Fulanito, a group of Dominicans

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

 born in the United States, has received acclaim in Latin America for being among the first groups to combine Merengue

Merengue music

Merengue is a type of music and dance from the Dominican Republic. It is popular in the Dominican Republic and all over Latin America. Its name is Spanish, taken from the name of the meringue, a dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar...

 (specifically bachata, Rap and hip hop

Latin rap

Latin rap is not a homogeneous musical style but rather a term that covers all Hip-Hop music recorded by artists of Latino origin.-Early Latinos in hip hop music:...

, and house

House music

House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...

), with about 2 million albums sold throughout the world. At one time, they were the top selling act in Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

, and placed on other charts including those of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

. Their name means "(little/diminutive

Diminutive

In language structure, a diminutive, or diminutive form , is a formation of a word used to convey a slight degree of the root meaning, smallness of the object or quality named, encapsulation, intimacy, or endearment...

) so-and-so" (i.e. unknown) in Spanish – see Fulano + -ito. The group was formerly known as 2 in a Room

2 In A Room

2 In A Room was a Dominican hip hop, freestyle music and hip house duo, from Washington Heights, New York, which includes rapper Rafael "Dose" Vargas and producer/remixer Roger "Rog Nice" Pauletta. They are best known for their 1990 hit single "Wiggle It"...

.

History

The group started, when, in the early 1990s, the lead singer Rafael Vargas and producer Winston Rosa started recording with accordion player Arsenio de la Rosa (who is also Winston Rosa's father). Rafael grew up in Washington Heights, a neighborhood in Manhattan, New York and Winston grew up in the South Bronx, a stone throw away from Yankee Stadium. They recorded their first song, "Guallando", and, after several failed attempts of presenting their music to a handful of large Latin labels, produced their debut CD under their own label WinDose International (with the help of Cutting Records) in 1997. This album sold 500,000 copies, while only a mere 50,000 was required to achieve gold status. They released El Padrino in 1999, which experimented with other Latin rhythms, such as Cumbia

Cumbia

Cumbia is a music genre popular across Latin America. The cumbia originated in the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where it is associated with an eponymous dance and has since spread as far as Mexico and Argentina...

 and Samba

Samba

Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...

. After that, they toured from the Southern United States to Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

in only a month.
In March 2008, Fulanito toured Australia for the second time ever, performing all their greatest hits. Their first time to Australia was in September 2004.

Influences

During their early years, Winston and Dose were heavily influenced by the sounds of merengue, salsa, and underground dance music of the 70s and 80s, before the emergence of the hip hop era by artists such as Run DMC. During the 1990s, Dose was asked to produce and perform for the dance music group 2 In A Room, a Latin hip-hop, dance, and house music duo that included
Gold and Platinum status reached worldwide Following the success of 2 In A Room, Dose later teamed up with Winston Rosa (aka “Rice & Beans”) and Jose Fuentes (aka "Pickles") and formed another Dance Hip House group called 740 Boyz. The group’s most notable accomplishment was their 1996 single, “Shimmy Shake,” a certified gold hit all through Europe. While Dose and the 740 Boyz toured throughout Europe (including Russia), U.S.A., Australia, Africa and Asia, Merengue Hip House groups such as Proyecto Uno, Sandy y Papo and Illegales were dominating the nightclubs and radio airplay throughout Mexico, Central and South America. Motivated by the Merengue House movement in Latin America, Dose brushed up on his native language and founded the artist group Fulanito with fellow 740 Boyz group member Winston Rosa. The group consisted members of Dose's earlier bands such as Romeo, Pickles and Reno. Anxious to make a mark in the Latin music scene, Winston and Dose recruited Arsenio De la Rosa (aka “El Maestro”) and his legendary accordion playing skills. Within six months of recording, the artist group Fulanito released their debut album in 1997 titled “El Hombre Mas Famoso De La Tierra,” which included the club and radio hits “Guallando," “El Cepillo," and "La Novela.” Their debut album achieved gold and platinum sales status worldwide and solidified Fulanito as a household name throughout Latin America. Dose and Win co- wrote and co-produced the critically acclaimed and Grammy nominated second album, "El Padrino," which spawned groundbreaking gems like "Quien Es Fulanito,” "Mi Con Con,” "Serenata Negra" and the samba driven "Chillando Goma, " and also featured in Paramount Pictures and John Singleton’s 2000 remake of the film, “SHAFT,” starring Samuel L. Jackson and Vanessa Williams.

