Today we’d like to introduce you to D’ William. He and his team share their story with us below:
D’ William (William Pagán Díaz) is a singer-songwriter, arranger, and music producer from Carolina, Puerto Rico. His musical passion developed at a very early age due to his exposure to traditional Puerto Rican music performed by his maternal grandfather, Don Tello Díaz, a respected “cuatro” player from the Utuado, Puerto Rico, and his own father’s love for music. During his childhood and adolescence, he participated in school events as a singer, actor, host, and member of youth choirs. It wasn’t until his senior year in high school where his then music teacher, Héctor Figueroa Montilla, who at the time also happened to be part of musicians who conformed the Olga Tañon’s band, discovered his talent and helped him launch his musical career to another level.
At the age of 16, he participated as a vocalist for the pop music group Volta-G. Later he was part of the merengue group Oro Negro y su Orquesta under the then-multinational label, Musical Productions. In 1996 he was selected to be part of an elite group in the history of merengue, La Tañón Band, under the command of “La Mujer de Fuego,” Olga Tañón. It was there that D’William got his first opportunity to debut as a composer and arranger under the then-multinational WEA Latina.
At the end of 1999, he enlisted in the United States Armed Forces. He was transferred to Hawaii where he stayed until 2005. There he learned about the salsa genre, thus participating with the then local salsa orchestra Salsaloha… He later created Swing Caña, the first ever all-merengue band in Honolulu’s history, was a founding member of Hawaii’s current Latin music band Son Caribe, and later created and established the Batacumbé salsa orchestra.
In 2005 he was honorably discharged from the United States Army and decided to settle for a new life in Tokyo, in Japan. Months later, he joined the Orquesta Conquistando in Japan as a vocalist. There he shared the stage with internationally renowned artists such as Oscar D’ León, La Sonora Carruseles, Grupo Niche, Los Van Van, Bamboleo, and La Orquesta de la Luz among others. He also worked as a music producer for Japanese and Latino artists such as Shakabon, Japanese hip-hop artist Tarantula, and Japanese-Latin fusion groups such as La Zona 809 and Los K-libres. Additionally, D’ William participated in the creation of music for video games for the renowned company Konami and as an audio editor for the prestigious Keio University.
In 2011 he returned to Puerto Rico to complete a matter on his list of goals to accomplish; his undergraduate and postgraduate studies. In 2013 he completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and in 2016 obtained his Juris Doctor degree, becoming a licensed attorney shortly thereafter.
In September 2020, D’ William released his first single, 24 Horas Enteras, for the first time as a soloist under the independent label Room Music Label. Thereafter, he released Tus Besos (2020); Pa’ Que Te Sueltes (2021); Se Me Fue (2021); (No Era el Momento (2021); Edición Limitada (2022); and most recently participated as an arranger, co-composer, and co-producer of Llegó La Navidad, a Christmas musical piece performed by Room Music’s recording artists Alhanna, Benyamin and Florentino, John Junior, and Los NN’s of Puerto Rico (from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic), Eva Davis (from Spain), and Grupo La Tripulación (from Guatemala).
Besides his native Puerto Rico, his music has reached, in a relatively short period of time, international markets such as Guatemala, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Japan, Peru, and Venezuela, among others, This thanks to the unique and original tropical/urban style which is embodied in his way of creating and producing music, which in turn makes it appealable to people from different backgrounds and culture regardless they do or do not speak or understand Spanish.
D’ William, under JPD Music and Room Music Label, also currently works as a composer and arranger for other urban, tropical, and pop recording artists.
His next single, Pal’ Mundo, is currently under the studio recording stage and will be released in the early months of 2023, along with additional releases in the later months involving collaborations and with other renowned local and international artists.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I believe that struggles are part of who we are today. They help us become stronger and prepare us for the future by avoiding paths that drove us to those struggles in the first place. With that line of thinking, I would say it’s been a smooth road accompanied by what was supposed to happen, good or not-so-good. I tend to avoid creating a cage of the past and rather move forward for what the future could bring.
What makes you happy?
In order of importance: 1. My family; 2. My music; 3. Traveling; and 4. My days off
Contact Info:
- Website: ffm.to/dwilliam-edicionlimitada
- Instagram: @d_williamoficial
- Facebook: @dwilliamoficial
- Youtube: @dwilliamoficial
Image Credits
Reinier Charon
By Reina Miyashita
Room Music, LLC
