Producers Tainy and Luny to Stage Historic Beat Battle on Instagram

Over the course of the last month, stars have come up with all kinds of enterprising ways to keep their fans engaged during the rise of the government-mandated quarantine. So when Swizz Beatz and Timbaland faced off by comparing their greatest hits on Instagram Live, they opened the floodgates for more DJ-producers to show their mettle.

The Latin corner of the music industry will have its biggest showdown by far this Friday, 9 p.m. EST, when famed reggaeton producers Tainy and Luny — one half of the iconic duo Luny Tunes — will go toe to toe in a historic beat battle. The announcement was made via Instagram by Rapetón, a Spanish-language news source on urban music; the beat battle will air live via Tainy and Luny Tunes‘ respective Instagram pages.

These two are not just any reggaeton producers: since the early 2000s, Francisco Saldaña, or Luny, has helped shape many of reggaeton’s first and most memorable hits, including Daddy Yankee’s 2004 breakthrough track, “Gasolina,” which was named one of Rolling Stone‘s 100 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century. He also played a crucial role in developing the genre’s definitive sound through the Luny Tunes’ Más Flow compilation series, which helped bolster the careers of artists like Wisin y Yandel, Tito El Bambino, Don Omar and Ivy Queen. Luny Tunes won their first Latin Grammy in 2005 for Daddy Yankee’s Barrio Fino.

Enter 30-year-old producer Marco “Tainy” Masís. He began as Luny’s apprentice in 2004, but since then has developed a reputation as reggaeton’s most experimental and forward-thinking producer. After helping craft Latin Grammy-winning records for Wisin y Yandel and J Balvin, Tainy scored his first Number One hit in the United States with Cardi B, Bad Bunny and J Balvin’s 2018 smash “I Like It.” He’s since had a hand in shaping the most iconic Latin crossover records of the decade, including 2018’s Vibras and X 100pre, 2019’s Oasis, and most recently, YHLQMDLG. He released his first solo EP, The Kids That Grew Up On Reggaeton in March.