Fulanito in Vina Del Mar, Chile

In the year 2000, Fulanito were invited to perform at the prestigious international music festival of "Vina del Mar" in Chile, where they rocked the audience at the Quinta Vergara amphitheatre and continued to perform long after the televised broadcast of the concert had ended on Chile’s TVN and Canal 13 TV networks. After their performance, the group was presented with the famous Silver Gull award (“Gaviota de Plata”), which is considered to be the festival’s highest honor award. In their never ending quest to keep the world moving, the group released their third installment titled "Fulanito–The Remixes," which included crowd-moving hits such as "Gozadera Total Medley", "El Generalisimo", "Take It Off" (produced by reggaeton producers DJ Joe and Rafi Mercenario), and the Latin Dance Pop Classic "Callate." Their follow up album releases, "Americanizao" and "La Verdad” produced hits "La Tembladera," "Asi Es Que Vivo Yo," "Pegate" and "Gozando Vivire"(which included portion of the composition performed by the group “Fruko Y Su Tesos”).

Vacanaria In 2007

Nearly three years since their last album release, Fulanito has returned with a brand new release entitled "Vacaneria!" they uncharacteristically invited various artists and producers to participate in the construction of this masterpiece to insure variety, depth and a breath of fresh air for Latin Hip Hop listeners and partygoers everywhere. Music producers and brothers, Cristian Mendez and Cleyton Mendez p/k/a Guary y Cleyton, were among one of the contributors to the new album. The duo produced a Salsa Hip-Hop track titled "Pa Que Sepa", properly utilizing a piece of the Roberto Ruena’s “Que Se Sepa” composition (courtesy of Edimusica Records) and the track “Mataron El Negro”, cleverly embodying a portion of the composition “El Negron Bembon” performed by legendary salsero Ismael Rivera. Dose and Guary y Cleyton will definitely not disappoint their listeners with the rhythms of "Enciende," the bachata flavored "Rakina," and "Tate Manza." When it's time for Perico Ripiao, Dose and the Mendez brothers will do it again with the first single release "Mira," which features an electrifying vocal performance of industry veteran Rhingo “Truko" Fernandez (courtesy of Top Dollar Entertainment). Truko is also featured along side of Magic Juan (former vocalist of the group Proyecto Uno) in the song "Ajena." Rafaelito Vargas also boasts in the “No Hay Otro Como Yo" with the assistance of verteran salsero Kevin Ceballo singing the hook in Spanglish. Your Saturdays will never be the same with the Tonny Tun Tun produced and vocally featured song, "Sabado en La Noche," a merengue influenced track that's assured to bring the house down every weekend. And yes, Fulanito also knows Reggaeton!!...They are bringing a little something for the dog in you with the A and X produced "Contigo" and the Guary Y Cleyton motivator "Sigue." And if this wasn't enough for your body and soul, Fulanito addresses the haters with "Cotorra" and borrows "Dejalo Ahi" by Pena Suazo y La Banda Gorda by adding his flair to this classic song. Finally, we have an Arabian flavored club banger by music producer “Radical” called "Culebrita"……the magic carpet ride concludes "Vacaneria!”

Discography

• El Hombre Mas Famoso de la Tierra (1997)
• El Padrino (1999)
• The Remixes (2001)
• Americanizao (2001)
• La Verdad (2004)
• Vacaneria (2007)
• REINTRODUCCIÓN (2009)