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Last week, during Spanish Broadcasting System’s third quarter earnings call, Albert Rodriguez, the company’s president and COO, announced that he was leaving his post. While the announcement came as a surprise, Rodríguez says that, after 25 years at SBS, he is leaving in good terms.
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“I’m going to stay on as a consultant during the transitioning period,” he told Billboard in his only interview following his announcement. “We’re leaving in excellent terms and I’m very appreciative to Raul [Alarcón],” he added, referring to the chairman and CEO of the company, to whom Rodríguez directly reported to.
Rodriguez is still evaluating his future plans, but will likely launch his own consulting company.
SBS is the formidable Latin media company whose suite of radio stations in the top markets in the U.S. include La Mega in New York, the most-listened to Spanish language radio station in the country, according to Nielsen. SBS also operates the AIRE Radio Networks, a national radio platform of over 300 affiliated stations.
Rodríguez joined the company 25 years ago, initially as a general salesperson, and climbed the ranks. In June, 2021, he was named president, making it the first time in 36 years that the company named a new president, and first time it was led by a non-family member.
Working with Raúl Alarcón, who he calls a “beacon” of the Hispanic community, was a major highlight during his long tenure at SBS.
“The team we built is like family [to me]. We have performed better than all our industry peers,” says Rodríguez. A point of major pride, he says, was the launch of the Aire network, “which has grown immensely in terms of revenue and content and distribution.”
“We served very passionately the Hispanic voice in America,” adds Rodríguez of SBS, noting that despite Hispanics making up 20% of the total U.S. population, they represent only 6% of the U.S. market’s total advertising budget for 2022, according to the Hispanic Marketing Council. Moving forward, he says, “I want to be a leader in developing and increasing share to the multicultural space.”
Joaquina has signed a management deal with Global Talent Services (GTS), Billboard can exclusively announce today (Dec. 11). The new partnership will strengthen the Venezuelan singer-songwriter’s growth and amplify her artistic potential, and she will be overseen by manager Paula Kaminsky and co-manager Camila Canabal.
“I’m very grateful to count on a team that believes in me and my project, but most importantly, for believing in my songs and what I have to say in them,” the 19-year-old newcomer (born Joaquina Blavia Canabal) said in a press statement. “I’m very excited for this next stage of my career.”
Kaminsky added: “We are very happy and grateful that Joaquina, who is a talented singer-songwriter and performer and someone who holistically embodies the feelings of her generation, has placed her trust in GTS to further develop her career, and together, guide her in achieving her dreams of taking her art to the whole world.”
The exclusive news comes on the heels of Joaquina winning the coveted best new artist award at the 2023 Latin Grammys in Seville, Spain, where she was also nominated for best singer-songwriter album for her debut EP, Los Mejores Años.
Joaquina poses with the award for Best New Artist in the media center for The 24th Annual Latin Grammy Awards at FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre on Nov. 16, 2023 in Seville, Spain.
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Born in Caracas but raised in Miami, the well-rounded rising star—who took music, theater, and ballet lessons—is inspired by artists such as Avril Lavigne, and pens songs about teenage angst as heard in her notable track “Los Mejores Años.”
“Although I am very extroverted and I love to socialize, I am also very private and it’s difficult for me to talk about my fears, my thoughts, and ‘Los Mejores Años’ was a big relief song for me,” she previously told Billboard. “It helped me a lot to understand many things I was feeling in a time of normal transition in everyone’s life. It’s a bit that concept of feeling the fear of growing up for the first time in your life.”
Before winning best new artist, Joaquina formed part of the first class of graduates from producer Julio Reyes Copello’s Art House Academy, signed a record deal with Universal Music Latin, and was the opening act for artists such as Alejandro Sanz and Fonseca. She was also spotlighted as Billboard’s Latin Artist on the Rise in November.
The sound that dominated popular Spanish-language music in 2023 wasn’t represented at all on the Billboard Hot 100 until two years ago, when Gera MX and Christian Nodal’s country-tinged “Botella Tras Botella” debuted at No. 60 and made history as the first regional Mexican song on the chart. Since then, the genre’s presence on the ranking has exploded as a new crop of stars has evolved the music’s sound and look, borrowing from hip-hop, trap and rap to build on its traditional instruments of guitar, accordion and more. As a result, these artists have nurtured a new generation of fans for a genre with foundations that date back over a century.
