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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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Jhayco & Peso Pluma, “Ex-Special” (Universal Music Latin)
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“Ex-Special” — the latest single by Jhayco and Peso Pluma — is meant to be written as a sweet double entendre. While the protagonist of the song, a former lover, still sizzles in the minds of the Puerto Rican and Mexican pair, what’s most captivating about the song is the craftsmanship. It’s led by an electric guitar in the circle-of-fifths, a common strumming style for vintage Mexican music, or corridos for that matter, that’s normally performed acoustically. Then there’s that EDM-leaning transition into a reggaetón thump that instantly tugs at your hip; this, coupled with atmospheric coos flowing by, adds minimal euphoric effects. Jhayco and Pluma exchange gauzy verses as they continue to position themselves as two of Latin music’s most exhilarating acts.
Formerly known as Jhay Cortez, the songwriter/producer has made a name for himself as one of the most sought-after artists of the Latin trap and reggaetón landscape — yet his willingness to experiment with Latin indie and electronic dance set him apart early on. The Puerto Rican hitmaker is also poised to go on a U.S. tour, Vida Rockstar, which kicks off September 28th. — ISABELA RAYGOZA
Mora, ESTRELLA (Rimas Entertainment)
The Puerto Rican singer-songwriter’s new album may be his most eclectic yet, both sonically and thematically. ESTRELLA, 14-track set released on Monday (Aug. 28), finds Mora dabbling in reggaetón, perreo, trap and electronic, featuring a star-studded roster of collaborators — with OGs and newcomers alike, including Arcángel, Yandel, RaiNao, Alvaro Diaz, Dei V and Saiko.
Whether you’re in love, overcoming heartbreak or just want some good escapism music, there’s something for everyone in the album: From the intergalactic romantic opening track “MEDIA LUNA” to the slowed down reflective “DONDE SE APRENDE A QUERER? and the fast-paced, club-ready “LAGUNA” with Arcángel. Putting Mora’s versatility at the forefront, the artist assembled an A-star team of producers for the LP, such as Ovy on the Drums, Sky Rompiendo and MAG. “I would define the album as a combination of all I can musically contribute,” Mora says about ESTRELLA, which you can stream above. — GRISELDA FLORES
Camilo & Diljit Dosanjh, “Palpita” (Sony Music Latin)
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Camilo teams up with Bollywood actor and singer Diljit Dosanjh for this mid-tempo pop single with captivating urban desi elements. In the new track — which talks about how their hearts pound strongly for the person they desire — both artists take turns singing in their respective native languages, with Camilo joining Dosanjh towards the end in a verse in Punjabi.
“I already have your address/ A plane has more brakes than me/ The two of us in the room/ And my heart/ Beats and beats…,” says part of the lyrics in Spanish. “Palpita” is Camilo’s second summer song for Coke Studio after his participation in Jon Batiste’s “Be Who You Are (Real Magic)” along with other international artists. “I have always been fascinated by Indian culture and tradition,” he says in a press release. “I had the opportunity to go there and I fell in love. Years later I am very impressed by what is happening with Punjabi music and how artists like Diljit are bringing their tradition, their music and their sound out to the whole world.” In the official lyric video, Camilo is seen sharing happy moments in the studio with Dosanjh. — SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS
Marc Seguí & Pablo Alborán, “MARIPOSAS” (Warner Music Spain)
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Spanish artists Marc Seguí and Pablo Alborán join forces in “Mariposas” (“Butterflies”), a romantic pop song to fall in love with, featuring piano and violin melodies. The theme is an ode to the illusion, expectation and all the emotions experienced by someone who is beginning to fall in love. Between sweet melodies and accelerated lines, they sing playful verses like: “You are sugar for a diabetic/ Or green and white for a betic/ Your face is naturally pretty, you don’t need cosmetics”/ And in a hypothetical case I want my children to carry your genetic code.”
In the colorful, theatrical-style video — where the color pink, a grand piano and histrionic elements such as the sweater and big shoes that Seguí is wearing predominate — the song departs from the honeyed tinge that tends to prevail in romantic songs to become an honest and fun tune to express yourself about that special one. — LUISA CALLE
Gocho, Wisin & Redimi2, “Conectate conmigo” (Forgiven Music)
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Gocho “El Lápiz de Platino” recruits Wisin and Redimi2 to deliver a powerful, heart-touching song that conveys hope and blessings for those who need the message. “Conéctate conmigo,” an urban-tinged ballad, spotlights Gocho’s soft signature vocals, fused with the powerful voices of reggaetón star Wisin and Christian music rapper Redimi2. “This song is about that moment when we say, ‘Enough! I don’t want to keep running away, I don’t want to stay far from God, I want to get closer and connect with God and live in communion and friendship with Him,’” Gocho says in a press statement. The ultra-personal new track is the first single from his upcoming EP, No Soy el Mismo (Lado B), the second part to No Soy El Mismo (Lado A) released in May. — INGRID FAJARDO
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There is perhaps no hotter Latin music tour going on in the U.S. right now than RBD’s Soy Rebelde tour, which will ultimately have the Mexican pop group play 54 arena and stadium dates across the United States, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico by the end of the year.
