El General
Panama’s great reggae en español crossover voice. El General rode Jamaican dancehall riddims in Spanish and helped carry the Panamanian current into the wider Latin market before reggaeton had settled on its name.
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Edgardo Franco, known as El General, came out of Panama’s reggae en español culture and later continued his career from New York. His early records followed Jamaican dancehall closely, translating not just language but the deejay approach of riding established riddims in Spanish. “Tu Pum Pum,” released around 1990–91, became his defining early crossover and circulated as Puerto Rico’s underground scene was absorbing Panamanian records. El General belongs near the beginning of reggaeton’s map, but labeling him simply a “reggaeton artist” erases the older Panamanian scene he actually came from.
Where the history is argued
- Sources vary between 1990 and 1991 for early “Tu Pum Pum” release metadata; use the period rather than treating one date as historically decisive.
How they stand with the others
Came beforeEl General helped make Panamanian reggae en español visible before reggaeton became the later umbrella term.
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Last checked 1 September 2026