Their debut song was not a big hit but they were quickly compared to the more famous at the time Zion & Lennox, referring to the way that one of them has a nice singing voice (Ken-Y, Zion) and the other one raps (R.K.M, Lennox).
Their first label was The Money Machine which was owned by veteran Notty Play. That year they also appeared on Ban2 Korrupto which was released by their label. They kept making more appearances like on "The Noise Live" but were still practically unknown.
They decided to release a mixtape to the streets and Internet called "Los Reyes del Mambo". This mixtape, produced completely by Ken-Y (who not only sings but also DJ's), caught the eye of Nicky Jam, who showed it to Raphy Pina, the owner of the infamous Pina Records label, which was up until now known as the War label, being that most of their artists (such as Lito & Polaco and Nicky Jam himself) were famous for their for beefs with artists from other labels.
Raphy liked the mixtape so much that he wanted the rookie duo in his label, so, after their contract with Money Machine was over, he convinced them to sign with Pina.
Their first appearance with the label was in the compilation album "Pina All - Stars 2", which was a compilation of many hit songs released by Pina Records. Raphy used this CD to release some new songs by R.K.M & Ken-Y to the public.
Around this time, the awaited Nicky Jam album "Vida Escante" came out. On it they had a song in which Nicky Jam introduced them as the new members of Pina Records. This song of course, was "Me Estoy Muriendo". While not common on other labels, it is not uncommon in Pina Records for an artist to "present" the rookies. They also had a song with Nicky Jam called "Pasado", which originally came out in their mixtape but Nicky liked it so much he wanted a version with him for his CD.
Both this songs had videos which gave them great exposure to people who had not seen what they looked like before.
Fans realized that they were unlike most other duos in Reggaeton, being that they did not use curse words in their songs and they composed romantic music compared to the dancing music the others make.
Don Omar, a former member of Pina Records who was now arguably one of the most famous people in the genre, was about to release a CD called "Los Bandoleros", which was a CD executive produced by him (NOT MUSICALLY PRODUCED) to help his friends gain more exposure. He invited all his former label mates from Pina Records to the CD: Lito, Nicky Jam, Polaco and R.K.M & Ken-Y.
He was impressed by Ken-Y's singing voice and wanted to have a song with them. The song, called "Si la Vez", was what definitely turned R.K.M & Ken-Y into a mainstream duo. This was the biggest hit from the CD although it was not released as a single.
This gave them the most exposure they had never received and were soon becoming more and more popular while Zion & Lennox were starting to crumble.
Boy Wonder, producer of the CD/DVD Chosen Few El Documental and Chencho, of the popular duo Plan B, were producing a CD called "El Draft" del reggaeton which was made to give rookies a chance to shine. Fans were given the chance to vote for their favorite rookie and R.K.M & Ken-Y won by a landslide beating many others reggaeton singers, even some that had released albums and very well known stars like John Eric, Jomar, Kartier, among others.
Their song "Tu No Estas" from El Draft was chosen as the single and the video for it shows R.K.M & Ken-Y arriving to New York for El Draft with Raphy Pina.
R.K.M, who is 27 years old and Ken-Y, who is 21, were now one of, if not the most, famous duo in Puerto Rico and fans were delighted when Raphy Pina announced their CD "Masterpiece" La Obra Maestra. Things took a bad turn though when someone broke in the Pina Records studio and destroyed everything.
All the work they had put on the CD was lost. Instead of moping around however, they quickly resumed work right away at a rented studio but the release date had to be pushed back, which conveniently ended up being Valentine's Day.
Finally, after much anticipation and hard work, Masterpiece was released. Masterpiece debuted #2 in the Latin Billboards, behind only Daddy Yankee's Barrio Fino: En Directo.
The song "Down" however, debuted at #1. The album sold extremely well, much better than anyone could have imagined and featured Nicky Jam, Polaco, La India, and Cruzito and Carlito's Way, two newcomers to Pina.
They are as strong as ever right now and had a massive concert in El Coliseo de Puerto Rico, the most important venue on the island, on August 18th.
Cruz y maldicion
R.K.M & Ken-Y Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He venido a decirte amor cuanto te quiero
Y por más que trate de no pensar en ti, no puedo
No
Y lloro
Y sufro
Tan solo por que tú no estás aquí
Que siga yo sufriendo por ti
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
No puedo más con esta presión
Quiero tenerte hoy
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
No puedo más con esta presión
Quiero tenerte hoy
Hoy
Hoy
Hoy
¡Rakim!
¿Recuerda' cuando todo te lo daba?