This year, more than 35 regional Mexican tracks have entered the Hot 100, highlighted by Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s blockbuster smash, “Ella Baila Sola,” which also made history when it reached the chart’s top five. This record year for regional Mexican music, or música Mexicana, has been powered by not only superstar collaborations — like Grupo Frontera’s team-up with Bad Bunny and Fuerza Regida pairing with Marshmello — but also support from major labels eager to partner with the independents that have long dominated the genre. In the first half of 2023 alone, overall consumption of regional Mexican music jumped 42.1%, topping all other genres but K-pop, according to Luminate.
“For decades, Mexican music has played a significant role in Latin music, leaving a profound impact on the global musical landscape,” says Manny Prado, vp of marketing and A&R at Interscope Records. “Finally, it has gained the acknowledgment it deserves.” This year in particular, international collaborations have propelled the sound into uncharted territories, and no other Latin genre has gained the traction of regional Mexican.
Its newfound popularity is rooted in many things, but particularly in its indie support, followed by multinational distribution partnerships with major labels. In June, Fuerza Regida frontman Jesús Ortiz Paz signed a worldwide deal with Cinq Music to distribute his own label, Street Mob Records, which he launched in 2018. The move followed a deal that Fuerza Regida signed with Sony Music Latin last year through a partnership with its indie label, Rancho Humilde. The strategy also worked for Washington state-based sibling trio Yahritza y Su Esencia, which signed to Columbia Records in partnership with Sony Music Latin and its indie Lumbre Music (which had discovered and signed the act eight months prior).
While indies have historically dominated the genre — and continue to do so — such partnerships indicate that alliances will be key to the music’s continued growth in 2024.
“We saw Mexican music grow because artists started to collaborate, and it’s the same thing when companies start joining forces,” says Maria Inés Sánchez, Sony Music Latin’s new vp of West Coast operations. “Major labels like Sony can reach a broader spectrum of the business in general. We have eyes where indies perhaps don’t with offices internationally.”
At the center of the regional Mexican revolution is Peso Pluma, whose raw and raspy vocals and signature sound of punctuated trombones and charchetas — along with a quirky haircut — made him the unwitting face of the genre. After a few collaborations with fellow corrido artists at the beginning of the year, he struck gold when he teamed with Eslabon Armado for “Ella Baila Sola.” Arguably this year’s biggest Latin hit, with 617.3 million on-demand official streams in the United States, it proves how a powerful song can propel a local genre to global recognition, as well as the importance of catering to a broader audience. The two indie artists are stylistically opposites; Peso Pluma is known for his swaggy, attitude-heavy corridos and Eslabon Armado for its romantic sierreño ballads. “Ella Baila Sola” became the first regional Mexican song to dominate the Billboard Global 200 (holding the top slot for six weeks) and is No. 1 on the year-end Hot Latin Songs chart.
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Another head-turning team-up arrived in April, when Bad Bunny joined Tejano act Grupo Frontera for “un x100to,” a cumbia/norteña song that scored a top 10 debut on the Hot 100. It was perhaps a catalyst for other unorthodox collaborations that followed, including Peso Pluma and El Alfa, Grupo Frontera and Manuel Turizo, and Banda MS and Ice Cube.
“The [Mexican] movement is now taking advantage just as reggaetón did” in the early 2000s, says Sergio Lizárraga, founder of indie label Lizos Music and manager of Banda MS. “But in the end, the root is the same, the themes they address are the same — just sung differently.”
Uriel Waizel, the editorial lead for Mexico at Spotify, compares this wave of success to another genre entirely: Afrobeats. “The biggest lesson regional Mexican music has taught is that the ‘traditional’ format had to make concessions to impact the U.S. and global charts,” Waizel says. “Which is what we saw happen with Rema and Selena Gomez [with “Calm Down”]. It’s a great example of music that becomes more digestible for global audiences.”
He cites recent Latin hits like “Qlona” by Karol G and Peso Pluma and “Harley Quinn” by Fuerza Regida and Marshmello as further proof. “After several iterations that have been happening evolutionarily over the past five years,” he says, “música Mexicana has finally found its way into the global market.”
This story originally appeared in the Dec. 9, 2023, issue of Billboard.
From career milestones to new music releases to major announcements and those little important moments, Billboard editors highlight uplifting moments in Latin music. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week.
