Maffio — Carlos Ariel Peralta Mendoza, born in Santo Domingo on 24 January 1986 — is a Dominican producer, songwriter and singer whose credits run through urban, tropical and pop music, three of them Latin Grammy Awards.

Self-taught at six

He taught himself piano at six, started writing songs at nine and producing at twelve, in a house where his influences ran from Bob Marley, Donna Summer and the Bee Gees to Camilo Sesto, Michael Jackson and Chuck Mangione. The name Maffio came from his father, who gave it to him as a boy for his fondness for mafia documentaries. At twenty he had his first international hit, producing «Mi alma se muere» for Omega and Fuego (2008).

Behind other artists’ hits

Working from his studio, «ReHab», in Miami, he built a run of production and writing credits through the 2010s: «Súper Estrella» (Omega and Fuego, 2009), «Eres mi sueño» (Fonseca, 2011), «Ropa Puesta» (Gente de Zona, 2012), «Tú me quemas» (Chino y Nacho, 2015, later used in «Ride Along 2»), «Chillax» (Farruko, 2015), «Bajito» and «Baby» (Jencarlos Canela, 2015–16) and «Without You» (Nicky Jam, 2017). In 2019 he produced much of Akon’s album «El Negreeto», with guests including Anitta, Ozuna, Anuel AA, Farruko and Becky G. In 2015 the mayor of Miami, Tomás Regalado, gave him the keys to the city.

As an artist

His own singles began with «Si yo fuera él», with Joey Montana (2012), and «No te dejaré de amar» (2012), which reached number one on Billboard’s Tropical Songs chart; «No tengo dinero» (2013) and «Quiero otro amor» (2014) followed. In 2013 he produced and appeared on Henry Santos’s «La vida», also a Tropical Airplay number one. He worked independently until 2019, when he signed with Sony Music Entertainment and released «Cristina», with Nacho, J Quiles and Shelow Shaq, and he later produced Natti Natasha’s «No voy a llorar» (2019) and Don Miguelo’s «Carne» (2020). His albums as a solo artist are «TumbaGobierno» (2020) and «Eso es mental» (2022), and in 2020 he appeared on «PAM» alongside El Alfa and two American acts.

Alkatraks

In January 2021 Maffio founded the label «Alkatraks Music Group», signing Calacote as its first artist and producing his debut single, «Azafata».

Legacy

Maffio has won three Latin Grammy Awards as a producer — Best Tropical Fusion Album for Fonseca’s «Ilusión» (2012) and for Gente de Zona’s «Visualízate» (2016), and Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for «Fonseca Sinfónico» (2014) — and, as an artist, the 2024 Billboard Latin Music Award for Latin Pop Song of the Year, with Nacho, for «No es normal». His work behind other artists’ records has carried more certifications, among them an 11-times-Diamond and multiple Platinum and Gold awards, than most of the acts he has recorded under his own name.