El Mariel (2006)

This Cuban-American rapper scored a cross-cultural hit with the reggaeton-meets-crunk bounce of his 2004 single ''Culo.'' His second album, El Mariel, doesn't tamper significantly with that potent formula. Producers including Lil Jon and the Neptunes solder industrial-strength Southern synths to an assortment of swaying Latin-Caribbean rhythms; their inventive beats are a welcome breather from the blaring monotony of much contemporary club fare. Too bad so many of Pitbull's smooth, bilingual verses rely on generic lech lines.