In 2004, Puerto Rican artist Daddy Yankee would open the doors for a new genre with his iconic song "Gasolina." The rise of Reggaeton in the early 2000s was the next big step for Latin music after the pop music of the 90s was starting to fade away. Reggaeton was a game-changer for not just Latin music but music worldwide as a whole. The genre had existed for a few decades, finding its start in Panama. Here in the USA, though, we saw the rise of artists like Don Omar, Pitbull, and Wisin & Yandel help the reggaeton genre keep rising in popularity in the 2000s. This is all important to what would eventually come in the 2020s. But, before that, reggaeton had its time in the spotlight for a few years before it went away for a short time. Like with all trends in music, things eventually become oversaturated, and the genre slowly loses its popularity.
Enter the 2010s, and we get a new style of Latin music called Urbano that starts to take off in the charts, and that's the more pop-sounding tropical Latin songs with some reggaeton elements still in there. The biggest hit from this came when Daddy Yankee teamed up with Luis Fonsi to make the song of the summer in "Despacito". You also had artists like J Balvin, Nicky Jam, and, of course, Bad Bunny start to take off around this time. Lots of mainstream artists outside of the genre were also trying to use this "urbano" style to get hits, too. We saw the likes of Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, and Drake all try to ride the wave of popularity and were mostly successful in doing so.
All this leads to the current decade of the 2020s, where things are certainly changing. The whole "urbano" movement ran into the ground by this point, with all the artists trying to ride its popularity like I mentioned, so things needed to go in a different direction for Latin music. Enter Bad Bunny. In 2020, he released the album "YHLQMDLG", and it helped shift Latin music in a new direction. A return to the more club-centric style of reggaeton, with perreo. The album was a huge success for Bad Bunny, and it would eventually lead to his most successful album yet, a few years later. "Un Verano Sin Ti" was the album that took over streaming and launched Bad Bunny into superstardom across the world. It was his most ambitious project yet, and the experimentation in his music paid off, as it was hugely successful and was even a nominee for best album at the Grammys. Latin music in the 2020s has really promoted more experimental sounds and different genres, not that it wasn't happening before this, but it feels like more artists are being recognized from the Latin music world here in the USA. I mean, Bad Bunny just performed at the biggest televised event of the year in the USA, so that should tell you something. More artists are getting that kind of spotlight now, and it should just be the start.
Talking about modern Latin music and its rising stars, I figured I could mention a few projects here from the last few years that are standouts and worth checking out if you want to dive into some new music.
The Marias: Submarine
A band that has music in both English and Spanish. They started getting big in the early 2020s, but it wasn't until "Submarine" came out in 2024 that the band would get their music on the charts. Actually, they did technically have a hit before this with a Bad Bunny collab back in 2022, but I would count that more as a Bad Bunny hit. They were actually just nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy, but didn't end up winning. Still, that's nothing. The album "Submarine" is their best work so far, though it's a great alternative album that really elevates their established sound. It's a more dreampop sound compared to their earlier work, but it really works for them, or at least they make it work better than a lot of other artists in that genre. I'd say anytime you can stand out in a genre that's being oversaturated these days is a big deal. Anyway, go check this album out is what I'm trying to say.
Rosalia: Lux
Is it still Latin music if it's from Spain? I don't know, but I'm going to talk about this album anyway. Rosalia has been around for a decent amount of time now, and she already has some great and well-known albums out there. Last year she released her newest album called "Lux," and it was... well, it was way different than I would have thought. Rosalia wanted to create an album that wasn't just full of earworm choruses and catchy tunes, but one that could really challenge the listener and bring out deeper emotions. It's without a doubt her most ambitious album to date, but also possibly one of the most ambitious albums ever made by someone in her position. Certainly didn't play it safe with this one, but the risk paid off and she accomplished exactly what she set out to do. The album still has a few pop-friendly songs, especially in "La Perla." But then there are tracks like "Sexo, Violencia y Llantas" that have heavy classical influence and deeper lyrics that continue throughout the rest of the album. Lots of religious imagery/references really help paint a picture along with the music. It's a challenging album, but one that deserves a listen.
Natalia Lafourcade: De Todas Las Flores
Following the last album by Rosalia, we get another album heavily influenced by music of the past in "De Todas Las Flores" by Mexican artist Natalia Lafourcade. Seriously, one of the most beautiful albums of the decade (so far). Natalia has a special way of drawing in listeners with her amazing vocals and beautiful lyricism that often feels like a warm hug in the form of a song. If you just want to relax on a beautiful day, this album is perfect to just put on and enjoy. Really, Natalia is just great at putting emotions into all her music, and you can always feel what she feels through her vocals, even if you didn't understand Spanish. But if you do, then you are rewarded with beautiful lyrics from a great songwriter.
Jean Dawson - Rock A Bye Baby, Glimmer of God
I've been really into Jean Dawson as of late. Jean is a Mexican-American artist who has been around the music scene for getting close to a decade now. He's known for his experimental sounds and always trying new things with his music. His latest project, "Rock A Bye Baby," was another really good one with elements of many different genres like pop, rock, R&B, trap, and more. I can't say it always works perfectly, but I'd say more often than not it does. He does a great job at injecting those genres with his own style to make them fit into his projects. Even though there's plenty of experimenting, nothing sounds out of place, and the album is cohesive. I just want to shout out more artists who are willing to keep trying new things and making them work.
Well, those are a few albums you can check out if you've never heard them before. Not that they were hidden gems or anything, as all those artists have a good following, but in case you didn't, I would recommend listening to them. I look forward to seeing how Latin music keeps innovating not just in the Latin music world, but the entire music world as a whole. Who knows where else it could go from here, but I'd say it can only get bigger.
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