The highly-anticipated reunion tour — RBD disbanded in 2008 and have not played together since — is the brainchild of Guillermo Rosas, the Mexican-born manager and promoter who produced RBD’s international tours nearly two decades ago. Rosas — who also manages Chiquis Rivera, Estemán and Edith Márquez, among others — has been doggedly working for nearly a decade to reunite the group made up of Anahí Puente, Dulce Maria Espinoza, Christian Chavez, Maite Perroni and Christopher von Uckermann (the sixth member, Alfonso Herrera, didn’t join the reunion tour). The task was titanic, not only because RBD’s celebrity members all have careers and families of their own, but also because the rights to the RBD name were so entangled that the group’s music wasn’t even available on streaming platforms until 2020.
It was Rosas who insisted on clearing those rights and now has signed an equal partnership with the group. At the heart of his persistence is RBD’s previous success: between Dec. 2, 2005 and Dec. 21, 2008, RBD sold 1.5 million tickets across the 150 shows reported to Billboard Boxscore. The group also landed three albums at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart, and a No. 15 on the Billboard 200. Of its 10 entries on Hot Latin Songs, five were top 10s, and “Ser o Parecer” topped the chart.
Still, the reunion has exceeded expectations. “We weren’t really counting on selling out so fast,” admits Rosas, who initially had routed 28 dates, which mushroomed minutes after tickets went on sale, with 1.5 tickets sold in the first 24 hours, according to Live Nation.
It doesn’t stop there. RBD is also releasing new music — a first track, “Cerquita de ti,” came out in August — and more dates are being planned for 2024. In between RBD’s two sold-out Madison Square Garden dates (August 31 and September 1), Rosas earns the title of Billboard‘s Executive of the Week — and explains how it all went down.
I know you’ve been actively working to reunite these very different, and very busy, people for nearly a decade now. Once you finally got everyone in agreement about wanting to tour together, how did you finally lock it in?
We had been talking for at least six months about all the different situations, possibilities, conditions and circumstances that we needed to deal with. Obviously, there were a lot of family logistics because of kids and their schools. It was a lot of leg work to put together the ideal master plan that worked for everyone. Once that was done, and we had the schedule with holds, we had a dinner at Anahi’s home in Mexico City and we had the contracts in hand and ready in case everybody felt like signing right there. It’s a partnership, and no one makes more than anybody else, so it was the ideal situation. We talked about it for the last time over dinner, everyone was making their final statements. And then I said, “Well, everybody seems to be on board, let’s sign right now.” They said, “Oh my God, for real?” And I said, “Yes, let’s make it happen.” And we took the contracts out and signed. We filmed everything with our cellphones, and that’s how we announced the tour. We posted that clip on social media. It was very exciting.
On a personal level, what was going through your head after so many years of working on this?
I was in disbelief. I had in my hands the tour of the dreams of so many people. The first person I called was my husband. The second person that I called was Hans [Schafer, senior vp global touring for Live Nation]. And the third person I called was Jesus Lopez [the chairman/CEO of Universal Latin/Iberian Peninsula, with whom Rosas has a joint venture]. He had been so supportive with me over the years.
I understand the initial dates sold out in hours. Were you prepared to scale?
We had a routing ready but that routing was 28 shows, and now we’re doing 54. We weren’t planning for that. I had a few second holds, just in case, in places where the venues were smaller. But we weren’t really counting on selling out so fast and doing so many nights in one city. But when we went on sale, I had never experienced that in my life. First, because I had never been during an actual on-sale inside the Live Nation building, with 30 people connected from different places, including Ticketmaster and CAA. It’s a huge conference room with big screens and you can see everything as it happens, and how they release the on-sales in each location according to time zones. For example, we started with Madison Square Garden in New York, where I’m sitting right now. We had 12,000 tickets available and there were like 80,000 people connected online to buy, and you can see the average transaction. And every transaction had an average of four tickets. We called Madison Square Garden right away and booked the second night. Those nights went in like 40 minutes and there were so many people left out.
Why didn’t you do Yankee Stadium in New York, for example?
Because the very first time we came in 2016, Mexican pop wasn’t as big, so we decided on MSG. And sales started to go like that everywhere. In Los Angeles, for example, the BMO was gone in 15 minutes. So we added another date, and that was also gone. Within two hours, four shows were completely gone. We could have kept on adding shows but obviously the band couldn’t do more than four shows per week. That was our limit.
Where were you creatively when you went on sale?
I had a set list proposed and we also had a pre-design that doesn’t look like anything it does today. It was great and it was big, but not as big as it is now. The production grew probably three to four times.
Obviously, this will be big business. But personally, how important is it for you to have put this together?
