Just in time for homecoming, 305’s Cuban rapper Pitbull took time out of his promotional tour to prepare Florida A&M University for the release of his sophomore album, “El Muriel,” scheduled to be released on Halloween.
Pitbull, born Armando Perez, titled his second album “El Muriel” in respect to the 1980s Cuban boatlift that carried some 125,000 Cubans to Florida.
Pitbull’s parents, Cuban immigrants, were involved in the historic migration to America.
“Their quest for freedom is what I am looking for in the rap game,” Pitbull said.
Pitbull enlisted the help of producers Pharrell, Jim Jonsin, Mr. Collipark and Lil’ Jon on this album.
And Pitbull’s animated style was paired with artists such as Fat Joe, Bun-B, Wyclef and the Ying Yang Twins, just to name a few.
There is no question that this album will be just as hot as his first album M.I.A.M.I. (Money Is A Major Issue), which came out in 2004 and went gold, selling more than 600,000 copies, he said.
Although songs on this album such as “Bojangles” and “Ay Chico” are obviously club bangers, other songs revolve around issues like Cuba and President Bush’s misguidance of the war in Iraq.
Pitbull claims this album is like a “rollercoaster and is versatile. It’s not the same street type of style on a track. Each track is different.”
The rapper said “Blood is Thicker Than Water,” featuring Redd Eyez from Lil’ Haiti, is one of his most significant tracks on the album. This track is one of his favorites because it is talking about his lost loved ones.
The Afro-Cuban-themed album remained bilingual primarily because that is the style he said sets him apart from other rappers.
“My music is universal and it’s so catchy,” Pitbull said. This is why people of all ethnicities show him love, he said.
“If they don’t understand what I’m saying, then they will ask me. I am uniting all ethnicities musically,” said Pitbull in reference to non-Spanish speaking people who listen to his music.
His style of rapping is so innovative that the music industry has had trouble labeling him. He’s not all reggaeton, nor is he strictly a Latin rapper. And he’s not a crunk artist just because he does numerous songs with record labelmate Lil’Jon.
Pitbull enjoys the idea that no one can label him, he said, because it allows him to be as creative and adventurous as he wants to be without feeling restricted to a particular style.
Pitbull, “Mr. 3-0-5” as he is sometimes called, who was featured on the Miami anthem “Born and Raised,” boastfully claimed that you cannot do a track about Miami without him.
For all the people who are not giving Pitbull the recognition he deserves, he said, “The less that recognize me the better. I stay surprising people.”
Pitbull said he attended the Florida Classics and FAMU Homecomings before he was known as Pitbull, the rapper said he is no stranger to FAMU. He said he might be in the midst of this year’s homecoming.
Most importantly, Pitbull wants everyone to get on MySpace to join the El Muriel movement and log on to his page at www.myspace.com/pitbull to listen to tracks from his new album.