Latin
J Balvin, Sech, Becky G & Rauw Alejandro Close Weekend 1 of Mexico’s Baja Beach Fest: Recap
The third day of Baja Beach Fest in Rosarito, Mexico, capped a weekend of hitmakers, including Anuel, Ozuna and Karol G. On Sunday, J Balvin closed out weekend one, following stellar performances from Sech, Becky G, Rauw Alejandro, Paloma Mami, Jhay Cortez, Justin Quiles and Sky Rompiendo among others. Here are the highlights: J Balvin: Balvin returned to the Rosarito festival for a second time, this time as the main headliner, and fans welcomed him with a huge, echoing roar the instant he set foot onstage and opened with — wait for it — “Mi Gente.” The Colombian icon, gleaming in bleached hair and tan-colored cargo attire, played a riveting hour of hits, including “X,” “Con Altura” and “Que Calor.” Maverick male backup dancers in quirky outfits backed him up, a standout moment...
Maffio Launches ‘Alkatraks Music’ Record Label with New Artist Calacote: ‘This Is For the Culture’ (Exclusive)
It all begins with Calacote (real name: Luca Newton), a 22-year-old ambitious singer-songwriter who was born in North Carolina and is of Dominican and French descent. He describes his leap of faith as the ultimate “cinematic hustle move.” He began exploring music about two years ago but never thought he could pursue a career in it. He discovered his talent and passion for composing music in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and took his shot. He packed up his stuff, left Canada, where he was in grad school, moved first to New York, and later to Miami. After a few months of living in Miami, in December to be exact, he decided to direct message Maffio on Instagram. Twenty minutes later Maffio replied, they met up, and the rest is history. On Aug. 20, Calacote will be dropping his de...
Baja Beach Fest Day 2: Farruko, Anuel & More Perform Euphoric Sets Amid Stricter Safety Measures
Farruko, smiling from ear to ear, donning an MLB-styled BBF jersey and bedecked in diamonds that are basically shooting rainbows, is wailing out the chorus to one of the most hard-hitting songs of the summer, the anthemic EDM banger “Pepas.” Before him, a sea of festivalgoers (30,000, to be exact) are losing their minds. It’s Day 2 (Aug. 14) of Baja Beach Fest, the largest Latin music-focused festival in the Americas to resume since the coronavirus pandemic. The two-weekend fest kicked off Aug. 13 in Mexico’s Rosarito Beach, with reggaeton stars Ozuna, J Balvin and Karol G among the headliners, and with strict COVID-19 protocols in place. After some concertgoers took to social media to criticize enforcement of protocols during Day 1, organizers seemed to be stricter on Saturday, implementi...
Aventura Launches Reunion Tour With Sold-Out Miami Show, Surprise Bad Bunny Appearance & More
Even though the odds were against them, the bachata group took the stage at 9:55 p.m., opening the set with five back-to-back classics: “El Desprecio,” “La Niña Cambio,” “Por Un Segundo,” “La Boda,” and “Infieles.” “Good evening,” lead singer Romeo Santos told the crowd in Spanish. “We decided to kick off the tour in Miami for many reasons, and you know what? F— the storm!” Matching in all-black outfits, the group continued to croon fans with hit tracks such as “Dile Al Amor,” “Enseñame a Olvidar” and “El Malo,” which follows Romeo’s philosophy that even though one can date 50 people, only the “bad guy” conquers their heart. The Hard Rock Stadium was packed Saturday night — 50,000 attendees to be exact. Amid the COVID-19 and delta variant spikes, the show was sold out. The venu...
5 Uplifting Moments in Latin Music This Week (August 14)
From career milestones and new music releases to major announcements and more, Billboard editors highlight the latest news buzz in Latin music every week. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week. Billboard Latin Music Awards This week, Telemundo and Billboard unveiled all the finalists for the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards. Bad Bunny leads the pack as a 22-time finalist in 13 categories, including artist of the year. He’s followed by Maluma with 11 nods, J Balvin with nine nods, and Karol G, Anuel AA, and Black Eyed Peas with eight each. The 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards, produced and broadcasted live by Telemundo, will take place Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Fla., kicking off at 7 p.m. ET with the one-hour red carpet special “La A...
