Rauw Alejandro

Biography

Raúl Alejandro Ocasio Ruiz (born January 10, 1993), known professionally as Rauw Alejandro, is a Puerto Rican singer and songwriter. His music styles include genres such as reggaeton, Latin R&B, urbano, Latin trap, rhythmic pop, and ballads. His accolades include two Latin Grammy Awards, two Billboard Latin Music Awards, and an iHeartRadio Music Awards. Rolling Stone called him "the greatest showman in Latin music" and compared his concerts to a Broadway production.
Born on January 10, 1993, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and was raised in Canóvanas and Carolina. He began his career on SoundCloud in 2014. In December 2017, he released his first single as lead artist, titled "Toda", with Alex Rose. It peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs charts in November 2018. He has released 5 albums since, and has collaborated with a variety of other Latin artists, including Ozuna, Nicky Jam, Shakira, and Bad Bunny.

1993–2013: Early life

Raúl Alejandro Ocasio Ruiz was born on January 10, 1993, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and was raised in Canóvanas and Carolina. His father, guitarist Raúl Ocasio, his brother, Pedro Ocasio Ruiz and his mother, backing vocalist María Nelly Ruiz, introduced him to some of his musical influences like Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, and Rihanna. Raul's father was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, and later moved to Puerto Rico. Additionally, Rauw has mentioned a personal connection to his Italian heritage, as his great-grandfather was from Palermo, Sicily. For many years, Alejandro and his father lived in the mainland United States, mainly Miami and New York City, where he got inspiration from the R&B and dancehall genres. Alejandro and fellow Puerto Rican rapper Anuel AA are childhood friends; they both went to the same school and had classes together. As a child, Alejandro competed in school talent shows because he has a passion for dancing. After graduating high school, he enrolled at University of Puerto Rico. From the age of six until he was twenty, he played soccer, but later quit because he "could not perform as he expected to" after suffering an injury. He moved to Orlando, Florida, intending to be scouted to play in the Premier Development League (PDL), but ultimately was unsuccessful.

2014–2019: Career beginnings and hit singles

After quitting soccer, he was left in a light depression, so, to improve his mood, he decided to switch to a music career and begin publishing songs through SoundCloud in 2014. In November 2016, he released his debut mixtape titled Punto de Equilibrio×Punto de equilibrio30 November 2016 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Nunca me olvidarás2:182Dónde3:553Dentro de ti3:384Si me permites4:095No me siento igual4:286Tu voz1:517No hay nadie más4:458Entrégate a mí3:299Se siente bien3:4810Tú eres lo que quiero4:24. In January 2017, he signed a music deal with Duars Entertainment. In 2018, he was chosen by Sony Music Latin to be part of "Los Próximos", a musical project in which the label sought to enlist new musical talents. The musical project helped him gain fame, and, as a result, other noteworthy artists began to hear his music. Alejandro was then featured in multiple collaborations, including Kevin Roldán and Khea's "Pa' Tu Casa" and "Luz Apagá" with Ozuna, Lunay and Lyanno, that year.
In December 2017, he released his first single as lead artist, titled "Toda", with Alex Rose. It peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs charts in November 2018. A subsequent remix of "Toda", featuring Argentine artist Cazzu and fellow Puerto Ricans Lenny Tavárez and Lyanno, was released in May 2018. The remix proved successful, with the music video having over 1 billion views on YouTube as of November 2020. In January 2019, he released his single "Que le dé" with Nicky Jam. In December 2019, his song "Fantasías", with Farruko, peaked at the #12 spot on the US Hot Latin Songs chart; he also recorded a hugely popular remix (and accompanying music video) to the single, featuring additional verses by Anuel AA, Lunay, and Dominican singer Natti Natasha. "Fantasías", at the time, charted at the highest position of any of his songs on the US charts, along with the song "Tattoo×Tattoo13 February 2020 · SingleSpotifyYouTube MusicTracklist · 1 track1Tattoo3:22". Both songs stayed for around 20 weeks on the charts, eventually winning the Latin Grammy Award for Best Urban Fusion/Performance in 2021. The remix video for "Fantasías" has received over 425 million views on YouTube.

2020–2021: Afrodisíaco and Vice Versa

On September 4, 2020, Alejandro was featured on the remix and in the music video to the Lyanno song "En Tu Cuerpo", the two once again collaborating with Lenny Tavárez, and also featuring new Argentine singer María Becerra, just 20 years old at the time (in 2020). The music video has over 386 million views on YouTube. Later that year, his debut album, Afrodisíaco×Afrodisíaco13 November 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 16 tracks1Dile a él3:302Strawberry Kiwi3:323Mood2:564Química4:555Enchule3:066De cora < 33:107Un sueño3:428Reloj3:529No te creo3:4910Soy una gárgola4:0911Pensándote3:3612Perreo pesau'4:2113Algo mágico4:2214Ponte pa' mí3:0415Elegí (remix)5:2416Tattoo (remix)3:43, was released, preceded by the release of three singles and music videos: "Enchule", the "Elegí×Elegí26 March 2020 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Elegí3:18" remix, and "Reloj" (with Anuel AA).