This was not about money for anyone. Obviously, we like the business and the business needed to make sense. But that has never been strong enough to make this happen. Throughout the years, we’ve gotten multi-million dollar offers to do all kinds of things with RBD. And it just had never been considered. None of them collectively ever considered anything. For us, it’s a dream come true. We are all very spiritual and very energy-oriented souls, and we just knew we needed to gift this to the fans and to themselves. Because I think all five of them see it as a gift to their hearts. The universe giving them the possibility to do this twice.
Why did you decide to go with Live Nation versus another promoter?
Among all the different promoters across that world that I’ve worked with, I really liked their transparency, and obviously Hans has the vision for this group that he’s shared with me for years. So in that sense, working with someone like Hans who understands where we want to take this and really believed in it was important. For example, independent promoters would tell me, “Oh, let’s not risk a stadium. Alfonso isn’t in the group, let’s do another venue.” But Hans never doubted it, so I felt very comfortable.
Are you announcing new dates for 2024?
We’re hoping to. We said we’d let the tour run for a couple of weeks, and we have a potential plan for 2024, and then we’ll be discussing it in the next couple of weeks. We don’t have a solid plan, but that’s how RBD is. It’s always a surprise. But I hope we do. Especially because there are so many fans in places like Spain, Eastern Europe, Chile and Argentina. We’re only visiting four countries out of 19 we did back then, so there is a lot to cover to make the world happy.
Although all the group members are stars in their own right, none of them have really been on stage in 15 years. Were you worried?
It’s something they have in their DNA. It’s amazing. They get on a stage and they turn it on so easily. They’re natural stars and they’ve been around cameras so long that it’s so natural to them. Also, there is something about them that clicks when they’re together. They all have the magic on their own, but when they’re all on stage it’s an explosion. And people love it.
Following the criticism that Yahritza y Su Esencia received weeks ago for comments about Mexican food, for which the Mexican-American group has already apologized, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador advocated for the sibling trio on Thursday (Aug. 31), and said that he would agree that they be invited to join Grupo Frontera on Sept. 15 at the Zócalo in Mexico City.
“Yahritza and her brothers have a musical group. They were born there, in Washington, their parents are Mexican, I think from Chiapas, and they did an interview where they said they ‘don’t like Mexican food,’ [or] something like that,” the president said in his morning press conference. “It was very bad for them, but they did not do it in bad faith. It is that they were born over there, they did not want to offend.”
The parents of the trio, José Francisco and Rosa Martínez, are originally from the state of Michoacán, in western Mexico.
Earlier this month, the members of Yahritza y Su Esencia apologized in a video posted on their TikTok, after receiving severe criticism from Mexican fans for their comments.
Specifically, Yahritza jokingly said that she didn’t like hearing “the cars and police sirens and everything” when she woke up in the city, while Jairo and Mando said they didn’t love local food. The statements generated strong criticism from a sector of Internet users.
“We want you to know that what motivates us every day to write songs and music is the great pride of having Mexican blood in our veins,” said Yahritza, the band’s vocalist, in her apology. “We are proudly Mexican and we greatly appreciate the love of the public, especially in Mexico.”
Some Mexican media even published that the group’s participation in the Fesitval Arre, which will take place on Sept. 9-10 at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City, had been cancelled. That information has not been confirmed by the promoter Ocesa, and the name of the band is still on the official poster. A rep for the trio told Billboard Español that they are confirmed to perform on Sept. 10.
“We cannot do that, we cannot in any way (cancel their concerts),” López Obrador said during the conference. “I am sure that they will reflect and we have to grant forgiveness. In other words, we always have to forgive if someone is wrong or makes a mistake, but they are also children and there is an explanation. They were born there. Their parents are Mexican, but they already have their life over there.”
When asked if he considered it a good idea that Yahritza y su Esencia joined Grupo Frontera at the Zócalo to perform their hit collaboration “Frágil” — which landed the trio their first No. 1 on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Airplay chart (dated Aug. 12) — the president said he would agree.
The song is even part of López Obrador’s playlist that deal with corridos tumbados, a genre that the president has criticized for containing some songs that advocate drug trafficking.
Since debuting with her single “Por Siempre” in 2018, Kenia OS has been making a name for herself in the music industry, via Billboard-charting hits like “Mi Salida Contigo” with Ha*Ash and “Malas Decisiones.”
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The Mexican singer-songwriter, who became known as a content creator on her YouTube channel (where she has 12 million subscribers) and later on TikTok (where 18.9 million users follow her), says that the desire to dedicate herself to music did not arrive at a specific moment, but it was developed over time.
“It was something that I liked to do, like recording videos, being in front of the cameras… and little by little I feel that it became my job and something more tangible,” she tells Billboard Español. “And things started to happen faster and I think it was like a roller coaster that I went on and it has never ended.”
Although she defines herself as a person who is clear about what works for her and what she likes, at first she had a hard time finding her musical style. The battle in her mind between taking the path of the most popular genres of the moment and her own tastes was soon resolved when she released the pop single “Malas Decisiones,” which has 170 million streams on Spotify. “When ‘Malas Decisiones’ was released and exploded on social media … I realized that people liked pop, and the pop that I was doing. It’s when I realized it was the path I wanted to take,” she says.
