On June 20, the official first day of summer, Karol G unleashed her first-ever merengue single, “Ai Antes Te Hubiera Conocido” (which translates to “if I would’ve met you before).
Co-produced by Edgar Barrera, Sky Rompiendo, and Karol, the new bop is vibrant, feel-good, and optimistic. Beyond its flirtatious lyrics — about crushing on a man who’s taken — the song embodies Dominican culture.
“I worked on part of ‘Mañana Sera Bonito’ there, and when I need to disconnect from the world and connect with myself I also go there,” she wrote in an Instagram post about the love and respect she has for the Caribbean island. “Its culture, its music, its colors, the hospitality, the energy…everything feels very authentic and special there. Its people have embraced me in a way that fills my heart and inspires me all the time.”
The Colombian artist is not the only reggaetón star to immerse themselves in the tropical genre. In 2022, Bad Bunny surprised fans with “Después de la Playa,” a fast-paced mambo and merengue fusion that was part of his Un Verano Sin Ti album. That same year, Rosalía unleashed “Despechá,” a merengue about feeling heartbroken that had everyone on their feet.
Bad Bunny opened the 2023 Grammy Awards with “Después” alongside a live band, with an amused Taylor Swift seen shimmying her shoulders and swaying her hips in the audience. Meanwhile, “Despechá” recently surpassed one billion streams on Spotify, making Rosalía the first solo Spanish artist to reach the milestone.
Below, check out the reggaetón acts who have dropped their own merengue tunes, presented in alphabetical order.
A full-fledged party track about making post-beach plans, “Después de la Playa” is one of the most experimental tracks on Bad Bunny’s 2022 album Un Verano Sin Ti. The historic set debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, and all 23 tracks entered the top 25 on Billboard‘s Hot Latin Songs chart. “Después de la Playa” debuted at No. 3.
After dipping her toes in the dembow genre, Fariana continues to tap Dominican culture — this time recruiting merengue icons Oro Solido for “El Caballito.” The catchy merengue (produced by Gangsta and Oro Solido’s frontman Raul Acosta) with witty lyrics best captures the Colombian rapper’s effortless and saucy rhymes, aided here by the Dominican group’s signature mambo sound, which has had generations after generations dancing “hasta las 15 de la mañana” (until 3 in the morning).
Marking her second single of the year, following the Tiësto-assisted “Contigo,” “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido” narrates the story of a woman who’s patiently waiting for the guy of her dreams to be single. “What would it have been like if I had met you before?/ Most probably you’d be dancing this song with me, not as friends,” she sings. The track further demonstrates Karol’s ability to experiment outside of the reggaetón realm. She previously tapped into bachata (“El Barco”), corrido tumbado (“200 Copas”), and cumbia (“Mi Ex Tenía Razón”), among other genres.
Maluma’s own tropical “Coco Loco” fuses a sensual merengue rhythm with synth electronic beats and a hook borrowed from Daft Punk’s “Veridis Quo.” The fun song narrates the story of a man who’s crazy over a girl and can’t hold back his feelings anymore. “Wherever you want me/ I’ll give you all my love at once,” he chants in the infectious chorus. The song earned the Colombian artist his 23rd No. 1 on the Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart last year.
Manuel Turizo and Marshmello teamed up for “El Merengue,” an electro-merengue fusion that landed both the Colombian artist and famed DJ at No. 1 on the Billboard Latin Airplay and Tropical Airplay charts (spending 13 weeks atop the latter). “Manuel and I have never met. He just came to the studio and we winged it,” Marshmello previously said to Billboard of the collab. “Nothing was ready. We just sat there and from the ground up made ‘El Merengue’ happen. I never thought I would top a Latin chart.”
In a flirtatious manner, Myke Towers released “La Capi” — a clever way to confess his love for a girl by asking her to take him to the capital of her country. “Take me to the capital/ I want to see your country/ I want to explore with you/ Tell me what we’re going to do,” the Puerto Rican artist chants in the captivating bop. “La Capi” fuses the fast-paced merengue tipico with a hint of bachata, and hit No. 1 on both the Billboard Tropical Airplay and Latin Airplay charts in May.
In 2023, Ozuna recruited El Rubio Acordeón to take us on a musical journey to the Dominican Republic. “La Propuesta” is a typical merengue from the Cibao region, known for its happy and catchy sounds, with a rich mix of güira, tambora and accordion. The lyrics carry a sweet love message: “What would you say if I picked you up in my car?/ And we danced a little merengue, dancing it very close,” Ozuna recites.
Produced by Chris Jedi and Gaby Music, Rosalía’s fusion of electro-merengue and mambo tells the story of a girl who’s hitting the club with her friends to get over a heartbreak. “There are many ways to be Despechá. In this theme it is from the freeness or the craziness, moving without reservations or regrets,” the Spanish artist expressed in a statement — also noting that her mambo tune was inspired by the music of Dominican artists Juan Luis Guerra, Omega and Fefita La Grande. “Despechá” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Tropical Airplay chart in Sept. 2022.
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