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Marc Anthony Receives Special Award
This week, Marc Anthony received the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award for being one of the most-streamed artists the company has. “Marc Anthony has been making chart-topping, multilingual Latin, salsa, and pop music for nearly forty years,” said Michael Huppe, President and CEO of SoundExchange in a press statement. “Marc has consistently elevated the genre and is well respected in the industry. It’s an honor to recognize his artistry and achievements with the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award.” The announcement comes on the heels of the Puerto Rican artist also celebrating the 10th annual Maestro Cares Foundation’s Changing Lives, Building Dreams” gala, where Queen Latifah, Eugenio Derbez, and Sam Nazarian were honored for their contributions and charitable work.
Latin Songs Hit A Billion Streams
Two Latin bangers hit one billion streams on Spotify this week. Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola” became the first-ever música Mexicana track to reach this feat on Sunday (Dec. 3), to which Eslabon reacted on Instagram with: “Happy and blessed we woke up today, Sunday, with this, and all thanks to God and you for making it possible for the song to reach a billion.”
Karol G, on the other hand, was awarded with Spotify’s Billions Club plaque during her Mañana Será Bonito Festival in Medellín for her 2022 hit “Provenza.” This is the Colombian’s third track to hit one billion following the Nicki Minaj-assisted “Tusa” and “China” in collaboration with Anuel AA, Daddy Yankee, J Balvin, and Ozuna.
Billboard’s Best Latin Pop Songs
Speaking of “Ella Baila Sola” and “Provenza,” both songs formed part of Billboard’s “50 Best Latin Pop Songs From 2000 to 2023” list, where the Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editor’s rank the ultimate Spanish-language pop songs from Y2K to now. The former ranked at No. 12 and the latter at No. 16. The top five hits on the list are: Son By Four’s “A Puro Dolor” (No. 5), Juan Gabriel’s “Abrázame Muy Fuerte” (No. 4), Café Tacvba’s “Eres” (No. 3), “Bailando” by Enrique Iglesias, Descemer Bueno & Gente de Zona (No. 2), and Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” in collaboration with Daddy Yankee at No. 1. See the complete ranked list here.
Emilia’s Historic Accomplishment
Meanwhile, Emilia is also on a hot streak. This week, not only did the Argentine pop star sell out 10 Dates at Buenos Aires’ Movistar Arena in 10 hours but she made history. Forming part of her .mp3 tour in 2024, Emilia surpassed the previous record held by Luis Miguel, who sold out nine dates in one day at the venue with another date added later. “Having sold out shows in my career is truly special,” the 27-year-old singer who’s making the rounds with her sophomore album told Billboard. “To me it basically means my fans are connecting with my music. I am so thankful. I know I say it all the time, but it goes back to believing in yourself, because dreams do come true if you work for them.”
The concerts are set to take place at the venue on April 6, 7, 19, 20, 21 and 23, and May 3, 29-31 for a collective audience of more than 100,000 fans.
Myke Towers Is Hunting For Talent
In a new national campaign called “Rockstar Energy Presents: Mic Check con Myke Towers,” Rockstar Energy and Towers teamed up to search for the next promising Latin star. The partnership will reward one aspiring act—to be selected by Towers himself—with the opportunity to be an opening act for one of his shows in 2024 and will receive the full-star treatment from Rockstar Energy, which will offer an artist development fund.
“I know all about the heart and relentless determination that it takes to break into the music industry,” the Puerto Rican artist said in a press statement. “I strongly believe in paying it forward to give artists the opportunity to shine and get one step closer to achieving their dreams because I’ve walked the same path to achieve my own.”
“Music is built into the DNA of Rockstar Energy,” added Fabiola Torres, SVP, CMO Energy Portfolio/SVP Hispanic Business Unit in Beverages at PepsiCo. “It is with immense pride that we offer Latin urban artists, who have proven to be a transformative force in the music industry, the right energy to shine in any situation as they grow their career and help turn their dreams into reality.”
The campaign will run until January 23, 2024. See how to participate here.
From Farruko to Kim Richards and Indiomar, here is a list of the 15 best Christian songs in Spanish this year.
This week, Billboard‘s New Music Latin roundup and playlis — curated by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors — feature fresh new releases from artists like Peso Pluma & Anitta, Mike Bahía, Diego Torres, J Balvin and more. Balvin delivers a sentimental reggaeton ballad on “Amigos,” his latest track about pain of dealing with a relationship that became cold. “I went out to look […]
For this year’s update of our ongoing Greatest Pop Star by Year project, Billboard is counting down our staff picks for the top 10 pop stars of 2023 all next week. Before that, a tribute to the artist who crashed the mainstream for the first time in the biggest way this year: Mexico’s rapidly growing superstar Peso Pluma, one of the year’s preeminent global hitmakers.
