Latin
Fans Pick J Balvin’s ‘Azul’ Animated Video as This Week’s Favorite New Music
The blue-hued animated video for J Balvin‘s sensual reggaeton song “Azul” has topped this week’s new music poll. In the poll, published Friday (June 12) on Billboard, music fans voted for the Colin Tilley-directed video, which tells the story of how Balvin is trying to move on from a woman he’s crushing on. The video brought in 24% of the vote. “Azul” is from Balvin’s latest album, Colores, and follows other Tilley-directed videos for “Blanco,” “Morado,” “Rojo,” “Amarillo,” “Gris,” “Verde,” and “Rosado.” “‘Azul’ is one of the most ridiculous ideas I’ve probably ever had,” Tilley previously told Billboard. Coming in second place with 22% of the vote was Ungodly Hour, the new album from Beyonce proteges Chloe x Halle. 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj‘s ...
5 Uplifting Moments in Latin Music This Week (June 13)
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: A message from Becky G: The “They Ain’t Ready” singer took to social media to just check in on her fans earlier this week. The quick check-in comes after Becky G has been vocal on social media about her solidarity with the black lives movement and amid national outrage over systemic racism and police brutality. “I just wanted to check in on you guys and se how you’re all doing,” she starts the video. “And to tell you guys that I love you and I pray for you every single day for every single one of you and your families. ...
Bad Bunny Speaks Out in Support of Blacks Lives Matter: ‘Forgive My Silence’
After going radio silent for a few weeks after he shared “bye, I left” on social media May 19, Bad Bunny has broken his silence and spoken out in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In a poignant statement titled “Forgive Me” published in TIME magazine, the chart-topping artist asks his fans to forgive him for not speaking out sooner but, “I can’t even believe this is still happening. Maybe it’s because I’ve always seen people’s hearts and, in my house, I was always taught that we are all the same regardless of race, religion and surname; that we are all brothers/sisters. I SWEAR I don’t feel well, and I don’t think I can express myself properly.” Amid national outrage and protests following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who was...
Gloria Estefan’s New ‘Cuando Hay Amor’ is a ‘Celebration of Love:’ Watch
Gloria Estefan’s new single was originally slated for a fall 2019 release. Lucky for us, it comes today (June 12) at a time when the song, and its title, are sorely needed. “Cuando hay amor” (When There’s Love) is a celebration of love set to the beat of Brazilian and Colombian drums. The video, shot in Salvador Bahia, features Estefan dancing a samba de roda – a traditional Afro-Brazilian dance — surrounded by Bahian women of all ages. “We wanted to highlight the movements and singing of the beautiful Bahianas who are important historical representatives of the Samba culture,” says Estefan. “I felt we need to put some love vibes out in the universe right now,” she added about the timing of the release. “We need some alegría, we need some joy. It’s very unifying. I really wanted this...
LAMC 2020: Juanes Gets Real, Talks Creating Music During a Pandemic
Juanes was in Colombia, ready to perform for his fans at a sold-out Bogota show when the coronavirus outbreak caused businesses to close, concerts to cancel and airports to stop operating. Since March 13, he’s been hunkered down in Miami with his family, reorganizing and trying to understand the new reality. “My values and priorities are different now,” he said to NPR’s alt. Latino Felix Contreras during the Latin Alternative Music Conference on Wednesday (June 10). “It changed me and changed the way I’m going to create music in the future.” In his latest studio album, Más Futuro Que Pasado, released before the pandemic, the Colombian artist experimented with different sounds. At that time, he was certain of the path he wanted to take his music and lyrics. But because of quarantine a...
This DJ Snake Track Reached a Billion Plays on Spotify
DJ Snake has hit the billion streams mark on Spotify, again, with his smash “Taki Taki.” The slinky bilingual hit, featuring a no scrubs lineup of Cardi B, Selena Gomez and Ozuna, was the party starter of 2018 and has kept on racking up major plays since its release nearly two years ago. This is the third time the French phenom has reached a billion streams on Spotify. His era-defining Major Lazer collaboration “Lean On” became the platform’s most streamed song of all time just eight months after its March 2015 release, with 526 million streams. (Five years later, “Lean On” is now the platform’s 18th most streamed track of all time, with a cool 1.359 billion plays.) Then, in October of 2018, Snake again made Spotify history by becoming the fifth art...
