Exclusiva: Galante Dishes On Being Our End Of The Year 'El Headliner'

By Michael Lopez

This year brought us some very interesting "El Headliner" winners. There were colorful duos like Domino Saints, introspective songwriters like Bergman Pazs, and now an unconventional studio wiz named Galante. A true master of reggaeton and synthesized beats, "El Emperador" (as he's also called) shared his thoughts on what it's like to be 2011's final "El Headliner" champ.

"I feel great," he told us when reacting to his victory. "My manager called me up and said, 'You're the winner!' It took me completely by surprise."

Just 23-years-old, Galante has already established himself as a very powerful musical presence. Born in Puerto Rico, he grew up dividing his time between two very different passions: music and technology.

"I'm actually trained to be a computer programmer," Galante explained. "I've won awards for my networking designs."

Back in 2006, Galante beat out 6,000 students to win first place in a nationwide programming competition. And, as he explained to us, it was his passion for computers that helped give him an edge in the music biz.

"My computer abilities have helped me learn about engineering and studio production," he said. "That's kind of how I was able to get so much attention so fast. It had a lot to do with my skills behind the soundboard."

Indeed, Galante's music caught the ear of quite a few famous Puerto Ricans. In the past year alone, he's collaborated with heavy hitters like Jowell y Randy, Arcangel, and Daddy Yankee. Working with El Big Boss seemed to be the highlight so far, as Galante confessed to us.

"Daddy Yankee is a musical hero of mine. Being able to collaborate with him in the studio, it's like a dream come true!"

Though somewhat coy about his work with DY, Galante did openly discuss his upcoming single with Jowell y Randy. Set to come out next February, it’ll surely put this young music wiz on the map.

"I'm really hoping for big things in 2012," Galante said. "My song with Jowell y Randy should be out by February and by April, I hope to have my first solo studio album completed."

Obviously those are things we will definitely keep an eye out for. In the meantime, you catch up on all of the latest Galante happenings by visiting his official site (which he happened to have designed himself).

See you next year "El Headliner" fans!

Who was your favorite "El Headliner" of the year? Sound off in the comments or @MTV3.

Tags Blogger: Michael Lopez, Daddy Yankee, El Emperador, El Headliner, Exclusive Entrevistas, Galante, Jowell y Randy, Música, Ourstage, Tr3s Exclusives