Latin music in 2021: the rhythms you'll hear on playlists

2021-03-17T05:55:28.161Z

Latin music is diverse, even though the playlists say otherwise. Know the rhythms that will be added to your playlists this year

(CNN Spanish) -

It is no secret that Latin music, specifically urban music, dominates the playlists and not only reigns in Latin America, but beyond our continent.

We have a lot to thank «Despacito», the song composed by Erika Ender and Luis Fonsi.

The single broke record for views on YouTube, topped Billboard's "Hot Latin Songs" chart for 56 weeks, got 7 Guinness records, and was translated into languages such as Russian and Chinese.

It also encouraged Spanish-language music to penetrate markets once dreamed of and achieved the

reverse

crossover

, that is, Anglo-Saxon artists wanted to sing in Spanish to conquer that gold mine that is the Latin market.

Since the

"Despacito"

boom

, reggaeton and its artists have become frequent residents of the

global

charts

of platforms such as YouTube and Spotify.

For example, Bad Bunny was the most listened to artist in the world in 2020 on Spotify.

In total, he had 8,300 million views on the platform and his album "YHLQMDLG", which this Sunday won the Grammy for "best Latin / urban pop album", was the most played production last year on the Swedish streaming platform.

We spoke with Antonio Vázquez, Spotify's editorial leader for the Latin market in the United States, about what we will hear this year and the genres that will be trending in the coming months.

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(Credit: Jason Koerner / Getty Images for iHeartRadio)

CNN Pop Zone: What genres will we see climbing the

playlists

and

charts

in 2021?

Antonio Vázquez:

It is interesting to see how, for example, there are new genres like Latin R&B, which are being introduced a little more in pop culture or in reproductions.

Pop ballads like (those of) Camilo, which last year brought us quite a few hits, the

indy

sounds

and of course the regional Mexican, which I think is going to be one of the hottest and most exciting songs for 2021.

Although it is something that we have always had with a more traditional sound with bands such as La Arrolladora, MS, El Recodo, among others, there is a new trend of young people who were not necessarily even born in Mexico, but are

born and raised

in the United States. United and that they are introducing a very new and fresh sound, mostly based on guitars, in the sixth bass, using the requinto all of a sudden.

But not only this, but they also expose their culture.

Considering that they are based in the United States, they have a much closer approach to Hip Hop, for example.

These elements are mixed within what we traditionally know as the Mexican regional and new fusions are created, as we are seeing now with the tumbado corridos or this wave of sierreño, which is somewhat depressive, a little slower.

In general we see a lot of evolution and the introduction of new sounds that are permeating the

mainstream

Latin

culture

CNN Pop Zone: What other bands have you seen that are gaining or generating attention on the platform?

Antonio Vázquez:

We are very excited about Eslabón Armado, Esteban Gabriel, Herencia de Patrones, all of these are groups that mostly do sierreño, or make lying corridos, they are having a lot of popularity, especially the west coast (of the United States).

This may sound very obvious, but for example it is not just California, but there are also many artists coming out of Arizona, Texas, Nevada as Third Element.

In the end, many of them have as a common denominator that they are all very young and bilingual and have a different culture than the one we are used to from regional Mexican artists.

(Credit: Kevin Winter / Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

Zona Pop CNN: Could it be that Bad Bunny's collaboration with Natanael Cano is what is perhaps turning a bit of attention to specifically this of the Mexican regional genre?

Antonio Vázquez:

Yes, I think that in that aspect the biggest urban artists like Bad Bunny, Gente de Zona, have realized that they still have a lot of new Latin audiences to win and that many times it is a bit polarizing.

In general, people who listen to regional Mexican or people who listen to urban may not listen to the other genre.

So these collaborations have to happen so that little by little this mixture of cultures and genres takes place.

The truth is quite exciting to see where it takes us.

Like suddenly hearing a corrido with trap, instrumentations from both worlds is interesting and some sound very organic.

CNN Pop Zone: Another of your predictions talks about the

crossover

, but the

reverse

crossover

as I say, which are Anglo-Saxon artists singing in Spanish.

Antonio Vázquez:

I think that

streaming

and the new digital era is something that has helped a lot.

Not only to get to where we are right now with the popularity of Latin music, but also to make those artist connections, such as Beyoncé (with J Balvin) or Billie Eilish (with Rosalía).

But this is also happening at levels a little lower, that is, there are artists who simply because of access to technology make it very, very natural for them to collaborate with each other.

These mergers are the new normal and we will continue to see it, as there are more and more Anglo-Saxon labels such as Columbia, Republic, etc., that are signing Latin artists.

CNN Pop Zone: Is there an artist that is growing in a dizzying way and that is catching your attention?

Antonio Vázquez:

For a few years now, I believe that since 2018 we heard Camilo for the first time singing with Mau and Riky «Desconocidos», I think that this was a moment that greatly changed our perception of where Latin pop was going .

I think he has proven to be such a versatile artist that today he can go out with a reggaeton, tomorrow he can do a champeta and the next day a bachata.

He breaks that tradition that as an artist you have to establish yourself in a genre or an audience in order to be successful.

So, he literally because of his personality, because of his musical genius, he can do this variation between different genres and different collaborations with artists who are completely different from him, like Alpha, for example.

CNN Pop Zone: We mentioned a lot of men, but how do you see artists like Elena Rose?

Antonio Vázquez:

Elena Rose was our first Radar artist.

From the beginning we have been obsessed with her and yes, we have seen how she is collaborating with many artists, writing and we are very excited to see where her career is going to go.

There is a wave and a pretty good commitment on our part from Spotify to increase the representation of Latina women in music.

We have several playlists that are starting to help with this.

One, for example, is called «fem.», Where we have this new generation of Latin artists who are creating their own rules, such as Elena Rose, Sophia Valdéz, who is Panamanian American, Carmen de León, Nani, Las Villa, The Ross Maria, etcetera.

CNN Pop Zone: Which artist will have significant growth in 2021?

Antonio Vázquez:

Myke Towers.

If you already had an incredible year in 2020, I believe that 2021 is really the year that is going to position you on another level.

He has an out-of-this-world talent.

We are very excited about everything he accomplished in 2020 and I think he was one of the artists with the most collaborations and overall success on two (of our)

playlists

, ¡Viva Latino!

and Baila Reggaeton.

CNN Pop Zone: Why do you think artists now prefer to release singles and based on their success perhaps compile them into an LP?

Antonio Vázquez:

Technological changes have historically dictated the evolution of consumer formats, and

streaming

has facilitated the distribution of music and the access that consumers have to it.

An artist's decision to release a single vs.

An album can be linked to various factors ranging from experimentation, to budget or marketing plan and it works differently for each case.

However, the artistic and conceptual value of an album continues to be of great importance in the streaming age and we at Spotify are committed to helping amplify these messages as we have recently done through the

Enhanced Album

format