Kenia OS considers herself a disciplined and responsible artist with her work. Her years as an influencer have also been key to gaining confidence and familiarity in front of the public. “I do a lot of things with love, with a lot of passion for my fans, and I think that is reflected [in my music],” she says. “And I help people heal through my art — or well, that’s what they tell me.”
On Aug. 2, the artist renewed her contract with Sony Music Mexico and 5020 Records, with whom she worked with for her two 2022 albums, Cambios de Luna and K23, and on this year’s short film Universo K23 — in which she presents the journeys of her alter ego, K23. In addition, she has collaborated with artists like Thalia, with whom she recently released a new version of “Para No Verte Más”.
“Mi Salida Contigo” peaked at No. 16 on Billboard‘s Latin Pop Airplay in March, while “Malas Decisiones” entered the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. (No. 94) and the Billboard Global 200 (No. 176) that same month. The singer is currently on the road with her K23 Tour, which includes stops in various cities in Mexico and Central America. This year, she also won three Premios Juventud awards: The New Female Generation, Best Fandom and I Want More.
Kenia OS is clear about how she sees herself in a few years: “In the future, I think I see myself as a 360 artist doing different projects. As much as acting, music, my brands, I also see myself with a solid career, with a solid name,” she says. “In my personal life, I don’t know. I’ll go with the flow.”
Below, learn more about August’s Latin Artist on the Rise.
Name: Kenia Guadalupe Flores Osuna
Age: 24 years
Recommended Song: “Lovelove U.” “After ‘Malas Decisiones’ which is totally pop, I realized — because I was a little not reluctant but confused, since reggaetón, urban, all of these are so popular right now, and I never felt 100% comfortable doing them,” she explains. “When ‘Malas Decisiones’ emerged and exploded on social media, I realized that people liked the pop and the pop that I was doing. I realized that it was the path I wanted to take, and ‘Lovelove U’ started from that, from continuing to do pop and staying true to myself.”
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Major Accomplishment: “My biggest achievement right now I think has been… Eh, I have several. [Laughs.] But I think it’s the K23 Tour. Also, the K23 short film that was awarded [at the Cannes World Film Festival and at the Berlin Indie Film Festival], and the Premios Juventud that I won this year”.
What’s Next: “With my music, new releases are coming. I don’t know if collaborations, to be honest, but my releases, yes.”
Beéle checks off a career milestone this week as he bags his first No. 1 on a Billboard chart with “Vagabundo,” a co-billed song with Sebastian Yatra and Manuel Turizo. The song rises 7-1 to crown the Latin Airplay chart dated Sept. 2. “Vagabundo” climbs with 34% gain in audience impressions, to 9.2 million, earned in the U.S. in […]
In Netflix’s upcoming fictional series Neon, Tyler Dean Flores plays Santi, a wanna be reggaetón artist who moves from a small Florida town to Miami to get a record deal and become a star.
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It’s a rags-to-hopefully-riches story, but with a reggaetón twist. Santi heads to Miami with his two best friends, who also happen to be his “manager” and social media and marketing director, and who are as clueless as he is, but also have the guts to shamelessly power along.
The series, which debuts Oct. 19, has a star-studded roster of behind-the-scenes players, including Daddy Yankee, who is credited as executive producer, and the SB Projects team of Scooter Braun.
As for the music, Santi’s big calling card is his song “Exagerao,” which, viewers find out, he uploaded to YouTube and has become a bit of a hit, big enough to be recognized by fans in local nightclubs and even a couple of promoters and record execs.
”Exagerao” was produced in the real world by hitmaker Tainy, who is one of the executive music producers for the show, along with Lex Borrero and Ivan Rodriguez from Ntertain and Neon16.
“Exagerao,” said Tainy in a statement, is perfect for a U.S. born Latin like Santi “because it’s not just a reggaeton song, but it comes from his perspective. Yes, the production bangs and feels like a club song, but it also connects with the character culturally. The slang, the delivery, his lover-boy persona, even the choices on his pronunciation being more like a second-generation Latino in the U.S. In subtle ways every line tells you about Santi.”
While the fabled “Exagerao” video the show’s characters talk about so much is yet to come, Billboard got a sneak peek of “Exagerao” the song, which hits streaming services today (Aug. 31).
Santi’s vocals are courtesy of Neon 16 up and coming artist RMAND, who lends his voice to the character’s three songs in the series.
Check out “Exagerao” below:
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Netflix will premiere Neon during Latin Music Week, which takes place Oct. 2-6 in Miami. To register, click here.
Billboard Boxscore has been tracking touring data and ranking the top live acts around the world across various musical genres since the mid-1980s. Classic rock bands, country troubadours and pop icons have long dominated these lists, but in recent years, Latin artists have increasingly become contenders. Just last year, Billboard celebrated the year in Bad […]
Karol G and Tiësto are facing a copyright infringement lawsuit over their song “Don’t Be Shy,” filed by a Cuban-American songwriter who says their track features elements that are “practically identical” to his earlier tune.
In a complaint filed Tuesday in Puerto Rico federal court, lawyers for songwriter Rene Lorente claim that Karol G and Tiësto’s 2021 dance-pop hit infringed his 2000 song “Algo Diferente” by using a melody that “sounds identical.”
“It doesn’t take an expert or musician, to carefully listen to the melody/sounds of each, to recognize that one was copied from the other,” Lorente’s lawyers wrote in their complaint. “In this case, defendants’ ‘Don’t be Shy’ is a blatant violation of plaintiff’s copyrighted ‘Algo Diferente’.”
Karol G, who is currently sitting atop Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart with her “Qlona,” teamed up with Tiësto to release “Don’t Be Shy” in August 2021. The song, which hit No. 4 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, was the Columbian star’s first released in English.
But in his lawsuit, Lorente claims Karol G and Tiësto’s song “misappropriated his beloved copyrighted work” – a tune released in May 2000 that currently has 3,647 total streams on Spotify. A version of “Algo Diferente” on YouTube, uploaded just nine days ago by CD Baby, has been streamed 6,423 times.
According to Lorente’s lawyers, a comparison of the two songs shows that they are “substantially similar” – the requirement to prove copyright infringement.
“Expert analysis of musical arrangement fragment of the copyrighted and infringing works, show exact rhythm, note arrangement, same intervals, harmony, with the only change being limited perhaps to the pitch, within 8 musical bars, repeated throughout infringing work,” Lorente’s lawyers wrote in his lawsuit. “However, for a lay listener and a jury, this combination of musical notes sounds identical.”
The lawsuit is seeking a whopping $52 million dollars, but attorneys who file lawsuits can claim any damages total they want. Even if Lorente’s lawsuit was successful – and that is not a given – such demands are typically not good indicators for what a judge or jury might ultimately award.
Reps for Karol G and Tiësto did not return requests for comment on Thursday.
Listen to the two songs below and compare for yourself:
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In honor of Latin music’s explosive growth in the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) will recognize artists, label executives and policymakers who are “driving this rise across American music, culture and society,” it was announced Thursday (Aug. 31). For its annual RIAA Honors, which is set to take place Sept. 19 in […]
Dulce María Espinoza remembers those crazy days back in 2006, when she and the five other members of teen group RBD would finish taping their soap opera at 4 p.m., get whisked from the studios in Mexico City on a helicopter that took them to a private airport, from which they were whisked again to another city. There, they would head directly to an arena performance, then back to their hotel to record some music.
The next day, they would do it all over again.
“It’s like being on a roller coaster that doesn’t stop,” Dulce María says today. “And since it doesn’t stop, you don’t know anything, good or bad, until it does.”
It finally did, on Dec. 22, 2008, when RBD, arguably the most successful Latin pop group of all time, played its last concert in Madrid.
By then, says manager Guillermo Rosas, “Everyone wanted it to be over.”
But it wasn’t. Fifteen years later, five of RBD’s six original members are reunited in what’s shaping up to be one of the most monumental Latin music reunions in history.
On Aug. 25, Dulce María, Christian Chávez, Maité Perroni, Anahí Puente and Christopher von Uckermann (the sixth member, Alfonso “Poncho” Herrera, declined to be part of the reunion) kicked off their 54-date Soy Rebelde Tour, which will visit stadiums and arenas in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and the United States.
So great is the frenzy around the tour that it moved 1.5 million tickets after only 24 hours on sale, according to Live Nation, tying the number sold across 150 reported shows between Dec. 2, 2005, and Dec. 21, 2008.
“I have to say, it’s exceeded my expectations: It’s gargantuan,” says Live Nation senior vp of global touring Hans Schafer.
In addition, in August, the group released “Cerquita de Ti,” its first new song in 15 years; an album is in the works; and new dates for 2024 will soon be announced.
Which all beg the question, why didn’t a reunion come sooner?
Anahí
Nolwen Cifuentes
It’s All In The Name
At the center of it all are the rights to RBD, its name, image and even its music. Anahí, Dulce María, Christian, Maite and Christopher (they go publicly by their first names) all joined the cast of Mexican soap opera Rebelde back in 2004, when they were teenagers.
Rebelde (Rebel) told the adventures of a group of students at an elite musical school who launch their own band, RBD, the acronym a play on the series name. The soap was produced by Mexican giant Televisa, who in turn licensed the format from Argentine producer Chris Morena, who created it, and global distributor and producer Dori Media., who helped develop it.
The original format, Rebelde Way, was produced in Argentina and spawned the band Erreway.
Both were successful, but Rebelde and RBD far outpaced them. In its short career, the group landed three albums at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart, and a No. 15 on the Billboard 200. Of its 10 entries on Hot Latin Songs, five were top 10s, and “Ser o Parecer” topped the chart.
The success meant huge personal sacrifice and little financial gain for its young members. They were under contract with Televisa and all their rights –including recordings, touring and merchandising—were tied to those contracts, which gave them a salary and no royalties.
When Rosas, their manager today, came into the picture in 2006 as a young concert promoter, there was little he could do about that. He saw RBD’s potential as a touring act abroad –their first international show sold 70,000 at the Los Angeles Coliseum in March of 2006– and paid Televisa (who also controlled touring in Mexico through promoter Ocesa) a hefty fee for the rights to tour outside Mexico. He did not have individual contracts with any of the members.
But when Rebelde as a series ended and its stars parted ways, Rosas stayed in contact with them, managing the careers of Anahí and Christian, and also working closely with von Uckermann. The thought of bringing RBD together was always in the back of his mind, and he would often discuss it with his friend Hans Schafer, another young concert promoter.
Christopher von Uckermann
Nolwen Cifuentes
A Zoom And A Comeback
Some seven years ago, says Rosas, he started speaking to the members about reuniting. At that point, they all showed interest, but the rights were a mess, their personal lives had taken different paths, and RBD’s music wasn’t even available on streaming platforms.
All of RBD’s music had been recorded under EMI Music, which Universal Music Group bought in 2012. However, the license for the name was not renewed, so the music was never available to stream.
Things took a turn when Rosas, through his current company, The Sixth House, launched a joint venture with Universal Music Latin Entertainment.
“I was no longer just the manager of the RBD project, but someone who could speak with more authority,” he says.
Finally, on Sept. 4, 2020, RBD’s music became available on streaming platforms for the first time. Spurred by that occasion and the onset of the pandemic, the group got together on a Zoom “to figure out what we could do to give something to fans. Maybe a song. Something very genuine,” says Dulce María.
That conversation reignited the desire to reunite, but this time, the business model was clear: The five members and Rosas would be equal partners in the new joint venture. Royalties would still need to be paid to the original rights holders for use of the RBD name, but beyond that, all new revenue, including for music, would be split between Rosas and RBD.
Once a tour became a reality, Rosas went to Shafer, who was now at Live Nation. Because RBD was the first Latin act to use Ticketmaster’s Registered Fan feature, which gives fans an opportunity to register in advance to purchase tickets, the tour’s potential became immediately clear.
Dulce María
Nolwen Cifuentes
“I’m willing to bet this will be the most successful Latin tour this year in terms of gross and tickets sold,” Schafer predicts. “They are beating records in multiple territories in a way no other act has ever done. It’s spectacular.”
The importance of the moment is not lost on the group.
In mid August, at the Galen Center in Los Angeles during a break in the act’s dress rehearsal, we sat down with Anahí, Dulce María, Christian, Maité and Christopher for their first in-person interview as RBD in 15 years. They were dressed in one of their tour outfits: all sparkly, shimmery sequins and shoulder pads, a throwback to the 2000s and the unabashed, in-your-face positivity that was, and is, RBD.
“All five of us have very different personalities, and with the years, we’ve learned to embrace our differences. But in the end, it’s when we come back together that this grows and this magic explodes,” says Maité. “The key is, back then, we came together as the result of an audition; this time, it’s something we chose to do.”
Christian Chávez
Nolwen Cifuentes
It has been 15 years. Are you nervous?
Christian Truth is, we’ve gone through all the emotions. From the moment rehearsals began, we went through saying, “Ay, no, we can’t sing and dance at the same time anymore.” We stopped doing it so long that it was hard at first. And truth is, we have completely different personalities. So this time, we’re doing it according to our standards and what we like to do. It’s a beautiful way to return to this project that gave so much to all of us, but from a position of maturity, much more life experience and far more aware of what we want to show fans.
Many people who are going to see the show saw you 15 years ago. What significant differences will they see?
Christopher The entire creative presentation is an upgrade in every sense. We’re part of all the new songs. We have dancers. We never had dancers in the past, so the show has grown a lot. Everything is more meticulous, and it’s ours. People will see that organic part of RBD, but in a more elevated way.
What is the personal stamp of each of you?
Maité We all have very different personalities, like Christian said, and you see it onstage. But the magic happens when we’re together. We’ve all come together in the creative process, the design, everything we share here. What is really different is, we came together before through an audition. This time, we’ve chosen to do so.
Maite Perroni
Nolwen Cifuentes
RBD grew explosively back in the day. At what point did you realize how big it had become?
Dulce María There were two moments for me. We performed at el Zócalo in Mexico City, and people went crazy. I remember they had to take us out of there in ambulances and police cars. That’s when it really dawned on us, because we were taping the series from Monday to Saturday, and we never left the studios. That day, we realized something big was happening. And the second moment, internationally, was when we played in Colombia, in Bogotá, which was a crazy thing with over 50,000 people. And then Brazil, the first place we went to where people spoke another language, and it was total euphoria. Well, there were so many moments! Even this moment, right now, still surprises us.
Your current tour tickets sold at an extraordinary pace. I imagine you were anxious beforehand?