5 Uplifting Moments in Latin Music This Week (August 14)
From career milestones and new music releases to major announcements and more, Billboard editors highlight the latest news buzz in Latin music every week. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week. Billboard Latin Music Awards This week, Telemundo and Billboard unveiled all the finalists for the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards. Bad Bunny leads the pack as a 22-time finalist in 13 categories, including artist of the year. He’s followed by Maluma with 11 nods, J Balvin with nine nods, and Karol G, Anuel AA, and Black Eyed Peas with eight each. The 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards, produced and broadcasted live by Telemundo, will take place Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Fla., kicking off at 7 p.m. ET with the one-hour red carpet special “La A...
Amid COVID-19 Protocols, Mexico’s Baja Beach Fest Returns With Ozuna, Karol G & More
“We’ve been working with every state and city department to make sure that Baja Beach Fest is as safe as possible,” BBF founders Aaron Ampudia and Chris Den Uijl said in a press release. “We’re excited to show the world that live music can come back in a way people can feel comfortable with.” On a similar note, a local policeman on the ground, who asked to remain anonymous, told Billboard, “Mexico continues to enforce strict laws about not letting the public enter inside establishments without a mask. If they decide to walk outside without one, we can’t issue a ticket, but we always encourage everyone to take precautions for the safety of everyone.” The measures were enough to make artists feel at ease. “I actually felt weird [returning to the stage], but I felt safe, and that’...
See Anitta Pose for Her Madame Tussauds Wax Figure
Anitta will soon get her own wax figure at Madame Tussauds in Times Square. The Brazilian superstar shared the news to her more than 55 million followers via Instagram on Friday (Aug. 13), stating: “I’m so honored! Can’t wait to have my wax figure at @MadameTussaudsUSA, in NYC!” A short video preview shows the “Girl From Rio” singer rocking ripped jeans, a bedazzled thong, and a cutout top as artists get her exact measurements, hair color, eye color, and skin tone. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of I...
Chimbala Gets Mischievous at the Gym in New ‘Bisturi’ Music Video: Exclusive
The music video, helmed by Dominican director Freddy Graph, is also just as playful, showing Chimbala being mischievous as can be at the gym. Throughout the clip, a group of girls flaunts what could possibly become the next TikTok dance. With his new single, Chimbala hopes to continue his winning streak on TikTok, following the success that tracks such as “El Juidero” and his collaboration on Justin Quiles’ “Loco” have had on the app. He owes his success to God who has “enlightened him” and his fans who have made his songs go viral. “I believe fans will enjoy ‘Bisturi’ even more than all of my other songs that have gone viral,” he tells Billboard in a statement. “This song has a very unique and contagious dance.” Watch the official video for “Bisturi” below: You Deserve to Make Money Even ...
J Balvin Releases ‘Que Locura’ Single & Announces Next Album
He recently spoke to Billboard about how his Miller Lite campaign, titled “Es José Time,” embraces his namesake and who he really is behind his onstage persona. “I’m really getting to know me, because I’ve been so caught up on J Balvin that I started to forget about José,” he said. “That’s what I love about this campaign. It’s showing my human side, chilling with my friends and being a normal guy.” J Balvin is a finalist for the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards with nine nods, including artist of the year, songwriter of the year and hot Latin song of the year for “Ritmo (Bad Boys for Life)” with the Black Eyed Peas. Listen to “Que Locura” below. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagine...
Univision Ad Revenue Jumps 72 Percent
Quarterly ad revenue jumped 72 percent from the coronavirus pandemic-hit year-ago period to $407.2 million and “surpassed the second quarter of 2019,” when it had recorded $405.1 million, the company said. Core ad revenue, which is adjusted for political and advocacy ads, rose 70 percent. Media networks unit ad revenue increased 66 percent, or 63 percent when looking at core results. “The increase in media networks core advertising revenue was due to higher ad revenue driven by new brand activations, strong scatter volume and pricing, growth in previously low volume accounts, two major soccer tournaments, and improvements in the auto, retail, and beverage sectors, which are recovering from the negative impacts of COVID-19,” the company said. Said Davis: “This quarter marks another period o...
How J Balvin Shed His Superstar Exterior to Show ‘José’ Underneath for New Miller Lite Campaign
“It’s really cool, this collaboration with a brand as respected and well known as Miller Lite,” J Balvin tells Billboard of the experience. “My brand is all about love and good energy and music. It’s a cool collaboration. We wanted to elevate the can and make it more fun so that you want to have it and collect it.” “Every color brings some type of energy,” he adds of the can’s brightly colored design. “Neon colors make you really want to grab the can and see the details. Also you want to drink it!” Most importantly, the Miller Lite collaboration allows fans to get a peek behind the curtain of his dynamic on-stage persona and see the real José, a regular guy who loves his friends and family like the rest of us. “I’m tryin...