During his first-ever interview with Billboard back in March, when he was that month’s Latin Artist on the Rise, Peso Pluma expressed determination to not only be a No. 1 artist, but also to globalize música mexicana, taking the decades-old genre to new international heights. “I’m up for the challenge,” the then-23-year-old emerging artist said.
Today, he’s done exactly that. Peso Pluma, undeniably the current face of regional Mexican music, has played a significant role in leading the genre’s seismic growth in the United States and beyond with his corridos, punctuated by his raspy vocals and a more modern sound, powered by guitars and brass instruments. This year alone, he’s placed over 20 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 – highlighted by his blockbuster collab with Eslabon Armado “Ella Baila Sola,” and his album Génesis, which made history when it debuted and peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, the highest ranking for a Mexican music album on the tally.
Since that March interview – when Peso was making waves with “Por Las Noches,” “AMG” with Natanael Cano and Gabito Ballesteros and “PRC” with Cano, all hitting the top 10 on the Hot Latin Songs chart – Peso only doubled down on his global mission and, in a matter of months, had gone from hometown hero to global phenomenon.
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Born Hassan Emilio Kabande Laija in Jalisco, Mexico, Peso Pluma (which translates to “featherweight” in English) came on the U.S. radar with his first hit “El Belicón,” in collaboration with Raúl Vega, which entered the Hot Latin Songs chart in April 2022. Then, he was also performing shows in Mexico to a crowd of approximately 500 people.
That would quickly change for him with 2023. After signing a record deal with Prajin Records in 2022, founded by Mexican American executive George Prajin (also Peso’s manager), Peso was collaborating with artists outside of his genre, which was key in his plan for globalization. He recorded with Colombian hitmaker Ovy on the Drums (“El Hechizo”), Argentine rapper Nicki Nicole (“Por Las Noches Remix”) and Mexican reggaetón artist Yng Lvcas (“La Bebe Remix”), the latter of which peaked at No. 11 on the Hot 100 in April.
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But there was one team-up that marked a before and after in Peso’s year, and maybe for all of 21st century música mexicana: “Ella Baila Sola” with Eslabon Armado. Perhaps this year’s biggest Latin song, “Baila” could’ve been just another viral hit on TikTok, but while it did garner over 5 million creator videos, the dance-ready sierreño song also crossed over to streaming and radio — making history by peaking at No. 4 on the Hot 100, the highest ranking for a regional Mexican song on the tally. It also became the first Mexican music song to dominate the Billboard Global 200 chart (which it did for six weeks), and spent a total of 19 weeks atop the Hot Latin Songs chart. To date, it has 617.3 million on-demand official streams in the United States.
By now, all eyes were on Peso, who was turning anything he touched to gold. He only kept the momentum going when he joined Becky G during her Coachella set in Apri, where the pair performed their duet “Chanel.” Just a week later, they’d do it all over again at the Latin American Music Awards. Shortly after, Peso was New York-bound for a historic television appearance: At the end of April, hebecame the first regional Mexican artist to perform on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where he sang “Ella Baila Sola.”
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It seemed that fans and industry alike couldn’t get enough of Peso, with his signature corridos and quirky mullet-like haircut. He was now being sought after by hitmakers such as Eladio Carrión, El Alfa and producer extraordinaire Bizarrap, with whom he teamed up with for “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 55.” Following the release of the track, Peso became the first artist to ever lead both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. lists simultaneously with different songs, “Ella Baila Sola” and “Vol. 55,” cementing him as one of the premier Spanish-language hitmakers of the moment.
By June, Peso – who was on the road with his first-ever U.S. tour, dubbed La Doble P – was at the summit of música mexicana, which was having a record year. According to Luminate, regional Mexican music consumption in the United States up 42.1% year to date through May 25 – on track with Mexican music’s exponential and global growth over the past five years.
Armed with a hefty stack of hits, Peso could’ve kept on releasing singles throughout 2023, since it was a formula that had worked for him. But he didn’t take the easy way out. On June 29, he unleashed Génesis, his third album, though the new level of anticipation for it made it feel like his debut. The 14-track set only scored more records and more hits for Peso debuting at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 albums chart — the highest rank ever for a música mexicana album on the chart – and placing a historic 25 simultaneous titles on the Hot Latin Songs chart (dated July 8), breaking Bad Bunny’s record of 24.
