The legendary Ivy Queen — sometimes called the Queen of Reggaetón or La Caballota — as soon as stated in an interview, “Within the life of each girl, there is a level whenever you blossom and whenever you flourish.” And for Ivy Queen, after a long time of cementing her place as a pioneer of the style, that point is now.
Born Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez, Ivy Queen first grew to become acknowledged within the reggaetón scene again within the ’90s, when the style was nonetheless thought-about underground. She was the primary feminine member of the all-male rap collective shaped on the studios of The Noise, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. And her first reside efficiency — the place she rapped “Somos Raperos Pero no Delincuentes” (“We Are Rappers Not Delinquents”), sporting what would then grow to be her signature type of outsized denims, a T-shirt, braids, and lengthy acrylic nails — launched her on a legendary profession. She has since created music that has empowered generations of girls, inspiring right this moment’s reggaetón feminist wave and artists like Karol G, Becky G, Natti Natasha, RaiNao, Younger Miko, Villano Antillano, and extra.
Immediately, La Caballota is in her blooming period and eventually receiving her much-deserved flowers. Simply have a look at her accolades previously few years, from internet hosting Spotify and Futuro Studios’ “Loud,” a podcast that reveals the true historical past of reggaetón, to being honored on the thirty fifth version of Premio Lo Nuestro with the Premio Lo Nuestro Legado Musical Al Genero Urbano Award final yr, to receiving the Icon Award on the Billboard Latin Music Awards for her contributions to the male-dominated style.
We not too long ago caught up with Ivy Queen backstage at San Juan’s Distrito T-Cell proper earlier than rehearsals for Dick Clark’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest in Puerto Rico. The reggaetonera regarded extra peaceable than ever with a white candle lit proper in entrance of her. Ivy refers to herself as a really religious individual, and she or he would not go wherever and not using a vela blanca. (In October, for instance, she appeared on NPR’s Tiny Desk and lit a candle throughout her efficiency that had a picture of Dangerous Bunny on it.)
“The vela represents mild and people who have handed,” Ivy Queen tells POPSUGAR. “As an example, my father handed away, and I really feel his spirit is at all times with me. My father was a musician. He used to play guitar . . . when he handed, I used to be at a live performance and I had this sense earlier than after I was taking a shower [earlier that day], that I needed to go to him on the hospital. By means of my thoughts I saved saying, ‘Look ahead to me, anticipate me, please papi, anticipate me.’ I simply had that [intuitive feeling].”
Ivy explains that the candle additionally serves as a religious software she makes use of to cleanse any area that she enters to guard her power. It was one thing she realized very early on in her profession, as she navigated a style and a world that was solely dominated by males.
A part of that navigation got here by way of the celebs — actually. Within the early days of her profession, Ivy began diving into astrology to know her strengths and her weaknesses as she moved up within the music trade. “I realized the weather. I realized my beginning chart. I requested my mom what time I used to be born,” she says. “It was across the ’90s, [and] I used to like Walter Mercado. Each time his present would come on, they’d present the wheel and I used to be like, what the f**ok is that this? So, I began to be taught my signal and I used to be at all times dominated by my signal. I do know it is a water signal. I do know what indicators do not match on the subject of enterprise.”
Ivy’s solar signal placement is in Pisces; her moon is in Sagittarius; and her rising is in Scorpio.
“With the Scorpio, I’ve to guard my power,” she says pointing to the white candle. Whereas Mercado was one of many solely mainstream figures on the time who had a complete program devoted to Latine spirituality and astrology, he wasn’t the one one who impressed Ivy’s religious journey.
“My favourite artist was Celia Cruz. She got here from Cuba, which is likely one of the homes of the spirits. It comes from Mom Africa — la madre tierra. So actually I realized watching these individuals,” she remembers. “Walter was additionally a Pisces. I used to be like, let me see if he solely talks concerning the good elements of that signal as a result of he is a Pisces however no. These are stuff I want that they taught us at a younger age to embrace. You understand the mothers and abuelas that have been curanderas — I used to be raised by that.”
At 51, Ivy Queen seems higher than ever. Her pores and skin continues to be youthful and radiates from inside. Her lengthy blonde extensions hit previous her hips. Ivy additionally nonetheless sports activities the lengthy and suave acrylic nails she’s grow to be identified for, however her most noteworthy trait is how she carries herself with grace, confidence, and poise. She credit her spirituality to taking part in an enormous position in how she’s realized to embrace her divine female power.
“It’s a must to appeal to the power,” she explains. “If you happen to really feel such as you’re all f**ked up, vieja y jodida [old and messed up], your physique will react to that. La mente es bien peligrosa, pero tambien es bien poderosa [the mind is very dangerous but it is also very powerful]. Like, [it’s about] how are you going to make use of your powers, you understand?”
It is no shock that Ivy is an enormous believer within the legislation of attraction and manifestation. For her, that comes within the type of writing and praying — to God, to the Angel de la Guarda, and to her ancestors. La Caballota has additionally realized to be nonetheless and take note of the indicators. This yr, she needs to lastly test some main objectives off her bucket checklist.
“I can be touring [this year]. I wished to start out in Puerto Rico as a result of I am from right here. Then I announce the tour within the US — the dates,” she says. “After which I resolve if the story of my life goes to be a sequence or a film. I can be producing it.”
Proper earlier than Ivy Queen rang within the new yr, she already observed some indicators confirming that 2024 goes to be the yr she spreads her wings and sees all these objectives manifest into actuality.
On Dec. 30, her daughter landed in Puerto Rico, a day earlier than Ivy Queen carried out at Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New 12 months’s Eve, and gifted her a monkey plushie with somewhat hat and the Puerto Rican flag. The reggaetonera determined to take the plushie together with her in all places for good luck, and on the seaside, she observed a black and white feather that appeared out of the blue. She additionally observed a crow standing on a department proper behind the plushie. For her, these have been all indicators.
“I used to be asking for 2024 [to be the year] I must elevate. I used to be asking the spirits like Venus as a result of she’s the Goddess of affection, I used to be asking for indicators . . . ship me an indication,” she says. “I see it as possibly the feather is an indication that I am flying to a different step. I need to be transferring rather a lot, and birds, they go in all places. So, I take note of indicators and I put my very own that means behind it. I took it like, OK 2024, I’ll be busy and I will be doing properly.”
Contemplating la reina’s monitor report for manifesting all of the profession milestones she’s set for herself, we have now little question that 2024 would be the yr of Ivy Queen
