Quotes from Nicky Jam

I'm a real man. I can suffer.

I have to write pretty songs; that's what gets them on the charts.

Colombia changed the way I write and sing.

I realized that if I did well in Colombia, I could do well in the world.

I didn't go looking to Colombia for a dream - if I tell you that, I'm lying. I went to Colombia because I needed the work!

To be a guy that disappeared from reggaeton for 10 years and come back, it can't be better than that.

In Colombia is where I discovered myself as a writer.

There are people who compose from very young. That is not my case. I went discovering myself.

As a reggaeton act, I've always felt people are looking down on us and expecting us to fail. That's enough of a burden, and we automatically try to act with dignity.

Colombians, when they love an artist, they love him whether you're up or down. So why wouldn't I stay in a place where they loved me when I was in my worse moment, and they were saying I was a legend? I felt I was good, so I felt it was my home. I fell in love with the people, the culture. They made me feel like a Colombian.

Al Green is something else.

Puerto Rico got too futuristic with the electronic reggaeton. It lost the essence of the reggae music.

Medellin gave me so much. It gave me back who I am: the person I am, the human being I am.

I was making too much money. I was too young. I didn't know how to deal.

I first write melodies that will make people shiver, and then, I add the lyrics.

I love to see people's faces change when they hear me speak English and they realize how far I have been able to go.

Making movies is great. It was like love at first sight; a whole new, different business. I can see why actors love it so much.

I'm a little bit of everything. That's what makes Nicky Jam so different from everybody else.

I love going to the beach. I like just walking around South Beach, but sometimes, when you're famous, it can be a little difficult.

The mentality always in reggaeton was, 'I'm the man.' I made that cool to say, 'I messed up. I'm not the best.'

The way you pronounce words the Puerto Rico way, it's not really global for music. Colombians speak some of the best Spanish in the world. So having a Colombian next to me every time I write makes my music more international.

In the English market, I would love to work with Drake and Rihanna. Who doesn't, right? In the Spanish market, maybe Romeo Santos.

If you're making music for the U.S. Latin fan, it's important that you sing in Spanish. Even going too bilingual can backfire.

Vin Diesel is crazy, and when I say crazy, I mean it in a good way. He's crazy about Latinos, and he's not even a Latino. He even wants to speak Spanish. I told him we should do a song together, and he said he was shy. But I said, 'I'm no actor, but I'm acting in front of you. I wasn't scared.'