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The opening track of Young Miko’s debut album, -att., is aptly titled “Rookie of the Year,” which is coincidentally the award Young Miko received at Billboard’s Women In Music event in March. However, this isn’t your run-of-the-mill, bragaddoccio rap opus intro. Opening with a man’s voice – Miko’s father speaking to her when she was […]
Spicy wings can be la tortura. Shakira found that out for herself when joining Sean Evans on his Hot Ones web series Thursday (April 4), where the pop star fought her way through painfully hot sauces while opening up about her older music — including what makes her cringe when listening to it now.
When asked by Evans which aspects of her earlier songs make her “wince” now that she’s nearly 30 years into her career, Shakira replied, “so many things.” “I think I used to overdo the cries in my voice,” she continued, before replicating her old style: “‘Lo de lo de lo de’ — it’s too much. I think I was exaggerated. Too much, Shakira.”
“I noticed that after my pregnancies, my voice got thicker, more rounded, more full,” she added. “My choices are more mature. I have evolved as a woman, as a person. My intellect has evolved.”
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Soon afterward, the “She Wolf” singer tasted a hot sauce that was so intense, she had to submerge her tongue in a glass of milk for several seconds. “I feel like I’m going to throw up,” she said, her eyes intermittently welling up with tears.
Luckily, she rallied, going on to reveal which of her songs she’s most likely to hear fans shout at her in public: “Hips Don’t Lie.”
“‘Shakira! Do your hips lie?’” she mimicked. “I’m like, ‘I have other songs, you know.’”
The new episode comes a couple weeks after the superstar dropped her new album Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran, which recently debuted at No. 13 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Top Latin Albums chart. It features collaborations with Cardi B, Bizarrap, Rauw Alejandro, Karol G and more.
Watch Shakira’s Hot Ones episode above.
Shakira soars in at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart (dated April 6) while the set’s “Puntería,” with Cardi B, bounds in at No. 3 on Hot Latin Songs. Plus, two other tracks launch in the latter list’s top 10.
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First up is “La People II” by Peso Pluma, Tito Double P and Joel De La P, new at No. 2 on the multi-metric chart. The tripartite collab, released March 21 through Double P Records, traces its high entrance to strong streaming activity. During the March 22-28 tracking week, it generated 9.1 million official streams in the U.S., according to Luminate. The sum yields a No. 2 debut on Latin Streaming Songs, notably becoming Peso Pluma’s 18th top 10, the most for any core regional Mexican music act.
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Tito Double P and Joel De La P each score their first Hot Latin Songs top 10. Both regional Mexican newcomers notched their first entry on the tally with the No. 35-peaking “Dembow Bélico,” with Luis R Conriquez, in July 2023. Tito Double P previously came closest to the top 10 through the new single’s prequel — likewise with Peso Pluma, as “La People” reached a No. 12 high last December.
Further, “La People II” captures the highest Hot Latin Songs debut in 2024 for a regional Mexican song by artists who primarily record in the genre, and the topmost such start since Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola” also premiered at No. 2 in April 2023. In between, last August, Karol G’s “Mi Ex Tenía Razón” became her first regional Mexican-focused No. 1, among eight total.
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At No. 4 on Hot Latin Songs, Xavi snags his third top 10 with “Corazón de Piedra.” The romantic sierreño, released March 22, also arrives at No. 3 on Latin Streaming Songs with 8.3 million official U.S. streams. Xavi totals three installments in the Hot Latin Songs top 10, as “La Diabla” holds strong for a 13th week No. 1 – the most this year and the seventh-most this decade – and “La Víctima” dips 3-7, after reaching No. 2.
All three debuts in the Hot Latin Songs top 10 also enter the all-genre Billboard Hot 100: “La People II” at No. 69, becoming the first entry on the chart for Tito Double P and Joel De La P; “Puntería,” at No. 72, as Shakira has now debuted songs on the Hot 100 in four consecutive years (eight tracks since 2021) for the first time, dating to her first appearance in 2001; and “Corazón de Piedra” at No. 73, giving Xavi his third and highest start.
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Deorro, Farruko, Gabito Ballesteros, Jay Wheeler, Justin Quiles, Peso Pluma and Yng Lvcas are set to perform at the 2024 Latin American Music Awards.
TelevisaUnivision announced its first round of performers on Thursday (Apr. 4) for the upcoming ceremony, which will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas via Univision, UNIMÁS, Galavision and ViX on Thursday, April 25, at 7 p.m. ET.
