Pitbull

Pitbull, aka Armando Christian Perez, grew up in the Miami area. His parents split when he was young and he stayed with his mother. She booted him at sixteen when he decided to deal drugs. The reason Perez gives for his stage name is that the breed of dog bites and won't let go because it's too dumb to lose. Additionally, pit bulls are outlawed in Dade county Florida, and Perez considers himself a little illegal, too.

Pitbull's parents were Cuban immigrants, and he did not fit the rapper look because of heritage and blue eyes. He was featured on Lil Jon's album "Kings of Crunk" in 2002. Then in 2003, he had a song on the soundtrack of "2 Fast 2 Furious" the movie.

In 2004, Perez released his first album featuring some songs he wrote the lyrics to. It was called "M.I.A.M.I." and was on the TVT Records label, which he had two more albums with in 2006 (El Mariel) and 2007 (The Boatlift). In 2009, "Rebelution" had some success and featured two singles that scored in the top 100 and Hot Rap Tracks. "I Know You Want Me" peaked at number two on the charts in the U.S. and was also successful in Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, and the UK.

After signing with Polo Ground Music, Pitbull created a label of his own, Mr. 305 Inc. Other songs that have done well for the performer are "Blanco" and "Hotel Room Service."

In 2005, Perez and Sean 'Diddy' Combs formed record company Bad Boy Latino, a subsidiary of Bad Boy Records, which is owned by Combs. Perez has also become quite adept at product endorsements and has a lucrative deal with Dr. Pepper.