Anuel AA’s ‘Emmanuel’ Debuts at No. 1 on Top Latin Albums & Latin Rhythm Albums Charts
“I feel just like Kobe when he won his second championship.” Anuel AA secures his second No. 1 debut on both the Top Latin Albums and the Latin Rhythm Albums charts as Emmanuel bows atop the June 16-dated surveys. His sophomore album dethrones Bad Bunny’s YHLQMDLG. “I feel blessed!” Anuel tells Billboard. “Many people ask me what I would’ve said had the album not reached No. 1. We will never know… I feel blessed, just like Kobe when he won his second championship. Grateful to all my fans, I love you with my life.” Emmanuel arrives with 39,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending June 4, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. Of Emmanuel’s starting count, 3,000 were in album sales and the bulk of the remainder attributed to streams. The Top Latin Albums chart ranks the most ...
‘Why I Protest’: Snow Tha Product on Why She Marches in Solidarity With Black Lives Matter
People across the country and around the world have taken the streets to protest since late May, demanding justice for George Floyd and other black citizens who have died in the hands of police. Marching in solidarity with the black community and fighting against institutional racism, Mexican-American rapper Snow Tha Product (real name: Claudia Feliciano) is among the thousands of people who are chanting “black lives matter.” “We represent a culture that has our own struggles, and me as a Mexican queer woman, I definitely have plenty struggles tacked on to my career,” Snow tells Billboard. “But this is about all of us. This is about inequality. Black and brown unity is very important.” The California-born “Bilingue” singer has also ...
CNCO Brings ‘Honey Boo,’ ‘Reggaeton Lento’ & More to ‘Dear Class of 2020′ Party
CNCO got graduates dancing at home with their party-ready mix Sunday night (June 7). The Latin pop boy band — Christopher, Erick, Zabiel, Richard and Joel — synchronized their own moves, in separate video frames, as they performed “Honey Boo,” “Hey DJ” and “Reggaetón Lento” remotely during the after party following the “Dear Class of 2020” YouTube Originals graduation ceremony. Earlier in the evening, in the midst of the actual ceremony, they also popped in to teach this year’s grads how to say “Congratulations to the class of 2020” in Spanish. The virtual graduation, which started with Lizzo‘s powerhouse flute performance and was chock-full of all-star commencement speeches from the likes of Bara...
Raymix Comes Out as Gay: ‘I Am Free & Happier Than Ever’
Electrocumbia pioneer Raymix (real name: Edmundo Gómez Moreno) took to social media to come out as a gay to his fans opening up for the first time about his sexuality. In a five-minute video posted on his YouTube channel today (June 5), the “Oye Mujer” singer begins his heartfelt message acknowledging the vulnerable moment we’re living in today with the COVID-19 pandemic and cases of racism and discrimination, and then goes on to make the announcement. “Can you believe that in 2020, there are people in the industry who told me not to do this video? That I should stay quiet and pretend to be the person I am not because I wouldn’t be successful. They told me that the audience is not ready for an artist who sings cumbia or regional Mexican music [to come out as g...
How to Watch YouTube Originals’ ‘Dear Class of 2020′ All-Star Commencement
YouTube Originals’ “Dear Class of 2020” commencement ceremony, featuring Barack and Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, BTS, Lady Gaga, Maluma and more, will officially commence Sunday, June 7 at 3:00 p.m. ET. The four-hour virtual graduation, which was pushed back a day to honor George Floyd’s memorial service, will open with Lizzo and the New York Philharmonic performing “Pomp and Circumstance” and remarks from Alicia Keys. At the end of the celebration, Katy Perry will lead the graduates in the monumental tassel turn. Check out Sunday’s full line-up of commencement speakers, performers, featured celebrity guests and YouTube creators here. Viewers can attend the virtual ceremony by watching the livestream on the YouTube Originals channel and the L...
First Stream Latin: New Music by Natti Natasha, Bebe, Ed Maverick & More
“First Stream Latin” is a compilation of the best new Latin songs, albums and videos recommended by the Billboard Latin editors. Check out this week’s picks below. Natti Natasha – “Que Mal Te Fue” (Pina Records) After teasing fans on social media, Natti Natasha dropped her first single born during quarantine called “Que Mal Te Fue” (What Went Wrong) released under Pina Records. With a catchy reggaeton beat and Natti’s flirtatious vocals, the song is about a woman who’s questioning her ex for wanting to come back into her life. “What happened, what happened? / You tried being with another girl but it didn’t work out / What happened? / Your plans didn’t work out,” the Dominican urbana sings. In a homemade music video, Natti is seen splashing around in the pool as she ...