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Peso Pluma will return to the Latin AMAs stage, where he made his first televised performance at the ceremony last year. The Guadalajara native is one of the most nominated artists of the night with 12 entries, including artist of the year, new artist of the year, song of the year (“Ella Baila Sola” with Eslabon Armado) and best album – regional Mexican (Génesis), among others. To see the complete list of nominees, click here.
Música mexicana star Gabito Ballesteros is expected to perform his hit “Lou Lou” and “El Boss” on national television for the first time. The singer has two nominations: new artist of the year and best regional Mexican artist.
Farruko, who is nominated for best song – pop (“Pasa_je_ro”), will perform his latest song, “Confía,” for the first time on TV, and Jay Wheeler will celebrate his upcoming release Música Buena Para Días Malos.
Yng Lvcas — who earned three nods: new artist of the year, collaboration of the year (“La Bebe Remix” with Peso Pluma) and best album – urban (LPM (La Perreo Mixtape)) — will sing “Jimmy Choo.” Meanwhile, DJ/producer Deorro and Justin Quiles will also take the stage.
Co-hosted by Thalía, Alejandra Espinoza and Carlos Ponce, this year’s awards ceremony will celebrate the theme “We Speak Música.” For the latest news, visit LatinAMAs.com.
Florentino Primera, of the iconic Venezuelan brother duo Servando y Florentino, has signed a global publishing and neighboring rights deal with peermusic Publishing and peermusic Neighboring Rights, Billboard has learned.
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The agreement comes on the heels of Primera — who started his career alongside his brother in the 90s kids salsa group Salserín — appearing onstage at the Monumental Simón Bolívar de La Rinconada Stadium with Karol G on March 22. The Colombian star brought out the siblings as surprise guests during her stadium show in Caracas, Venezuela where they performed “De Sol a Sol.” Primera is also working on his upcoming new album.
“Writing songs has become one of the most fulfilling things in my life,” Primera said in a statement. “To be able to do it in company of some of the biggest names in salsa music, with some of the greatest to ever do it, is a dream come true. I’m honored to officially become a part of their family.”
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After branching out from Salserín, the brothers formed the duo that achieved six entries on Hot Latin Songs, including their No. 1 hit “Una Fan Enamorada” in 1998, part of their debut album Los Primera.
After a successful run in the 90s, the duo had a comeback in 2021 with two streaming concerts that marked their return to music. That year, they also released “Los Cachos” with Guaynaa. Meanwhile, Florentino also has songwriting credits in Marc Anthony’s “El Que Te Amaba,” part of his Grammy-winning album Pa’lla Voy.
“We are thrilled to welcome Florentino to the peermusic family and to represent his works as part of the iconic duo Servando y Florentino including the new music that is to come, as well as a performer on part of the peermusic Neighboring Rights family,” said Julio Bagué, vice president Latin division east coast and Puerto Rico at peermusic. “We are so impressed with his trajectory as both a songwriter and performer, and his commitment to the Latin music genre. Everyone at peermusic is beyond honored that he has chosen us to represent him.”
According to a press release, the deal was negotiated by Matthew Limones, founder of Prediction Enterprises, a rights management and business development firm, and and Nicolas Gonzalez, the company’s chief operations officer.
“This is exactly what I envisioned for a star client of ours. To find a home that we know understands his trajectory and can help guide him into the next chapter of his iconic career,” Limones noted. Gonzalez added, “We are so happy for Florentino and his future success at Peer. We know he will continue to make an impact in the genre with a great team.”
Speculations about Bizarrap and Natanael Cano collaborating on new music began circulating when the Argentine hitmaker took to Instagram on March 27 to wish the Mexican corridos tumbados pioneer a happy birthday. “Feliz cumpleaños, compa (happy birthday, friend),” he wrote, not necessarily hinting at anything in the works between the pair but fans flooded the comments section with rumors that Cano would be his next music session collaborator.
It turns out, they were right. A few days later, Biza and Cano confirmed “BZRP Music Session #59” on their social media channels. On Wednesday (April 3), the two-song project officially dropped and it’s as explosive and raw as previous music sessions recorded by the likes of Residente, Arcángel and Young Miko.
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It’s a collaboration that’s been in the making since 2021. According to a press release, “#59” was created following a “spontaneous” Miami meeting between the two artists in 2021, and is powered by Bizarrap’s innovative Argentine trap. “Now that they know we’re on top, they think we haven’t struggled,” spits Cano in the first track, or chapter one, also being referred to as “Endiamantado.”
Chapter two, or the second song from this release titled “Entre las de 20,” fuses Cano’s corrido tumbado hybrid with synthesizers and Bizarrap’s signature style. Kicking off with his prickly guitars, Cano sings about outgrowing a relationship; he’s on to bigger and better things. “There’s no trace of what you knew about me/ I told her we broke up, I don’t have time to spend. But I do have money to throw away.”