On May 20, 2021, he released "Todo de Ti×Todo de ti19 May 2021 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Todo de ti3:23", which peaked at the number 2 spot on Spotify's Top Songs Global chart. On June 25, 2021, he released his sophomore album, Vice Versa×VICE VERSA5 June 2021 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1Todo de ti3:192Sexo virtual3:283Nubes2:584Track 40:1752/Catorce3:256Aquel Nap ZzZz4:557Cúrame2:448Cosa guapa4:159Desenfocao'2:5010¿Cuándo fue?2:4811La Old Skul3:3412¿Y eso?3:2013Tengo un pal3:1514Brazilera3:04, through Sony Music Latin and Duars Entertainment. Afrodisíaco earned him a nomination for Best Música Urbana Album at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.
In July 2021, Alejandro was featured on the Jennifer Lopez song "Cambia el Paso" and appeared in its accompanying music video, shot in Miami.
In July 2021, he embarked on his Rauw Alejandro World Tour which lasted until December of that year.

2022–present: Saturno, Playa Saturno and Cosa Nuestra

In April 2022, Alejandro featured on Colombian artist Shakira's single "Te Felicito" and in its accompanying music video. The song proved to be among his most successful, reaching the #1 position (or within the top five) across Latin America and Spain (#2), as well as charting in several non-Spanish-speaking countries, including Brazil (#10), Croatia, France, Portugal, Switzerland, and Ukraine. The single would also reach #3 in Russia. "Te Felicito" reached #1 on the Billboard US Latin Airplay, Latin Pop Airplay and Latin Rhythm Airplay charts, and #10 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart. The single's official music video has received over 606 million views on YouTube.
On November 15, 2024, Rauw Alejandro released his album titled Cosa Nuestra×Cosa nuestra15 November 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 18 tracks1Cosa nuestra4:202Déjame entrar4:153Qué pasaría...3:114Tú con él4:495Committed2:396Espresso Martini3:117Baja pa' acá3:208Ni me conozco3:509Il capo4:1010Revolú3:3611Mil mujeres2:4912Khé?3:2613S⁠e fue4:0014Pasaporte4:2315T⁠ouching the Sky3:0616Amar de nuevo4:2817⁠2:12 AM3:3218⁠SEXXXMACHINE3:56 through Sony Music Latin and Duars Entertainment. The album features 18 tracks and has a total runtime of 1 hour and 7 minutes. It includes collaboration with artists such as Laura Pausini, Romeo Santos, and Bad Bunny, blending elements such as salsa, reggaeton and other genres. As for the release of the album, he went for a mafia concept for this specific album. The release marked Alejandro's first album of 2024, following the earlier release of the single "Pasaporte" which was also included as part of the Cosa Nuestra album as track #14.
On September 26, 2025, he released his 6th studio album, Cosa Nuestra: Capítulo 0×Cosa nuestra: Capítulo 026 September 2025 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1Carita linda3:232Caribeño4:103GuabanSexxx2:414Buenos términos2:285Silencio3:546El cuc0.02:217Contrabando2:558Nostalgia de otoño3:189Náufragos3:3210Besito en la frente2:4211Santa3:1312Callejón de los secretos3:4513Falsedad3:0914Mirando al cielo2:44, a sequel to Cosa Nuestra. The album is an homage to Puerto Rican and Caribbean origins and ancestral culture, featuring many different sounds including bomba, salsa, bachata, reggaeton, plena, afrobreats, and more. The album also includes notable features such as De La Rose, Mon Laferte, Rvssian, Ayra Starr, Wisin, Ñengo Flow, and Jey One. A notable song featured in the album is Carita Linda×Carita Linda10 April 2025 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Carita Linda3:23, a neo-bomba hit, blending modern beats with Afro-Caribbean sounds. The song was first released as a single and, "reached No. 1 spot on Latin Airplay and Latin Pop Airplay charts." The release of the album also included Rauw Alejandro's first bachata song, SILENCIO, in collaboration with bachata artist, Romeo Santos. The song, Guabansexxx, draws heavy inspiration from the Taíno deity of weather and storms, Guabancex, in which lyrics and sounds allude to the destruction and chaos of a heavy storm.
During his Cosa Nuestra World Tour stop in Brooklyn, New York, Rolling Stone called him "the greatest showman in Latin music" and compared his concerts to a Broadway production.
Rauw performed a medley of his songs at 26th Annual Latin Grammy Awards.
Rauw gave a free concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on December 13. The concert took place at the Parque Eugenio María de Hostos. The show was dubbed Noche Caribeña and held over 40,000 attendees.

Artistry

Alejandro's music styles include such genres as reggaeton, Latin R&B, urbano, Latin trap, rhythmic pop, and ballads. Billboard commented that this versatility has helped "set him apart from a growing class of pop-leaning reggaetoneros". He has cited Chris Brown, Michael Jackson, Ricky Martin, Daddy Yankee, Elvis Presley, Bruno Mars and Ciara as a few of his musical inspirations. In addition, Alejandro has also noted Rihanna as one of his dream collaborations.

Personal life

By the end of 2019, Alejandro was in a relationship with Spanish singer Rosalía which he made public in September 2021. They announced their engagement in March 2023, but called it off in July 2023. On 20 August 2026, journalist Álex Rodríguez reported that a few weeks earlier, Alejandro had a child with a university student from Puerto Rico who lives with him in New York and with whom he had been in a relationship with since shortly after his breakup with Rosalía.