It's like every story. We got bad things, too, even in the good moments. You know what I'm saying? Like, I can't say it ended up good. We still have a lot to go through. Well, we never know what happens, but we know we living one day at a time.

RIVERA: Enrique Rivera, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EL PERDON")

NICKY JAM: (Singing in Spanish).

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

4 cocaine   

n.可卡因，古柯碱（用作局部麻醉剂）

参考例句：

• That young man is a cocaine addict.那个年轻人吸食可卡因成瘾。
• Don't have cocaine abusively.不可滥服古柯碱。

5 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

6 catalyst   

n.催化剂，造成变化的人或事

参考例句：

• A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a chemical reaction.催化剂是一种能加速化学反应的物质。
• The workers'demand for better conditions was a catalyst for social change.工人们要求改善工作条件促进了社会变革。

7 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

8 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

9 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

10 busted   

adj. 破产了的，失败了的，被降级的，被逮捕的，被抓到的 动词bust的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• You are so busted! 你被当场逮住了！
• It was money troubles that busted up their marriage. 是金钱纠纷使他们的婚姻破裂了。

11 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

12 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

13 fugitive   

adj.逃亡的，易逝的；n.逃犯，逃亡者

参考例句：

• The police were able to deduce where the fugitive was hiding.警方成功地推断出那逃亡者躲藏的地方。
• The fugitive is believed to be headed for the border.逃犯被认为在向国境线逃窜。

14 amalgamation   

n.合并，重组；；汞齐化

参考例句：

• We look towards the amalgamation of some of the neighborhood factories.我们指望合并一些里弄工厂。
• The proposed amalgamation of the two institutes has mow fallen through.这两个研究所打算合并的事现在已经落空了。

15 epoch   

n.(新)时代；历元

参考例句：

• The epoch of revolution creates great figures.革命时代造就伟大的人物。
• We're at the end of the historical epoch,and at the dawn of another.我们正处在一个历史时代的末期，另一个历史时代的开端。

16 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

17 bravado   

n.虚张声势，故作勇敢，逞能

参考例句：

• Their behaviour was just sheer bravado. 他们的行为完全是虚张声势。
• He flourished the weapon in an attempt at bravado. 他挥舞武器意在虚张声势。

18 melodic   

adj.有旋律的，调子美妙的

参考例句：

• His voice had a rich melodic quality.他的音色浑厚而优美。
• He spoke with a soft husky voice in a melodic accent.他微微沙哑的声音带着一种悠扬的口音。

19 cadences   

n.（声音的）抑扬顿挫( cadence的名词复数 )；节奏；韵律；调子

参考例句：

• He delivered his words in slow, measured cadences. 他讲话缓慢而抑扬顿挫、把握有度。
• He recognized the Polish cadences in her voice. 他从她的口音中听出了波兰腔。 来自辞典例句

20 renovated   

翻新，修复，整修( renovate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He renovated his house. 他翻修了房子。
• The house has been renovated three years earlier. 这所房子三年前就已翻新。

21 accolades   

n.（连结几行谱表的）连谱号( accolade的名词复数 )；嘉奖；（窗、门上方的）桃尖拱形线脚；册封爵士的仪式（用剑面在肩上轻拍一下）

参考例句：

• Unlike other accolades for literature which tend to value style or experimentation. 有别于其他偏重风格活实验性的文学奖项。 来自互联网
• Build your trophy room while amassing awards and accolades. 建立您的奖杯积累奖项和荣誉。 来自互联网

22 induction   

n.感应，感应现象

参考例句：

• His induction as a teacher was a turning point in his life.他就任教师工作是他一生的转折点。
• The magnetic signals are sensed by induction coils.磁信号由感应线圈所检测。

23 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

24 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。