Tainy’s 19-track solo debut is a layered, sophisticated set that yields surprising sounds — best heard on these seven standouts chosen by Billboard editors.
Tainy
Elliott Muscat/Courtesy of Imagine It Media
Tainy has spent years producing for seemingly every major hitmaker in the Latin music market, and in the process, has defined the sound of contemporary reggaetón. What was left for him to do? Release an album all his own. Today (June 30), he has finally done just that with his debut solo set, Data.
The goodwill and good reputation cultivated by working tirelessly with the best has yielded a list of A-list collaborators on the 19-track set, including reggaetón mainstays Bad Bunny, Feid, Rauw Alejandro, Jhayco, Myke Towers, Daddy Yankee and Arcángel alongside a slew of newcomers, too. Plus, a handful of non-urban acts who respect the Tainy ethos such as Kany García, Skrillex and Julieta Venegas.
Tainy’s skill and good taste are the defining factors of his unexpectedly layered album. While it would have been so easy to push out reggaetón bangers, instead fans get carefully textured, thought-out tracks built around synth-based dance and pop that incorporate many styles and yet manage to sound like a cohesive whole.
In an effort to help navigate Data’s 19 tracks, Billboard’s Latin editors have each selected their favorite from their album. Here are our picks.
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“Mojabi Ghost” with Bad Bunny
Tainy has been working long enough with Bad Bunny that he can experiment with abandon. It’s likely why, for Tainy’s own set, Bunny would opt not for an uptempo reggaetón banger like the ones that have placed him and Tainy on top of the charts, but for an ’80s inspired dance track performed in large degree over changing keyboard chord progressions. For all its upbeat tempo, “Mojabi Ghost” is tinged in melancholia; witness the chorus: “Fumando, bebiendo, chingando, fingiendo, que ya no pienso en ti. No se a quien le miento si esto que siento no me deja dormir (smoking, drinking, f—ing, pretending I no longer think of you. Don’t know who I’m lying to if what I feel doesn’t let me sleep).” The added bonus is hearing Bad Bunny’s voice in two different octaves, a reminder that he can really sing. — Leila Cobo
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“Volver” with Skrillex, Four Tet & Rauw Alejandro
A mix of reggaetón and merengue ripiao, “Volver” is a like an egg hunt: Keep listening and you don’t know what you’ll find, from the opening bass drum that gives way to a running loop and finally Rauw Alejandro singing about love lost. The track essentially repeats, but the richness of sonic elements — the strings, the male backing vocals, the drum machine — all add up for a deeply layered track. — L.C.
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“Mañana” with The Marías and Young Miko
Sonically complex and multilayered, “Mañana” is a standout track, featuring The Marías’ lead vocalist María Zardoya and up-and-coming rapper Young Miko. The first 20 seconds of the song are very much in tune with The Marías’ indie-pop vibe, which flaunts Zardoya’s ethereal and hushed vocals. But the song is quickly punctuated by a thumping reggaeton beat and Young Miko’s piercing and deep vocal tone. The lyrics are just as bold as the pair sing about reuniting with an ex-lover: “I’m dying to kiss you again, to have you, bebé.” — Griselda Flores
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“Pasiempre” with Arcángel and Jhayco feat. Myke Towers, Omar Courtz & Arca
There’s an otherworldly quality about “Pasiempre,” a hazy, renegade opus on which Puerto Rican alchemist Tainy gathers kings of Latin trap: Arcángel, Jhayco, Bad Bunny, Myke Towers and Omar Courtz. Together, each rapper spits verses that boast their abilities. The hard-hitting, ethereal trap beat is arguably the most fire of Data — and perhaps of the current música urbana landscape — thanks to Venezuelan experimental producer Arca, Cuban-Puerto Rican beat maker Albert Hype, and of course, the star of the show, Tainy. In a way, it aptly reminisces on “I’m God” by Clams Casino with a subtle “One More Time” by Daft Punk vibe. After all, it’s a statement song, and as the song says, “Porque yo no soy un artista del momento, yo soy un artista pa’siempre.” (“Because I am not an artist of the moment, I am an artist forever.”) — Isabela Raygoza
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“Lo Siento BB:/” with Bad Bunny and Julieta Venegas
This surprising collaboration was released on Oct. 5 2021, helping alert fans as to what they could expect from the unexpected Data. This marks the first collaboration for the chart-topping producer, the Mexican singer-songwriter and his longtime music partner Bad Bunny. The trio delivered an ultra-melancholic song with dreamy piano melodies transitioning to a smooth reggaeton groove with classic drum beats featuring Venegas (back into public consciousness after years off the market) and Bad Bunny on vocals. “Lo siento” not only blurs the lines between genres but offered an early prediction of what we are seeing now in Latin music. — Ingrid Fajardo
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“La Baby” with Daddy Yankee, Feid & Sech
A feel-good song that will surely make your head spin, “La Baby” unites Tainy with three reggaetón superstars: Daddy Yankee, Feid and Sech. The infectious track with hard-hitting drum beats and lyrics meant to empower and motivate the ladies — “She doesn’t have an owner … She’s building her dreams/ Everyone I show her off to/ Says she’s hot like a jalapeño” — comes with a star-studded music video in which Becky G, Camila Cabello and Lali, to name a few, sing along while getting ready for a night out, the gym or a late-night drive around town. — Sigal Ratner-Arias
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“Sacrificio,” with Xantos
The closing track is also the most personal one on Data. Backed by melancholic piano melodies, almost out of a French film soundtrack, the half Dominican, half Puerto Rican Xantos opens up about sacrifice. His introspective lyrics admit, “nobody catching the vision at the beginning, until the benefits arrive,” and also touch on being anti-social and distant to protect his aura. What seems to be a reflection of Tainy’s own battles, the rapper also spits verses of being his own competition, finding his peace and having the strength to continue thanks to his mom’s smile. — Jessica Roiz
