Calle 13 is a Puerto Rican reggaeton group. The members of the group are two brothers that call themselves Residente (lead singer, writer) and Visitante (pianist, vocals, writer). Their sister (called PG-13) contributed to a song on their album.
The group rose to fame in 2005 with two back-to-back hits in Puerto Rican radio stations. Those songs were "Se Vale To' To'" and "Querido FBI". The latter is a song addressed to the FBI, and it was written by the groups lead singer after the slaying of Filiberto Ojeda Ríos (leader of Puerto Rican revolutionary group, Los Macheteros). The group was criticized because apparently the lyrics promoted violence against the authorities, but the group alleged the song isn't meant to be taken literally.
After their rise to fame, the group collaborated with other artists, singing or co-writing songs. At the end of 2005, they managed to release their first album to much critical praise.
In December, 2005 the Governor of Puerto Rico, Anibal Acevedo Vila admitted listening to the group when his son got him some of their songs on his Ipod. This prompted him to invite them to La Fortaleza and have them record a song against shootings.