It’s not the first time Bizarrap teams up with a música mexicana artist. Last summer, Bizarrap tapped Peso Pluma for “BZRP Music Sessions #55,” which peaked at No. 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart (dated June 17).
Cano’s session with Bizarrap follows team-ups with Milo J, Rauw Alejandro and Shakira, the latter being Bizarrap’s most consequential session to date. The dis track broke a handful of Guinness World Records and, when it dropped, held the title for most streamed Latin track on Spotify in 24 hours (14.4 million streams) and most viewed Latin track on YouTube in 24 hours (63 million views). It also won song of the year at the Latin Grammys.
Watch the Bizarrap’s “BZRP Music Session #59” with Natanael Cano above.
Chilean newcomers FloyyMenor and Cris MJ are behind “Gata Only”— the latest trend on TikTok with two official sounds collectively garnering more than two million video creations on the app. Its viral success has also skyrocketed the track to No. 6 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart, becoming the first time a Chilean artist enters the top 10 in 25 years.
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This week’s biggest gains in performance (jumping 10 to 6 after five weeks on the chart) and also placing No. 98 on the all-genre Hot 100 chart, the punchy reggaeton finds the two rising acts, originally from La Serena (located on the coast of Chile), singing about all the things they will do to the girl they like.
“I was performing some shows in another region of the country when I wrote this song,” FloyyMenor tells Billboard of the track he released on his own eight months ago. “I knew it was going to be a hit, and it feels amazing that people are supporting it.”
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In February, Cris MJ—who comes on the heels of his massive banger “Una Noche en Medellín,” which also counts with a Karol G and Ryan Castro-assisted remix—was captivated by the local boom “Gata Only” was having that he decided to jump on the track.
“His flow was similar to mine,” he notes. “I decided to support him and do the song with him. I worked on [a new version of] the track in my house. Gave it all my love. We did a new music video, we mixed it. I added second voices. He was very excited.”
“Gata Only” marks the first time any Chilean artist enters the Top 10 on the Hot Latin Songs chart since La Ley and Ednita Nazario’s “Tu Sabes Bien” peaked at No. 8 in 1999. Prior, it was Myriam Hernández’s “Huele a Peligro,” which peaked at No. 5 in 1998.
“For us, this is very important. It’s a pride for all Latinos to be on that chart,” Cris MJ expresses. “In fact, before we released the song, I knew it was going to be a global hit. I’m proud because it’s not only helping my career but also the one of my colleague.”
Below, learn more about FloyyMenor and Cris MJ:
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Meet Cris MJ
In 2018, the artist born Christopher Andres Alvarez Garcia began uploading Spanish covers of some of his favorite English rap and trap songs on social media. A self-taught artist, he filmed his own music videos on his iPhone and uploaded his own music on the platforms, but it wasn’t until 2020 that he moved from La Serena to the capital, Santiago, to pursue his music career. A fan of artists such as Lil’ Baby, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, Daddy Yankee, Anuel AA, Ñengo Flow, and Jory Boy, Cris MJ can navigate from rap to reggaeton with ease. In the past four years, the now 22-year-old artist has won the respect of the streets and the barrio, and of renowned acts such as Karol G and Ryan Castro, who jumped on the remix of his hit “Una Noche en Medellín.” Cris first performed the song live with Karol during her Viña del Mar set last year. He’s currently making the rounds with his sophomore studio album Partyson.
Meet FloyyMenor
Also inspired by the trap movement and artists such as Anuel AA, Travis Scott, and Bryant Myers, Floyy—whose artistic name is inspired by boxing legend Floyd Mayweather—is an 18-year-old artist who began making his own music when he was only 15. As a teen, he doubted releasing his tracks for the fear of what others might think and say. But it wasn’t until 2023 that he unleashed all his creations including songs such as “Por Ti Jalo Gatillo,” “gabanna,” “pa la europa,” “un star,” and “Llegamos,” to name a few. His dream is to one day attend (and be a finalist) at the Billboard Latin Music Awards, but for now, he’s working on a lot of new music and an album to, primarily, support his family. “The urban movement in Chile right now is very strong, and we have to pay attention. There is a lot of talent,” he says.
Jesús López, chairman/CEO of Universal Music Latin America and Iberian Peninsula, has received a special honor from the King and Queen of Spain. On Wednesday (April 3), the music executive received the Gold Medal for Merit in the Fine Arts — an award that recognizes individuals and entities who have “excelled” in the field of […]
Expectations are growing as the 68th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, scheduled for May 11, approaches. This year, Spain will be represented by the duo Nebulossa, formed by singer María “Mery” Bas, 55, and keyboardist and producer Mark Dasousa, 47.