Peso Pluma’s popularity had broken language and genre barriers, penetrating the American pop mainstream like only a select number of Spanish-language acts have been able to. ASAP Rocky has confirmed a collab with Peso is on the way, Post Malone wore a Peso Pluma t-shirt during one of his shows in Mexico and boxing legend Mike Tyson is a self-declared Peso fan. As a sign of the times, Peso became the first Mexican artist to ever perform on the MTV Video Music Awards in September – performing corridos in a space where regional Mexican music had never previously entered. He was also this year’s Billboard Latin Music Awards big winner, taking home eight awards, and the 24-year-old artist is up for best música mexicana album at the Grammys for Génesis in February.
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After wrapping his first U.S. trek performing 54 shows across the country, Peso returned to his hometown of Guadalajara in November, where he kicked off the Latin American leg of his La Doble P Tour, playing for a crowd of 25,000, a far cry from his days performing for 500 fans. Stateside and back home, Peso was a force to be reckoned with — even after banners signed by a cartel appeared in Tijuana demanding he cancel his show in that city (which he did), he went on to perform massive sold-out shows in key Mexican markets such as Monterrey and Mexico City.
After this breakthrough year, with streaming and touring numbers to back him up and a strong catalog of collabs inside and outside his genre, Peso’s set himself up for international domination — which he already got a taste of late last month when he performed back-to-back sold-out arena shows in Spain, Chile and Argentina. Ending the year as Spotify’s fifth most-streamed artist globally, right after Drake, Peso’s massive year and unlikely success is a momentous win for Mexican music and its artists, proving that this “regional” style of music can indeed be global.
New Music Latin is a compilation of the best new Latin songs and albums recommended by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors. Check out this week’s picks below.
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Peso Pluma & Anitta, “Bellakao” (Doble P Records)
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Continuing his relentless journey to the top to close out the year, Peso Pluma arrives with “Bellakao,” a sweltering reggaetón number that continues to showcase his genre versatility. This time, he pairs up with Anitta for the first time, and together they belt out a duet about feeling intoxicated with each other’s irresistibility. “Everyone wants to get close to me/ But I don’t want anyone/ It’s just that when you move it like that/ The atmosphere gets dangerous,” spits the Brazilian femme fatale. Meanwhile, Peso leads the tongue-twisting “Bellaque-que-que-que-que-que-queo” verbiage to hype up the vibe. The music video was filmed in Madrid, and viewers see the collaborators performing their bellakeo ritual against a dingy, dark backdrop. — ISABELA RAYGOZA
Mike Bahía, “La Depre” (Warner Music México)
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On the heels of his album Contigo being nominated for a 2023 Latin Grammys, Mike Bahía presents “La Depre,” the first preview of what marks his upcoming album. Written by Keityn, the song is short for “the depression,” bringing to light a powerful message about mental health. “Today is one those days that I don’t want to see the sun come out/ I’m not available for anyone/ Don’t invite me to go out because I don’t want to go out,” goes the beginning of the track. Though the lyrics are not quite optimistic, the beat is an inviting merengue-urbano fusion, becoming Bahía’s first experiment in the genre.