En mi brazos temblaba', diciendo que tú me amaba'
La ropa yo te quitaba
Eso a ti te gustaba
Te hacía to'a' cosas que tú nunca te esperaba'
Mai, con mil pasiones, mil carisia' y mil beso'
Asi es que conmigo, mami, tú bajabas queso
Tú sabes como yo nadie te hizo el sexo
Pero de olvidar te juro que estoy en proceso y no miento
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
No puedo más con esta presión
Quiero tenerte hoy
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
No puedo más con esta presión
Quiero tenerte hoy
Hoy
Hoy
Hoy
Mami, dime quien te hace el amor como yo
Quien te lleva a las estrellas de rosar tu cuerpo
El que hace que tú sudes bailando lento
No, no creo que halla otro
Mami, dime quien te hace el amor como yo
Quien te lleva a las estrellas de rosar tu cuerpo
El que hace que tú sudes bailando lento
No, no creo que halla otro
No, no, no, tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Yo he tenido mil mujeres pa' olvidarte
Y te juro mami que lo que hago es recordarte
Cuando beso a otra creo que beso tus partes, mai
Quisiera volver a amarte (a amarte, a amarte)
He venido a decirte amor cuanto te quiero
Y por más que trate de no pensar en ti, no puedo
No
Y lloro
Y sufro
Tan solo por que tú no estás aquí
Y pienso que no es justo
Que siga yo sufriendo por ti
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
No puedo más con esta presión
Quiero tenerte hoy
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
No puedo más con esta presión
Quiero tenerte hoy
Hoy
Hoy
Hoy
Los Magnífico' in the beat
Rakim y Ken-Y
Nuestra Obra Maestra (Nuestra Obra Maestra)
The lyrics to Rakim y Ken-Y's song Cruz Y Maldicion are sung from the perspective of someone who is deeply in love with an individual who has proven to be both a blessing and a curse in their life. The singer acknowledges that they have tried to move on and forget this person, but their feelings have proved too strong to ignore. They feel as though their heart is suffering because this person is not present in their life.
The chorus repeatedly asserts the idea that this person is both a "cruz" (cross) and a "maldición" (curse) to the singer. Despite the pain and pressure that comes with loving them, the singer still wants to be with them. The verses go on to describe all the ways in which this person has impacted their life, both positively and negatively. The lyrics also suggest that the singer may have been unfaithful and had other partners, but none of them measure up to the person they love.
Overall, the song captures the complex emotions that come with loving someone who may not always be good for us, but who holds an irresistible allure nonetheless.
Line by Line Meaning
He venido a decirte amor cuanto te quiero
I have come to express my love and affection for you
Y por más que trate de no pensar en ti, no puedo
Although I try not to think of you, I can't help it
Y lloro
And I cry
Y sufro
And I suffer
Tan solo por que tú no estás aquí
Just because you're not here
Y pienso que no es justo
And I think it's not fair
Que siga yo sufriendo por ti
That I continue to suffer for you
Tú eres mi cruz y mi maldición
You are my cross and my curse
Por quien hoy sufre mi corazón
For whom my heart suffers today
No puedo más con esta presión
I can't take this pressure anymore
Quiero tenerte hoy
I want to have you today
¡Rakim!
Rakim!
¿Recuerda' cuando todo te lo daba?
Do you remember when I gave you everything?
En mi brazos temblaba', diciendo que tú me amaba'
You trembled in my arms, saying that you loved me
La ropa yo te quitaba
I used to take off your clothes
Eso a ti te gustaba
You liked that
Te hacía to'a' cosas que tú nunca te esperaba'
I did things to you that you never expected
Mai, con mil pasiones, mil carisia' y mil beso'
With a thousand passions, thousand caresses, and a thousand kisses
Asi es que conmigo, mami, tú bajabas queso
That's why with me, baby, you reached your climax
Tú sabes como yo nadie te hizo el sexo
You know that nobody ever made love to you like I did
Pero de olvidar te juro que estoy en proceso y no miento
But I swear that I am trying to forget you and I am not lying
Mami, dime quien te hace el amor como yo
Baby, tell me who makes love to you like I do
Quien te lleva a las estrellas de rosar tu cuerpo
Who takes you to reach the stars while touching your body
El que hace que tú sudes bailando lento
The one who makes you sweat while dancing slowly
No, no creo que halla otro
No, I don't think there's anyone else
Yo he tenido mil mujeres pa' olvidarte
I have had a thousand women to forget you
Y te juro mami que lo que hago es recordarte
And I swear baby that what I do is remember you
Cuando beso a otra creo que beso tus partes, mai
When I kiss another, I think I am kissing your body parts
Quisiera volver a amarte (a amarte, a amarte)
I want to love you again (love you, love you)
Los Magnífico' in the beat
The Magnificent on the beat
Nuestra Obra Maestra (Nuestra Obra Maestra)
Our masterpiece
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jose Nieves, Rafael Pina, Nick Rivera, Kenny Vazquez
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind