Thank you for following my blog throughout this semester. This post marks the end of this blog, for now at least. The good thing is that I have covered the majority of the genres that I listen to and believe are important in Latin culture. I shared modern genres as well as traditional genres. All these genres have huge influences and make up the playlists that you will hear at parties and get-togethers.

This post will not cover a genre as the other posts did. This genre will also not cover a specific song and analyze its meaning. We have already discussed the history of genres. We have discussed how many Latin genres consist of European, Indigenous, and African mixtures. We have already discussed how some genres are meant to be more romantic whereas others tell stories. We have not covered every Latin genre. For example, I left out Vallenato which is popular in Colombia, Tango which is popular in Argentina, and Ranchera which is popular in Mexico (and you may be familiar with it because mariachi bands play this type of music). However, I will not discuss those either.

Courtesy of ThoughtCo

This post will not discuss what we already know but rather what is yet to be known. The future of Latin music cannot be known, but there are definetely positive trends.

The most important thing about music is the influence it can have. Music can connect people and encourage positivity. In the past, Latin music has not had a huge influence in the world. Music has been dominated by English speaking artists, especially those who find success in the United States. This has spread American influence around the world.

Now, Latin American artists are trying to do the same thing. The current stars want to have a global influence and are making efforts to be heard around the world. The plan most of the artists have right now is to hit the radios in the United States and then go from there. Such happened with Despacito. It became popular in the United States, thanks to the collaboration with Justin Beiber, and the became a worldwide sensation. The song Mi Gente by J Balvin similarly became a popular song worldwide and Obama claimed that is was his favorite song.

Courtesy of Billboard

This is a very good thing for the Latin community. By spreading the culture, more people can become accepting of the Latin community and embrace Latin traditions. This can remove the negative stigma that exists with Latinos and the Latin community can be admired for its music and beautiful culture.

The only problem Latin music has right now is the language. If Latin artists really want to spread to America they need to understand that non-Spanish speakers will struggle to appreciate music they don’t understand. Despacito hit because Justin Bieber did a collaboration and there was an English part to the song. A few years ago, the song Bailando by Enrique Iglesias and Gente the Zona reached the American radios. This song was a hit but its lyrics were slightly changed to include more English. Most recently, Cardi B came out with the song “I Like it” which was top charts and had two Latin American singers in it: Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny and Colombian artist J Balvin.

Courtesy of Billboard

It will take more collaborations and translations to fully make Latin music appealing to an American audience. Even though the language barrier exists, Latin music is still gaining popularity beyond just Latin American countries and it is possible that it will continue to gain popularity and become more influential. Soon, you may commonly hear Latin songs on the radio. 

I hope you found this blog entertaining and learned more about Latin music and Latin culture. If you want suggestions on where to find more Latin music I highly recommend the Latin playlists on Spotify- they really include some of the recent hits that are being heard in Latin America. I hope I have expanded your music taste and influenced you with some Latin flavor. This may be my last post about Latin music, but the music plays on. Enjoy it and embrace it!

Last blog post I discussed the modern genre of Reggeaton. This has been the sensation that has swept Latin America and has been played in several thousand parties. However, even though that can be considered the new generation of Latin music, there is one other genre that is even more recent that is really on the rise. Latin trap is becoming the new things and younger generations are listening to this over reggeaton.

This genre is heavily influenced by American culture because it is based on the trap genre that had already existed here from the African American culture. Additionally, Latin trap also tries to fuse Reggeaton into the songs, which preserves some of the Latin sound mixed in with the trap. The lyrics tend to discuss sex, drugs, and street life. The lyrics also tend to be very vulgar.

Courtesy of Billboard

The trap genre did not seem like it was going to become very popular in the Latin community. It was trying to compete with reggeaton which at the time was completely dominant. In fact, an article on the Washington Post discussed how record labels believed that there was no future for Latin trap.

The first trap song is said to have come out in the mid-2000s. In 2007, a remix was made to the song “El Pistolon”. Arcangel and De La Ghetto were the pioneers that made stepped out of the reggaeton scene to make the trap remix. Both these artists are Puerto Rican. Puerto Rico actually dominates the Latin trap world followed by Colombia. It is no surprise that Puerto Rico pioneered such a genre because Puerto Rico has strong ties to the United States. Many of the artists even lived in New York. Therefore, the artists grew up with the hip hop culture of America but rapped in Spanish.

Courtesy of Hulkshare

Around 10 years after the first Latin trap song came out, the trap genre is now very popular in Latin America. Many reggeaton artists have come out with their own Latin trap songs because the genres are both related and very popular. Many collaborations have also been made between artists to keep the genre on the rise and expanding the audience. This is one of the genres that is also gaining popularity in the United States.

Some of the big names in the genre include Bad Bunny, Arcangel, Anual AA, De La Ghetto, Bryant Myers, Ozuna, J Balvin, Maluma. Some of these artists also have a focus on Reggeaton, but they have made collaborations and songs that are Latin trap. Bad Bunny is one of the artists on the list that truly has a focus on the trap.

An article on 34th Street discusses that Latin trap was overlooked in 2017. The genre was overlooked because Reggeaton was more popular and because Despacito took the spotlight. However, Latin trap has been on the rise and continues to be on the rise. The article gives credit to Bad Bunny for putting the genre at the level it is at today.

Bad Bunny is a Puerto Rican artist famous for trap. He is very popular in Puerto Rico and Latin America. His song “Soy Peor” is an iconic song in the genre that caused the genre to spread at the magnitude that it has.  

Courtesy of Discogs

Looking at the near future, Latin trap may start to take over the stage. However, reggeaton still remains more popular and influential. As of now, both are widely heard and both are partied to at high school parties, college parties, and night clubs as well.

This blog has focused on some of the classic latin genres that have been around for years. The genres I have discussed so far have been the traditional genres that my parents, grandparents, and great grandparents probably partied to. They are the genres that evolved from a combination of Indigenous, European, and African sounds and dances. However, as time evolves so does music. Today, what teenagers and young adults listen to is a combination of past sounds and new genres. Music has moved into the urban direction and now one of the biggest genres in Latin music is Reggeaton.

I was introduced to this genre when I was about 13 at a quinceanera party in Colombia. This was the music everyone was listening too and it was becoming sensational. This genre has an iconic beat that is very repetitive throughout the song and can be danced to quite easily and continuously. As an article on ThoughtCo puts it, reggaeton is a combination of electronic dance music, hip hop, and Spanish rap.

This may seem like an odd combination. But this genre is actually very fun at parties and is becoming popular on a global scale. If any of you have heard the song Despacito, this song is an example of reggaeton and Latin pop fused together.  

Now, where did this genre come from? Interestingly enough, not from one of the islands- technically. This genre originated in the 1990s in Panama by an artist referred to as El General. He interestingly came out with a few songs, revolutionalized the genre, and then kinda fell off the globe. The article “El General Pioneered the Sound of Reggaeton, Then Disappeared Entirely” goes into this if you are interested in learning more about his influence and sudden career halt.

Courtesy of we are mitu

The interesting thing is that it was not long before Puerto Rico took over and became the center for Reggeaton. To this day, they still produce the most amount of Reggeaton stars and songs. One of the pioneering artists could be said to be Daddy Yankee. In 2004 he came out with the hit “Gasolina” and just went off from there. He eventually collaborated with Luis Fonsi to produce Despacito in 2017.

Courtesy of Spin

Today, some of the most popular artists are from Puerto Rico. They include Daddy Yankee, Don Omar, Wisin, Yandel, Nicky Jam, Ozuna, Plan B, and Arcangel. This is just to name a few of the top artists.

(Shown Above: Ozuna, Wisin, Nicky Jam)

Courtesy of Latin Billboards

Colombia has recently also been becoming very dominant in the Reggeaton world. Some artists include J Balvin, Maluma, Manuel Turizo, Sebastian Yatra, and even Shakira.

(Shown Above: J Balvin, Maluma)

Courtesy of Latin Billboards

Most of these artists try to go international and are pushing to make Latin music popular worldwide. It might not be long before we hear reggeaton in radios and parties in America too. Despacito was a hit in the United States. We will probably see more Spanish songs become hits in the future. If you go to Southern Florida in places like West Palm Beach and Miami, there are radio stations strictly for reggaeton. A radio station around Reading Pennsylvania is strictly for reggaeton. The genre is growing and will continue to grow.

I have not attached a song to this video because none really stand out over the others. If you are interested in reggaeton, there are great playlists on youtube and Spotify that will play some reggeaton hits that are currently being heard in Latin America.

Something interesting about some Latin American genres is that they originated from the islands. Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic are very influential when it comes to music. I have already discussed salsa and merengue which originated from the islands. One other genre very popular from the island of the Dominican Republic is bachata.

Bachata, like salsa, merengue, and cumbia, originated from a mixture of European, African, and Indigenous sounds. Bachata is well known for its reliance on guitar. Other instruments incorporated are bongos and güira.

Courtesy of Berkeley

Bachata does not have a long history. The genres first original song was recorded in 1961by Jose Calderon. The genre was originally compared to another Latin genre called bolero which was popular in Cuba and Puerto Rico.  

Courtesy of iASO Records

Bachata began as a romantic genre. The genre was popular for couples and was meant to be danced by couples. Bachata is iconic for being an intimate dance and it is not that difficult as compared to dancing salsa.

Here is a video of two people dancing to a very popular song in the genre of bachata. Watch this to get an idea of the dance of bachata.

Unfortunately, bachata started becoming a genre that was considered trashy. According to an article about the history of bachata, the reason for this is that it was being associated with the bad things in the streets. The genre was associated with prostitution and poverty. The genre told stories, but it was losing its elegance in a way. As time has gone by, it has regained a lot of popularity and it is once again a genre for lovers. Juan Luis Guerra is one notable artist that brought back the beauty of the genre because he was an elegant artist listened to by the wealthy and elite. The lyrics in the genre now continue to be romantic and the beat is meant to be danced intimately.

Here is a classic Juan Luis Guerra bachata performed live at the largest Latin American music festival:

Bachata is still very popular today in the Dominican Republic and in many Latin American countries. The genre has even expanded into parts of the United States where there is Dominican influence or Latin culture. Two modern iconic artists in the genre are Romeo Santos and Prince Royce. Both have brought life to the genre and have increased its popularity. Both sing the genre in falsetto and both write very romantic lyrics. Below I have included very popular songs by both artists. Each song reached over 1 billion views on Youtube, this shows the influence. The songs are typical bachata and are commonly heard at parties.

The genre remains one of the biggest genres in Latin America along with merengue and salsa. The intimacy and romantic nature of the genre keep it popular and keep couples dancing all night long.

So far, I have discussed Salsa and Cumbia. Both these genres came to mind because they are very popular in Colombia and the genre is also produced in Colombia. Therefore, I have grown up listening to a lot of those types of songs. However, there are more genres that exist that are also very popular in Colombia and also Latin America that come from some of the smaller Caribbean islands. Salsa itself is a genre that originated on the Island of Puerto Rico. Another one of those iconic genres I will be discussing is Merengue.

Courtesy of Heritage Institute

Merengue originated in the Dominican Republic. According to an article on central home about merengue, the dance of merengue is a combination of the African and the French Minuet. As I mentioned in previous blogs, there was a lot of African influence in the Caribbean area because is where many slaves came through. Merengue is a perfect example of how African slaves put a twist on a European dance to create something new.

Courtesy of WordPress

Originally, merengue was not danced by couples. Over time, merengue began to change and now, it is danced by couples and there is more motion of the hips.

Merengue is very popular in the Latin world and is commonly heard at parties. The genre is powerful and meaningful to Dominicans themselves. An article on Dance History Development discusses how Merenque once even became a social symbol. When Trujillo, a dictator, was in power, he was the person that determined who could dance and perform merengue. He did not like the upper class so he used the dance of merengue as part of his political campaign. An article on the Heritage Institute explains that the dance of Merengue was controversial and remained a dance of the lower class until the 1930s. 

Today, merengue is heard all around the Dominican Republic and in many other Latin American countries and it is danced by all different types of people.  There are many popular merengue songs that are commonly played at parties. Two very famous ones are Duena del Swing and Suavemente.

Both songs came out in the 1990s. Duena del Swing came out in 1995. This song was written by Los Hermanos Rosario, a popular Dominican group. Suavemente came out in 1998 and was written by Elvis Crespo. Elvis Crespo was a popular artist in the late 1990s and is a Puerto Rican American. Unlike other songs I have discussed on this blog, these do not have stories. Both songs were simply made to dance to and have a fun time at a party whether it be an informal party, a quinceanera, or a wedding. I have provided the videos below so that you can listen to the two popular songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78VgqNdgrc8

So far, I have explored Salsa and have explained two famous songs that I personally enjoy. However, this blog is about Latin music in general. This post will be a little different. I will not be breaking down a song, I will be explaining Colombia’s representative genre which is Cumbia.

Courtesy of Discover Colombia

The genre of Cumbia has begun to spread into other Latin American countries but the origins start in Colombia. As described in an article on Discover Colombia, cumbia is a mixture of African, Indigenous, and European music.

Cumbia incorporated drum beats that are a mix of African and Indigenous beats and instruments. This genre also incorporates instruments that came from Europe. However, the genre uses the indigenous flute called Gaita and a percussion instrument called Guacharacas. This instrument is heard in several Colombian songs because it is representative of the culture. Cumbia was born from the fusion of all those different sounds.

Courtesy of Flickr and WordPress

The genre became famous in the 50s and 60s. According to an article on NPR that discusses Cumbia, the first Cumbia recorded outside of Colombia was in the 50s in Mexico. The article goes as far as to say that Cumbia has become one of the sounds of Mexico.  

What is most notable about the genre is the dance that goes along with it. In my previous post about “La Rebellion” I mention that Cartagena, Colombia was one of the biggest slave ports in South America. This eventually caused the Colombian coast to have a lot of African influence from the slaves. The dance for Cumbia originates from shackled slaves. The dance requires minimal movement of your feet because when slaves danced, they could not move that much because their arms and legs were restricted of motion. The dance to cumbia continues to be danced with minimal motion of the legs.

The dance is thought to be so popular because it is not very difficult to dance to as compared to the other famous genres like Salsa, Merengue, and Bachata. The dance only requires small steps and a bit of motion in the hips. Below I have provided a video that shows what a Colombian Cumbia dance looks like.

Cumbia is danced in the streets of Cartagena for tourist to see, it is danced in festivals, and it is danced in Carnivals. This dance represents Colombia, however, it has also had influence in other Latin American countries and can be considered a genre that represents an aspect of Latin America.

Here I have provided an example of a famous Cumbia song called “La Pollera Colora”. This can give you an idea of what the genre is like.

Today, Latin Music has been taking another direction. Reggeaton, Latin Pop, and Trap Latino have been at the top of the Latin Billboards. These genres are becoming popular among the youth and are the songs you would hear at parties. However, this does not mean that traditional Latin music has faded away. Salsa and merengue, for example, continue to lift the spirits of Hispanic people. Just because newer genres are taking the stage, does not mean that the other genres have less influence now.

In the year 2013, Marc Anthony’s song “Vivir Mi Vida” hit the radios and became a sensation. “Vivir Mi Vida”  was released in his album 3.0. This Salsa song became very popular in the Latin community. The actual song lyrics are not actually original lyrics that Marc Anthony wrote.

Courtesy of Amazon

The Salsa song “Vivir Mi Vida” is actually a Spanish cover of the song “C’est La Vie” by Algerian singer Khaled. Marc Anthony conveniently wrote the lyrics during a time where Latin communities were feeling oppressed and losing joy. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to bring out a song that would bring joy back into the Latin community. The French lyrics of the song seemed inspirational and perfect so instead of creating something new, Marc Anthony essentially created the Spanish translate, Salsa remix version of the song.

Courtesy of Amazon

Once the Salsa song was released, it became number one on the Latin Billboards. The song even won an award for song of the year. Every party would play the song and it was bringing happiness to the Latin community. In Spanish classes across America, this song was played to give students an idea of the Latin culture and also gave students practice with translating. It was not long before this song became rather symbolic of Latin America.

The lyrics repeat “Voy a reír, voy a bailar, vivir mi vida la la la la, voy a reír, voy a gozar, vivir mi vida la la la la”. This roughly translates to “I’m gonna laugh, I’m gonna dance live my life, la la la la, I’m gonna laugh, I’m gonna enjoy live my life, la la la la”.

