Latin Music is far from new. However, it wasn’t always on the rise like it has been during recent years. Latin music was once just composed of local Hispanic areas and the Latinx culture. It never dominated American music charts, was never honored at awards ceremonies, and was rarely played on local radio stations; very few American songwriters even collaborated with Latin songwriters.
Yet, Camila Cabello, Ozuna, Bad Bunny, and Selena Gomez have been on America’s Top 100 charts and have been nominated for the top songs of the year on multiple occasions. These songwriters, and many more, helped Latin music become as popular as it is today.
For example, “Havana” by Cuban-American singer Camila Cabello featuring guest vocals from American rapper Young Thug, was released on August 3rd of 2017 from her solo debut album. Originally this was a part of her promotional single, which then became one of her topmost listened songs. While Latin music slowly gained popularity over the years, “Despacito” by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee made Latin music come to its full effect just days after its release with 7.3 billion views.
This is no surprise. Due to its rhythms and captivating upbeat feel, the musical style appeals to people of all ages and backgrounds. It never mattered if the lyrics were in Spanish, English — or both. The music is danceable and relatable because, as opposed to what they are doing, you concentrate on how it makes you feel and how it makes you move.
A more recent trend in America was sparked, where songwriters collaborate with Latin songwriters like Selena Gomez in order to create a whole album in Spanish; something completely new to Gomez and her fans.
“You’re starting to listen to half-English, half-Spanish on the radio more than ever,” she told Rolling Stone. “And it’s a really exciting time. And I think that— I just hope that people understand how much I put my heart into this, and how amazing I feel about it.”
Selena Gomez had dropped her ‘De Una Vez’ single back in January. This marked Gomez’s first Spanish project since her 2018 collaboration with DJ Snake’s single featuring Cardi B and Ozuna, ‘Taki Taki,’ which had hit No. 1 on the Latin Airplay Chart.
“I’m all for it because it’s opening the Spanish language and the culture up to different people who normally wouldn’t listen to it at all, and when you think about it, as these non-Spanish speaking listen, they are learning Spanish, which could benefit some people and it could inspire people to actually want to learn the Spanish language,” said Jessica Suarez, an MLEC student in the Health Academy.
“There are many Spanish speakers who struggle in our country because of the language barrier so I am all in favor of her Spanish album and all the English and Spanish collaborations because they are giving us Spanish speakers and members of the Latinx community the opportunity to extend our roots and our language worldwide,” she continued.
Pop stars are working with Latin musicians, and unexpected pairings are churning out chart-topping hits. The music industry landscape has changed, and Spanish-language hits are gaining more and more attention thanks to artist collaborations that pool together multiple fan bases with one massive, viral hit.
This is a new beginning for the Hispanic and Latin communities.
