Nicky Jam says he’s retiring “soon.” At least that’s what the reggaetón star wrote on social media on Tuesday (Oct. 17). “Mi gente, I’m retiring soon but this is my legacy, motivation and self-improvement … coming soon, my last global tour and my last album, love you all.”
The announcement is accompanied by footage from Nicky Jam’s bio-series (Nicky Jam: El Ganador) that showcases his drug-riddled past to overcoming hardships and becoming one of Latin music’s biggest stars – soundtracked by sapientdream’s “Past Lives.”
Billboard reached out to Nicky’s reps to confirm the news of his retirement but did not hear back at press time.
Nicky Jam (real name Nick Rivera Caminero) is one of this generation’s biggest comeback stories. After his career took off in the 1990s, Jam found himself struggling with addiction and depression. But moving to Medellín, Colombia in 2007 was pivotal for Nicky Jam. “They made me feel like I was a legend. The boost they gave me made me want to be a better person,” he told Billboard back in 2015. “I started eating OK, I stopped drugs, I stopped alcohol. People came to love me because I was loving myself.”
Since, Nicky has only doubled down on his hustle, which has catapulted him to the top of the charts. To date, the hitmaker has placed 17 top 10 songs on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart – including five No. 1 songs: “El Perdón,” “Hasta El Amanecer,” “Te Boté,” “Otro Trago” and “X.” On the Top Latin Albums chart, he’s had three top 10 sets and one No. 1, his 2017 project Fenix, which topped the tally for eight weeks.
For a second consecutive year, Nicky Jam presented his talk show The Rockstar Show at Latin Music Week. His guests this year were Ivy Queen and Fuerza Regida’s frontman, Jesús Ortiz Paz.
See Nicky Jam’s retirement announcement below:
