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Alejandro Fernández couldn’t be prouder to carry on the family legacy through his children, including Camila Fernández, who is currently joining him on his De Rey a Rey tour across the United States.
The 27-year-old artist showcased great confidence and poise on Sunday (May 18) at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., where she performed songs from her repertoire like “Todo Todo,” “Pudimos Ser,” and “Se Cancela la Llorada,” earning a roaring ovation from the audience.
“Thank you for your applause,” said Vicente Fernandez’s granddaughter, elegantly dressed in a charro outfit. “Now I leave you with the new king of ranchera music who honors another king who was my grandfather, my father Alejandro Fernandez””
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Also dressed as a charro, El Potrillo opened his set with his father’s classic “No Me Sé Rajar,” included in his tribute album De Rey a Rey (meaning From King to King).
“I want to tell you that I was born with two blessings: the first, being born in Mexico; the second, being born a Fernández,” expressed the superstar. “Let’s celebrate together the legacy of the great Charro de México the way he would have liked — singing his songs at the top of our lungs.”
The setlist included classics like “Lástima Que Seas Ajena,” “Estos Celos,” “El Rey,” “Volver, Volver,” “De Qué Manera Te Olvido,” “Por Tu Maldito Amor,” and more.
In a heartfelt moment, the father and daughter duo performed “Fue Un Placer Conocerte” and “Siempre Estoy Pensando en Ti,” paying tribute to Juan Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal, who used to sing those songs together. The tender glances and undeniable connection between Alejandro and Camila, along with their beautiful vocal harmonies, deeply moved the fans, who applauded nonstop.
“I want you to know that in this family, there are at least three of us who will fight tooth and nail to keep Mexican music alive, and we carry it deeply in our hearts,” said Alejandro Fernández, also referring to his son Alex.
And while the show serves as a tribute to his father, some Alejandro’s biggest hits couldn’t be left out, including “Me Dediqué a Perderte,” “Si Tú Supieras,” “Caballero” and “Hoy Tengo Ganas De Ti,” which was originally recorded with Christina Aguilera but performed during the concert with his daughter Camila.
The De Rey a Rey tour, which continues on May 23 in Salt Lake City, Utah, includes stops in Denver, Chicago, Miami, New York, El Paso, and Las Vegas (for Mexican Independence Day celebrations), before wrapping up on September 21 in San Diego, Calif.
Check out a clip Alejandro and Camila Fernández singing together below:
Billboard is excited to introduce its brand-new Substack channel, dedicated entirely to daily charts coverage — a must-read destination for music fans, industry professionals and data obsessives alike. This exclusive platform will bring subscribers into the heart of the action, spotlighting the closest battles for the No. 1 spots happening across Billboard’s 200-plus charts. Whether it’s […]
Mora (real name: Gabriel Armando Mora Quintero) surprised fans with the release of his fifth studio album, Lo Mismo de Siempre, on Sunday (May 18) via Rimas Entertainment.
The 17-track set, which was first produced in Miami and then finished in Puerto Rico, was created during an ultra-personal moment in Mora’s life: fatherhood. Though the songs don’t necessarily delve into his personal life per se, it was important for him to move back home with his family to spark his muse and seek the ideal inspiration.
Lo Mismo de Siempre — named in honor of those who say that the Puerto Rican artist-producer is “always doing the same thing” in his music — is truly an ode to the day-one fans.
“None of this was due to luck/ I’ve had a thousand falls, and although they hurt, they made me stronger/ The people made me, and that’s why I’m here with the same people as always,” he chants in the opening title track, over a dark, dramatic synth melody.
The set then navigates through futuristic reggaetón and perreo sounds (yes, true to Mora’s essence), but also some innovative trap, ballads, tropical and house fusions. He also reeled in potent collaborators, including C.Tangana, Young Miko, Sech, Ryan Castro, and Omar Courtz. Lyrically, he sings about love, heartbreak, the loses, the wins, and other relatable topics.
Lo Mismo De Siempre follows the sets Primer Día de Clases, Microdosis, Paraíso, and Estrella — all of which debuted top 10 on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart.
Below, Mora breaks down five essential tracks from his new album, in his own words:
“Bandida”
Ikimonogakari recently released their 11th full album, Asobi (“Play”). Following the release of their previous album, Maru, their first release since becoming a duo, Kiyoe Yoshioka and Yoshiki Mizuno have had a series of firsts: their first overseas show, their first acoustic show at the Budokan, and their first acoustic concert tour. In addition to previously released singles, the album also contains the new song “Irodori” and collaborations with artists such as Humbert Humbert, fox capture plan, Nao Matsushita, and “Yu Asobi.” Bonus tracks include “Koisuru Otome – From THE FIRST TAKE,” which generated a lot of buzz on social media. The songs on the album are the product of the duo allowing themselves to take on music with a sense of freedom, joy, and playfulness.
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Billboard JAPAN talked to the two about this new album, a second “debut” after they began a new chapter as a band.
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Let’s start by talking about what you’ve been doing overseas. In June of 2024 you performed at the 35th Golden Melody Awards in Taiwan, and then in July you performed at the Tencent Music Entertainment Awards in Macao. How was the response?
Mizuno: I was surprised at the cheering, this tremendous “Whoooooaaaaa!”
Yoshioka: The audience’s tone of voice and the volume of the cheering was totally different than with a Japanese audience. Sometimes my singing was swallowed up by the cheering.
Mizuno: When I’d start a guitar solo, there’d also be that “Whoooooaaaaa!” cheer.
Yoshioka: The audience really put their emotions and reactions into their voices.
What song got the biggest reaction?
Mizuno: “Blue Bird.” People overseas listen to it a lot, and it seems the audiences all knew it.
Yoshioka: When we performed ballads like “SAKURA,” the whole audience was swaying side to side, too. Even despite the language barrier, the emotion of the song came across, which made me really happy.
After your overseas performances, you finished your new album, Asobi. Since the last album, Maru, you’ve been busy with live shows, such as the shows in China, and also releasing new songs. You’ve had quite the packed schedule. Looking back, what do you remember about this period?
Mizuno: After releasing Maru, we did have a time when we were really focused on live shows. We put on a performance hall tour, played at a few festivals, and put on an acoustic show at the Budokan. We had a lot of opportunities to play in front of audiences, and every day was really stimulating for us. This had a positive influence on our song-writing, and I think we also changed a lot deep down inside. I also met all kinds of people through my HIROBA project and put out an album, which was a great experience. I was able to bring that experience back with me to Ikimonogakari. Sho Hasumi from Daw90000 wrote lyrics for me (on “Anohi No Koto meets Sho Hasumi”) and I got the courage to connect with people outside our circle. Yoshioka enjoyed that, too.
Yoshioka: Mizuno, who is Ikimonogakari’s leader, would actively propose new things we’d never tried before, like performing with just the two of us on stage. At first, I was really nervous, but gradually I came to enjoy doing new things. There was a lot of trial and error, of course, and it was really challenging, but the creation process also really stimulated my curiosity.
The album has songs with lyrics written by other creators (“Jigazou meets Yu Asobi” and “Anohi No Koto meets Sho Hasumi”). That was an ambitious choice.
Mizuno: I think it was about seven or eight years ago, we had a meeting with our staff and I said, “What about having someone else write some lyrics for us?” Our director at the time said “Don’t you think you should still keep writing the lyrics yourself?” At the time, that made sense, and I was like, “You’re right,” but years have passed since then and we’ve had all kinds of new experiences. We’ve come to see change as a positive thing, and we’re okay with people from outside the group getting involved. We feel secure now that even with outside involvement, the end result will be proper Ikimonogakari.
Yoshioka: I was really nervous at first, though (laughs). But when Mizuno said “I want to ask someone else to write the lyrics,” it felt really natural, so I took a positive outlook on it, like “I think it’ll work out fine.” Everyone on the team was like “Let’s give it a shot.”
If someone else writes the lyrics, the words will also match up with the music in a different way.
Yoshioka: Right. I’ve always sung Mizuno’s lyrics to Mizuno’s music, so I’ve developed what I guess you could call habits. After recording, I realized I’d had to get rid of those habits when I sang. It felt very natural putting the words to music, which I liked.
Mizuno: You develop habits, or perhaps color, and I hoped that by changing that color we’d produce something new. I’ve been working with Yoshioka since we were in our teens, and we’ve grown together. Yoshioka’s way of singing has become part of me, and my melodies, and the melodies of (Hotaka) Yamashita, have become a part of Yoshioka. So when you’re singing lyrics that aren’t part of that, you find that you can’t sing them the way you normally would (laughs). I was very curious about how my own melodies would sound. It was fun taking on that challenge with Hasumi’s lyrics and Yu Asobi’s lyrics.
What’s behind the title of the album, Asobi?
Mizuno: I feel like the process of creating our last album, Maru, was very stoic. On this album, fortunately, we had a lot of tie-in songs and a lot of variety. The context of each song was also totally different, so we were having a hard time coming up with a concept that would tie them all together. We were thinking about different possibilities when the conversation turned to maybe seeing the rich variety of the album in a positive light instead of trying to put everything in one box. The idea of “play” (in Japanese, “asobi”) came up through that conversation.
Yoshioka: Right.
Mizuno: Since the idea of that title, Asobi, came up, I suggested working with outside artists on the songs. A lot of different artists took part on IKIMONOGAKARI meets (a collaborative album in which 12 artists interpreted Ikimonogakari songs in new ways), and this time I wanted us to “meet” them.
Yoshioka: When the word “play” came up, everyone got really excited. The whole room lit up. It felt like if we went in that direction, we’d come up with something good. Like Mizuno said, the creation of Maru was a very stoic process, and it felt like with this album, we could go in a totally different direction. We had this fun concept in mind as we created the new album.
This has been called a second “debut” after you began your new chapter as a band, and it really is packed with songs that go in new artistic directions. Do you feel like the creation of Asobi will be influencing your future work?
Mizuno: Over the last four or five years, there have been a lot of big events in our lives. We separated from our talent agency, a member left, and Yoshioka had a baby. A lot of our songs were shaped by our story. In 2024, it felt like we really focused on the music itself, and we had a lot of fun both performing live and recording songs. We’ve walked a lot of roads, and I think now we’re really able to focus on “what I should sing as a singer,” “what I should write as a songwriter,” and “what kinds of artists we should work with as a group.” We’ve come full circle, back to where we started, and we can move forward from here. I hope a lot of people listen to our new album, and, personally, I’m really happy to be able to look forward to the future.
Yoshioka: As I mentioned earlier, we’ve taken on a lot of different challenges, like playing at the Budokan as just a duo or performing street shows. We’ve worked with a lot of artists on our album. We’ve kept trying new things, and that’s become normal for us now. I think we’ve created a great album, and I feel like we’ll keep diving into new things in the future. In the past, I’ve been the type that gets nervous about new things (laughs), but I’ve come to see how fun taking on new challenges can be. I’m glad we’ve been able to open this door that will lead us in new directions.
—This interview by Tomoyuki Mori first appeared on Billboard Japan
Miley Cyrus has unveiled the titles that make up Something Beautiful, with the pop star revealing her upcoming album’s tracklist Monday (May 19). In a cinematic video shared on her social media accounts, the names of the 13 songs on the album flash in white text in between shots of Cyrus modeling a number of […]
Kai Cenat will be making his directorial debut behind the camera as the streamer’s been tapped by Drake and PartyNextDoor to direct the OVO duo’s video for “Somebody Loves Me”. Cenat explained during a live stream on Saturday (May 17) that he’s going to direct the visual for Drake and PND’s moody hit, but also […]
In a swift follow-up to Jin’s debut solo album, Happy, released just six months ago, BTS‘ global superstar and resident rock enthusiast returns with Echo. Released on May 19, the seven-track journey explores more of the rock-influenced soundscapes that have shaped his musical identity, for deeper stories that can resonate on a more human level. […]
As Joey Bada$$ handles California cats like Ray Vaughn, Reason, AzChike and Daylyt on his lonesome, it looks like the West Coast isn’t giving up last year’s “Not Like Us” and GNX-feuled momentum without a fight. Over the past few months, Joey has been heralding his return to the rap game with slick boom-bap tracks […]
Justin Bieber was riding hard for the Toronto Maple Leafs Sunday (May 18), showing up to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with Hailey Bieber at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.
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Sitting right behind the player’s bench, the famous couple cuddled up while cheering on the Canadian hockey team as they faced off against the Florida Panthers. On Instagram, the “Baby” singer also shared a slew of toothy-grinned selfies he snapped inside, sneakily capturing right winger Mitchell Marner behind him.
“I’m a slut for these boys,” Justin wrote.
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Despite his and the Rhode founder’s moral support, the Leafs did end up losing 1-6 to their opponents. But that didn’t stop the pop star from feeling positive, writing on Instagram, “I don’t remember a time in my life when I haven’t been obsessed with the leafsssss.”
“This year we made it farther than we have in so long and im happy about that,” he added, sharing several photos of himself and Hailey, holding hands and giving each other kisses. “I can be patient cuz I know this is the team to do it.”
Even so, the Panthers couldn’t help but troll Justin a little bit after their big victory. On Instagram, the team shared an edited screenshot of one of the musician’s posts about the Leafs to look instead like he was praising Florida’s Brad Marchand. “[Brad Marchand] Gets It Done,” it reads on the Panthers’ Instagram.
Justin wasn’t the only star rooting for the Leafs on Sunday. Drake — who, like the Biebs, is a Toronto native — placed a bet of $1.25 million on a home-team win, and when that didn’t pan out, the “God’s Plan” rapper joked on his Story, “Bieber curse.”
One celebrity who is happy that the Panthers are advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals, however, is Ariana Grande. The pop star is a lifelong fan of the hockey team and, following Sunday’s win, shared a throwback photo of herself as a child, posing next to the Panthers mascot, and wrote on her Story “go cats!!!!!!!”
The Biebers’ date night at the playoffs comes a week after Justin threw Hailey — with whom he welcomed a son, Jack Blues, in August — a lavish Mother’s Day celebration, complete with a poolside dinner and Mariachi band. A few days later, the “Peaches” artist spoke out about Diddy for the first time since the Bad Boy Records founder’s federal trial began on May 5. Diddy, who faces life in prison on accusations of sex trafficking and racketeering (all of which the mogul has denied), used to have a friendship with Justin that began when the latter was a teenager.
“Although Justin is not among Sean Combs’ victims, there are individuals who were genuinely harmed by him,” a spokesperson for the “Love Yourself” singer told People last week. “Shifting focus away from this reality detracts from the justice these victims rightfully deserve.”
Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” is the biggest song in the world, as it adds a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200, while topping the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. survey for the first time.
The Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts, which began in September 2020, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the United States.
Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.
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“Ordinary” leads the Global 200 with 69.5 million streams (up 5% week-over-week) and 12,000 sold (up 6%) worldwide May 9-15.
The entire Global 200’s top five holds in place from a week earlier: “Die With a Smile” at No. 2, after 18 weeks at No. 1 starting last September (second only to the 19 weeks at No. 1 for Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” since the chart began); ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” at No. 3, after 12 weeks at No. 1 starting in November; Billie Eilish’s “Birds of a Feather” at No. 4, following three weeks at No. 1 last August; and Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” at No. 5, after it logged seven weeks on top beginning in February 2024.
Elsewhere in the Global 200’s top 10, The Weeknd and Playboi Carti’s “Timeless” soars 28-10, thanks to a 35% surge to 37.9 million streams worldwide after a remix adding Doechii was released May 9. The song peaked at No. 3 upon its debut last October.
“Ordinary” ascends 2-1 on Global Excl. U.S. with 49.1 million streams (up 7%) and 5,000 sold (up 2%) outside the U.S. As on the Global 200, Warren earns his first leader on Global Excl. U.S.
“Die With a Smile” drops to No. 2 after 17 weeks atop Global Excl. U.S. starting last September. Only “APT.” by ROSÉ and Bruno Mars, which holds at No. 3, has led longer: 19 weeks, beginning in November.
“Birds of a Feather” rises 5-4 on Global Excl. U.S., following three weeks at No. 1 last August, and JENNIE’s “like JENNIE” slips 4-5, after hitting No. 3.
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated May 24, 2025) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow, May 20. For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard’s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