Anahí Truth is, everything has surprised us. I think the most beautiful thing we can tell you is, the five of us began this from our hearts, with our souls set on coming back together, and we really didn’t know what would happen. We didn’t know if we’d sell 10 tickets or 20 or the millions that, thanks to all of you, are now this tour. And I think when you do things like this, thinking of nothing else but the absolute love we have about being together, that’s when things flow. We’re here because of the love we have for what we were and what we are together. As Maité said, the magic only happens when we’re together. I get chills just saying it: We’re together again. Our souls are shining together again.
Clockwise from left: Anahí, Christian Chávez, Dulce María, Christopher von Uckermann and Maite Perroni of RBD photographed on August 18, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Nolwen Cifuentes
And as Maité said, you came together before through an audition. Now it’s a choice. How did it happen?
Anahí We put our whole love and enthusiasm into making it happen. But things would get complicated. The pandemic, then when we had that Zoom, Dul was about to give birth to her beautiful daughter, María Paula, whom I adore. Everyone knows I had more or less retired; I had been away from entertainment. Mai got married. And suddenly, things began to happen, and they began to flow in a way we couldn’t have planned. It seemed impossible, as we say in our new single.
I was told conversations began in earnest seven years ago, pre-pandemic.
Christian There were several tries. But during the pandemic was when we really thought, “What can we give back to people? How can we bring some happiness, some solace?” And that’s when we really sat down to talk about it.
Poncho isn’t part of the group, but RBD works as a quintet.
Christian We’ve realized RBD is bigger than its members. That’s what makes it such a magnetic force. We used to think, “RBD doesn’t exist without its members.” And the truth is, RBD …
Anaís … is RBD.
Dulce María
Nolwen Cifuentes
Christian Obviously, we love Poncho, and we wish him the best and we thank him for always sending us good vibes when they ask him about us. But the truth is, at this stage, we’re more focused on giving our all to RBD. It’s as if we were Charlie’s Angeles and Charlie is RBD.
Dulce María I also think it’s a cycle. We’re mothers now. We’re putting in a lot, a lot of effort and sacrifice that’s different from what we did before. But we’re here for love and to close a circle with our fans and with ourselves. In the end, RBD is eternal. And as we’ve always said, Rebelde will exist until the last rebel heart stops beating.
As a mother, I love that you’re moms and you’re on tour and you’re bringing the family with you. I understand there’s a whole daycare traveling with you.
Anahí Totally. There’s a playroom in our dressing rooms because we’re here with our R-babies. Obviously, our children are the most important thing for the three of us, and we’re not complete without them. I have a little bit of a bigger problem, so to speak, because mine are already in school. Manuel, my son, is 6, and he can’t miss much school. Thank God I have an amazing husband, a superdad who’s coming and going on the weekends so I can spend time with my children. Dul’s María Paula is still small, and Lía is only 2 months old, so they can spend more time here. But we’re having a dressing room just for them, a playroom where they can play and have a great time.
Maité, you have a crib in your dressing room?
Maité Yes. Truth be told, it’s beautiful to live this stage, but it’s hard. It’s challenging. With Lía, the second I finish here, I’ll run to her, and when I arrive, I don’t let go for a second, and she’s the most important thing in my life. Knowing she’s well taken care of allows me to enjoy this moment, which is one of the best experiences, if not the best, we’ve lived and shared.
Anahí (Laughs, looks at Christian.) And our uncles who put up with my children screaming!
Christopher von Uckermann
Nolwen Cifuentes
In RBD 1.0, you were told what to do, and you’ve said you had to sacrifice a lot in terms of personal life. Did you set your own conditions this time?
Maité The thing is, the way we built this new stage, we didn’t have to set terms. We had to go together, hand in hand, to build what was best for all of us.
It must feel so different. When RBD first became popular, I think none of us realized how tough it was for you. You had a very harsh contract. Do you ever look back and think, “That was hard”?
Anahí You have to see it from the stance of gratitude. Everything we lived brings us to this point, where we can come together as the owners of our project. If we hadn’t gone through that, we wouldn’t be here. We’re here with hearts that healed, that went through a lot, and what we haven’t healed, we will heal together, holding hands.
Businesswise, what was the biggest lesson you learned?
Christian Not to take things personally. This is a career and a business, and sometimes things work and sometimes they don’t. And when you work with teenagers, you’re working with insecurities. It’s not the same to be famous once you’re older. And here, we had three child stars: Christopher, Anahí and Dulce started performing when they were 5. It’s a totally different life.
Maite Perroni
Nolwen Cifuentes
Christopher, you had that experience. But even so, it must have been tough, for example, to realize you weren’t getting royalties for merchandise.
Christopher It’s a process a lot of artists live — more than people realize, because artists create. Now we’re the ones creating this, we’re partners. And when you have that, you are really free to create in all areas. Everything we went through helped us get to this. In my case, after working since I was a child, it’s been a true evolution to say: “What do I want to tell the world? And to ensure that my product is not banal, but actually brings something to fans?”