Owners of an electro-pop project with an ’80s touch, Nebulossa has stood out from the start for its unique style, releasing several singles and an album, Poliédrica De Mí — home to songs such as “Anoche,” “Glam” and “Armada Roja” — with which they have been able to tour stages all over Spain.
Although their music career began in 2018, their union as a couple goes back more than two decades, during which time they have formed a solid family with two children and have undertaken other business projects. Specifically, Mark stands out as a recognized producer in the Valencian alternative scene through his company Atomic Studio, while Mery runs an aesthetic beauty clinic that she inherited from her mother.
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Since their victory at Benidorm Fest 2024, where they won over the audience with their song “Zorra,” Nebulossa’s rise has been meteoric. The duo never expected to find themselves representing Spain at Eurovision when they started out. However, fate had other plans for them. In fact, Mery submitted the candidacy to Benidorm Fest without telling Mark: “I thought it was a good opportunity, a way to make ourselves known, but I didn’t think that everything that has happened would happen,” she tells Billboard Español.
After their victory at the Benidorm Fest, an unexpected controversy arose around the title of “Zorra,” as many felt that it was inappropriate for Eurovision (zorra in Spanish slang roughly translates to slut). However, María Eizaguirre, director of communication of RTVE (the Spanish radio and television corporation), counters that the song is in accordance with the current regulations — and, in addition, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has given it its approval.
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The success of “Zorra” speaks for itself. In a period of almost three months since its release on December 15, 2023, it reached more than 10 million plays on Spotify. “It is very big what is happening with ‘Zorra’ and the controversy is behind us. We are slightly on the margins with the networks and we have been focused on what we had to be; we have not been affected almost at all by the controversy around the song,” adds Mery.
“The song comes from an experience, it’s an emotion that Mery had inside that she wanted to get out, so people got the message and liked it,” adds Mark. “Our intention was simply that, there was no premeditation. When we were selected we decided to go with it and have fun; we still have the same attitude. We are enjoying this, we are of an age now, which is something the song also talks about, ageism, and we take things differently. Everyone is free to have their own opinion.”
Thanks to the success of “Zorra,” Nebulossa teamed up with Gloria Trevi for a new remix of the song that they recorded in Miami and premiered on March 15 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, in front of 6,000 people, closing the Mexican artist’s show. “The anecdote is incredible, because María tells us: ‘I have managed to get Gloria Trevi to come and record the song tomorrow,’” Mark recalls. “So from one day to the next we set to work to find a studio, Gloria lent herself to this and came, something that was very cosmic, very magical; everything aligned. And so one thing led to another. Then, when we were proposed to go to Radio City Music Hall, we didn’t have to think about it for more than two seconds, obviously.”
Gloria Trevi and Nebulossa perform at New York’s Radio City Music Hall on March 15, 2024.
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As the Eurovision 2024 date approaches, Nebulossa is preparing to face its biggest challenge yet. With “Zorra” as its introduction letter, the duo is ready to conquer the stage in Malmö, Sweden, and bring their music to international audiences. Throughout April, the pair will travel to London, Amsterdam, Stockholm and Rome as part of the official pre-Eurovision festivities, to which they are eager to see the public’s response. But first, they will pass through Madrid and Barcelona, aware that “it is a tour that many emerging artists would like to live, especially with the people’s acceptance,” says Mark.
Regardless of the competition’s outcome, the duo from Alicante, Spain is grateful for the experience. “We already feel like the winners of hearts of so many people who have told us that they identify with our message. I think the song itself is already a winner,” Mery reflects. Mark adds, “Whatever position we finish in, we would like it to be the best, especially for all the people who are putting their enthusiasm in this, both from RTVE and the audience. We are happy. If we land in a good position, even better, if not, nothing will tarnish us.”
With a steadily growing fan base, they are both ready to continue captivating audiences with their music and unmistakable style. While they have concerts and festivals already booked for the upcoming months, Nebulossa is also poised to drop their EP, Virturrosismo, containing new songs that they had planned to release before Benidorm Fest. But for now, all the focus is on the May 11th date in Malmö.
Shakira has earned yet another No. 1 hit on the Latin Pop Airplay chart after her Cardi B-assisted “Puntería” debuted at the top of the tally this week. Part of Shak’s latest album, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran, the feel-good pop song with flirty lyrics finds the two artists singing about a man who’s not […]