The message of the song is quite simple. It is to live your life in a happy way. The song was sensational and brought the Latin community together. The song helped bring unity, hope, and happiness to the people through its motivational words. Newer songs have come out since that have become the new symbols of Latin music. However, “Vivir Mi Vida” is still a popular song and can still be heard widely today and its influence still lives on.

This blog would not be complete without the music video. Check out the song that brought some joy and happiness to the Latin community.

La Rébellion is a Salsa classic in Colombia. When they put this song on in a party everyone starts dancing and cheering. The composer of this piece is Joe Arroyo, a famous Colombian salsa and tropical music producer. This song was released in the year 1995. The song can be found on his album “Joe Arroyo y La Verdad”. The song was one of his biggest hits. As explained by El Tiempo, the lyrics to the song actually come from an older song called “El Mulato” by Robert y Su Banda released in 1978. The lyrics were interestingly written by Joe Arroyo’s wife.

Courtesy of WordPress

Joe Arroyo’s version of the song is a musical masterpiece combining incredible percussion beats as well as a top quality Latin piano part played by Chelito De Castro. This falls under the typical Colombian Salsa song but also has a tropical feel to it.

The musical aspect of the song is amazing so it is no wonder it gets people on the dance floor, but it is the lyrics to the song that is very notable and worth understanding.

The song takes place in Cartagena during the 1600s. To understand the lyrics we need to understand what was happening in Cartagena during the time frame that the song describes. As described in an article on Atlanta Black Star, Cartagena was South America’s largest slave trading port. Most slaves that were distributed throughout South America had passed by Cartagena.

Courtesy of ICCB

The song tells the story of a slave who rebels against a Spanish slave owner who hit the slaves’ wife. The song repeats that in the streets to this day, you can still hear the slave shout “no le pegue a la Negra”, which roughly translates to “don’t hit the black woman”.

This song is iconic and is considered one of the most famous Salsa songs of all time. The song relives history and allows people to remember the African roots in the country and in South America. It also stands as a reminder of how the culture has evolved away from those times. But most notable is the representation of a perseverant slave who would take a lot as a slave, but he would never stand by and let his wife get hit by a Spanish slaveholder.

Courtesy of Pinterest

Joe Arroyo himself is an idol. His salsa and tropical music had a lot of influence and many were themed about the African influence in South America. His music lives on to this day and continues to keep parties going through the morning.

This blog would not be complete if I didn’t share the actual song with you. Now that you have read about the song you can listen to “La Rebellion” on Youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nhtn3HROvgA

Growing up in a Latin household meant listening to Latin music. Both my parents were born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia. To this day, the majority of my family still lives there and it just my parents, brother, and I that live here in the United States. Despite being far from our roots, we still try to preserve our Latin traditions and our Latin culture. This includes listening to Latin music, dancing to Latin music, supporting the soccer team, celebrating holidays with Latin traditions, etc. Most notable of the list, however, is the music. This is because it is so different from American music and has been the music I have grown up listening to.

Source: Milenial Travel

The most famous and popular genre is Salsa. Salsa is a notable Latin genre that consists of African drum patterns with the accompaniment of European instruments. The genre flourished originally in Cuba but has spread to become dominant in Puerto Rico and the countries that surround the Caribbean. Colombia is famous for Salsa, and the capital of Salsa in the world is considered to be Cali, Colombia.

However, Latin music does not stop there. Merengue, Vallenato, and Cumbia are three other classic genres famous in Colombia that I have grown up listening to. Most of the different genres originated in smaller countries like Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. However, they have spread all over Latin America.

From: World Maps

Most recently, Reggaeton and Pop Latino have taken the stage and have been sensational at an international level. Such was seen in 2017 with the worldwide hit “Despacito”. This song received over 5 billion views on youtube, making the music video the most watched video on youtube.

Source: Billboard

Music is an important thing for each culture. It is the music the people listen to in order to either party or relax, it is the music that cultures have traditional dances to, it is the music that connects the people, and it is the music that tells a culture’s story.

Latin music has had huge influences in the Latin community. Latin music is also growing in popularity expanding into the United States as well as gaining a global presence. Since Latin music is expanding its influence, this blog will explore some of the songs that have shaped the genre and the impacts the music has had in the past and the impacts the Latin music is having now.

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