Dulce María At that time, we weren’t thinking about that. We worked for five years as RBD, and it’s like being on a roller coaster that doesn’t stop. And since it doesn’t stop, you don’t know anything, good or bad, until it does, and you say: “Ah! This happened. And this, and this,” and you start to process. And it was so hard. That is probably why we always said a reunion wasn’t possible. And in my case, I reached a point where I said no. I lived so long like this, made so many sacrifices. You leave your family behind, you’re far from so many things because this is a very demanding career. I was afraid to go back because it takes you away from your safe place, your home, your family. Thank God we’re together again, and it’s also like being with a family. With siblings who love and support each other.
Can you really do whatever you want now?
Dulce María We all have a different story to tell and inspire. It’s beautiful to be part of the songwriting. Songs like “Cerquita de Ti,” which Christopher wrote with other composers, are beautiful, for example. We want to say things, not only in the songs, but during the show and on the screens.
Maité They’re different stages, and it’s important to underline that back then, we were kids with dreams and RBD became the platform to make them a reality. Also, speaking about our old songs has made us realize that 20 years later, it’s still relevant to sing about love. Pop hasn’t died. Perhaps there was no one to sing it.
I’ve always thought one of the secrets to RBD’s success is you always sang about positive, affirming things.
Anahí It’s always been our flag. Like Dulce said, unity, love, believing in your dreams, never stopping, saving ourselves — because in a way, together we’ve saved our hearts in moments we’ve been a little broken.
Christian Chávez
Nolwen Cifuentes
Let’s talk fashion on this tour. What were you going for?
Christian We each wanted to represent ourselves. I went through the process of my sexuality, and I hadn’t had the opportunity to fully be myself onstage. There had always been that fear or insecurity of whether I should wear this or not. And it’s beautiful to me and to that young Christian who sometimes wanted to wear or try on something more feminine and couldn’t because he was told it was wrong or he would lose fans. It’s like celebrating myself and celebrating that child and telling him: “Go, put on that crop top if you want. Wear makeup if you want.” It’s been like a game. At 40 years old, I feel like I’m 15.
Anahí I’m really into nostalgia. There’s an outfit change called Retro Girls where we put on those iconic outfits that remind us of so many things, and we wanted to re-create them. Definitely my favorite moment is Rebelde [the iconic RBD school uniform of white shirt, red jacket and short skirt]. When I put on my uniform again, it brough me to tears.
Christopher In my case, I went for a ’70s look. And I also love the ’60s and the ’80s. And I wear sneakers because I think like an athlete onstage.
Dulce María For a while, we’ve been looking for a more unified look that respects our essence and style. Before, we would wear whatever we wanted, and that’s beautiful because it was us, but sometimes it felt like we were all going to a different party. Now it’s about respecting the past, but each of us in their own style. For example, I’m a mom, I’m older, but I still want to give the best of myself. I dyed my hair red again. It’s like embracing the past but integrating it into today. I’m not only Roberta [her Rebelde character]. I’m Dulce María with all those Roberta traits. I’m sensitive, romantic, I’m married, I have a baby, I’m a family girl and I miss my family, I’m vulnerable.
You’re releasing new music, and you’re working on an album. But your music wasn’t on streaming platforms for over a decade. What did it mean to hear it for the first time in 2020?
Christian I think it was the tipping point that tugged at our hearts. Since we didn’t have the music before, when they told us it would be available and asked us to film short videos to invite people to listen, that activated Rebelde fever in September 2020.
Anahí
Nolwen Cifuentes
The world has changed. Now we talk openly about inclusion, rights, body positivity. Topics that weren’t touched even five years ago, but topics that you touched on often in the past. How does it feel to see those conversations normalized?
Maité It’s very inspiring. Even though we shared those messages back then, it’s wonderful to see the conversation expand and that 20 years later, it’s an obligation and a responsibility to know what you say, to be aware of how you communicate and what you want to express and how you want to live in this world.
Dulce María And be yourself. We were maybe ahead of our time. Christian was one of the first Latin entertainers, if not the first, to speak openly about sexuality. And it’s gratifying to see that today we can truly be who we are and say, “It’s OK.”
Looking back, very few bands transcend TV shows. The Monkees in the ’60s are one of the few that come to mind. How does it feel to be in such good company?
Maité RBD also accomplished something that’s not that common. It came from such a specific place, a youth soap opera, and it suddenly began to break paradigms within the music industry, and it began to occupy a truly important space. It wasn’t easy at first because there was a lot of judgment around a TV project with young people. Many of our singer, songwriter, producer colleagues saw us as a plastic product. But even then, RBD achieved unique things, RBD broke records, we touched people’s hearts, and we sent a positive message. We achieved things that, today, 20 years later, allow us to be here. It sounds like bragging, but we have to state it proudly because it wasn’t easy. RBD is something unique, and today, we’re part of the industry and we are not just the most important Mexican group: We’re the most important Latin group. That’s RBD.
Maite, Christian and Christopher will discuss their tour and reunion Wednesday, October 4 at Billboard’s Latin Music Week, taking place Oct. 2-6 in Miami. Register here.