Redimi2.

Willy González Cruz was born in Santo Domingo on June 3, 1979. He started rapping at 15, and in 1999, after a life derailed by drugs, he converted and decided his story would be his way of talking about Jesus. Today half the continent knows him as Redimi2, a pioneer of Christian rap in Spanish.

In 2000 he released Combinación Mortal, the first Christian rap album made in the Dominican Republic: it sold over 50,000 copies and opened a door through which dozens of faith-based rappers later came. Since then he has recorded under his own label, Redimi2 Records, and his project bears the name MC1615, after Mark 16:15, the verse that sums up his mission.

His catalog spans more than two decades: Hasta los Dientes (2004), Revolución (2006), El Equipo Invencible (2007), Vivo (2008), Exterminador Operación PR (2011), Operación Mundial (2014), Pura Sal (2017), 20/20 (2020), the album UNO (2021) with Alex Zurdo and Funky, MOMENTUM (2021), Rompiendo (2022), Maverick (2023), Base y fundamento (2024), Épico (2025) and Oxígeno (2026). He has recorded with Wisin, Gocho, Miel San Marcos, Evan Craft, Barak and Montesanto, among others.

The recognition came with the career: nominated for the 2024 Latin Grammy for Maverick in Best Christian Album (Spanish Language); nominated for the Dove Awards in 2023 for Rompiendo and in 2025 for Base y fundamento, both in Spanish Language Album; and in 2024 he landed on the Premios Arpa list in Featured Song with three songs: «Dios», «Conéctate conmigo» and «Exaltación».

His thing is the blend: street flow and altar content, rap and reggaeton with lyrics that don't hide the gospel, and a frankness that acknowledges his own past without turning it into a spectacle. That music is sung at concerts, in cars and in neighborhood churches, and that's where his strength lies: he doesn't soften the message to be liked. Oxígeno, his most recent album, just came out; it's a good entry point for anyone who hasn't heard him yet.