“When we don’t feel well and we find ourselves battling against our own mind, it can be easy to feel different, alone and isolated from those around us,” Bahía says in a statement. “But ‘La Depre’ is an important reminder for listeners that it’s okay to not always feel okay and that they don’t have to fight their battles alone. Put simply, it’s telling them: ‘We are here for you,’” — JESSICA ROIZ
Ozuna & El Rubio Acordeón, “La Propuesta” (Aura Music/Sony Music Latin)
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Ozuna’s latest collaboration with El Rubio Acordeón takes 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 tumbara, and accordion. This duet is full of flavor and carries a sweet message of love in its lyrics: “What would you say if I picked you up in my car? And we danced a little merengue, dancing it very close,” Ozuna recites in the chorus. — INGRID FAJARDO
Pesado & Alejandra Guzmán, “Ojalá Te Mueras” (Warner Music Latina)
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Norteño music merges with rock in a new version of Grupo Pesado’s provocative song from 2004 “Ojalá Te Mueras” (I Hope You Die), released this week in collaboration with Mexican rocker Alejandra Guzmán. With lyrics like “I hope you pay dearly for having deceived me” and “I hope your whole world is empty,” the spiteful track takes on a new twist with the hoarse and powerful voice of Guzmán, who appears alongside the emblematic band in a fun music video — where she carries a snake, a la Britney Spears at the 2001 VMAs. It is, so to speak, a painful delight. — SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS
Diego Torres, Angela Torres & Benja Torres, “Las Leyes de la Vida” (Sony Music Latin)
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Performed by Diego Torres, and his nephews Ángela and Benja Torres, “Las Leyes de la Vida” (“The Laws of Life”) is an emotional reflection on the passage of time and the essence of life. The song begins with a melancholy Spanish guitar that opens the doors for a flamenco pop groove — and in the chorus, a vocal symphony full of nostalgia unites the three voices. The lyrics talk about how time runs out and memories fade, highlighting the importance of family love and friendship. This Christmas season, the Torres family motivates us to treasure every moment, with awareness about the transience and beauty of life. — LUISA CALLE
Listen to more new Latin music recommendations in the playlist below:
Academy Award nominee Antonio Banderas is a singing villain in Journey to Bethlehem, a Christmas musical adventure about the Nativity story in which he plays Herod, King of Judea. In theaters since Nov. 10, the movie is also available at home starting Friday (Dec. 8), just in time for Christmas. Directed by Glee executive music […]
When Karol G decided to go on a stadium tour, she recalls, someone asked her how prepared she was. “‘Beyoncé is doing stadiums. Taylor Swift is doing stadiums. Are you ready?’ And I answered, ‘No, today I’m not. But I will be ready, because it depends on me.’”
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Six months later, Karol G, the subject of this week’s Billboard cover story, was onstage in a phenomenally quick turnaround, and, most importantly, an astoundingly successful one. By year-end, she was the highest grossing Latin artist of 2023 according to Billboard Boxscore.
But planning to perform in stadiums and actually performing are two very different things. For Karol, it starts with the basic love of performance. “The stage is my happiest place,” she tells Billboard. “It’s not like I’m always happy and perfect when I go onstage. But when I go out, there’s nothing the energy in that place can’t cure.”
When it came time to plan her Mañana Será Bonito Tour, the singer says that she and her team knew it was time to take on bigger audiences. “It was something we discussed a lot internally,” she says. “I came from doing the ‘Bichota’ tour, then $trip Love tour. Everyone said, ‘You have to let people breathe. A lot of artists are touring.’ Then, I released Mañana será bonito. This album, I feel, got into people’s bodies, their veins, and it touched something in them. I had never felt as much love from my fans as with this album.”
Playing Mañana live became a mission. The first step in preparing, says Karol, was “proving to myself that I was ready to do it. We had the pressure of knowing Beyoncé and Taylor Swift would be touring at the same time, so it couldn’t look like Karol G was the one who had no business doing a stadium tour. It was a huge personal challenge from how I looked to how I thought.”
Among the challenges was getting physically fit — between changing her diet and exercise routine and getting mentally prepared for the show, Karol says the physical preparation for her show brought out a major change in her.
“It’s spending two hours and 45 minutes in a place that’s five or six times bigger than what you’re used to, singing and dancing, so there was a big physical challenge,” she says. “I had worked out my entire life, my muscles were used to it, so I began to see changes. And the more change I saw, the more I wanted to do!”
However, she says, the hardest challenge was having Mañana será bonito, and Mañana será bonito: Bichota season – two very different albums — coexist in the same show.
“It’s two completely different worlds,” she says. “So, I wrote a mini book [a concept that opens the show] where I explained everything, and I gave it to [the tour designers], and said: ‘This is my story. This is Carolina’s story, and I want her to be a siren.’ And they found the way to make it work.”
Going to a Karol G show is a bit like a religious experience — multiple generations gather together in a collective exercise of letting go that begins hours, even days before a show, when fans decide what to wear, what wig to buy, what signs to take to catch Karol’s attention; she’s known for constantly engaging with fans from the stage, sometimes dropping out of a choreography mid-song for a picture, a kiss, a hello.
“It’s an energy,” Karol says. “After a show, I put on Lana Del Rey’s ‘Summertime Sadness’ and I lie in bed crying thinking how amazing shows are. If you could turn off the light and just see the energy, it would be blinding. The most beautiful thing about my shows is people arrive with the intention to heal. Their intentions are so beautiful that when I go onstage, and all that energy is directed toward me, I feel like a battery that’s recharging, and filling up and sometimes I cry a lot in my shows. I try not to, but my heart feels like it’s going to burst.”
Read the full cover story here.