Luis Fonsi Earns 11th No. 1 on Billboard’s Latin Pop Airplay Chart with Carlos Vives-Collab “Santa Marta”

Luis Fonsi has returned to No. 1 on the Billboard music charts…

The 46-year-old Puerto Rican Latin Grammy-winning singer is back at No. 1 on Billboard’s Latin Pop Airplay chart with “Santa Marta,” his first collaboration with Carlos Vives.

Luis Fonsi
The track climbs 3-1 to lead the August 31-dated ranking.

It’s Fonsi’s 11th chart-topper and Vives’ seventh.

“It’s like an anniversary song,” Fonsi previously told Billboard of “Santa Marta,” which praises genuine love and empathy.

The song — released on May 17 as one of 12 songs on Fonsi’s 11th studio album El Viaje, which earned the Puerto Rican his 15th entry on Latin Pop Albums in June — was written by Fonsi alongside Mauricio Rengifo and Andres Torres, also producers of the album.

“Santa Marta” crowns Latin Pop Airplay after a 1% gain in audience impressions, to 3.3 million, earned in the U.S. in the tracking week of August 9-15, according to Luminate.

As the song lands at the summit, Fonsi manages his 11th No. 1 on Latin Pop Airplay and seventh through a collaboration.

His first collaboration to hit No. 1 was “Despacito” with Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber, which ruled the tally for 18 weeks in 2017.

All of his No. 1s since have been collaborations. His first four leaders were all solo No. 1s, unaccompanied by any other artist, including his first No. 1, the five-week champ “Nada Es Para Siempre” in 2005.

Vives, however, raced to the No. 1 slot for the first time in 1995 when “La Tierra Del Olvido” ruled for two weeks.

The song, a core vallenato track, then made it to the pop radio ranking before it switched from a station-based tally to a genre-based survey.

Since then, Vives has crowned Latin Pop Airplay six more times, his last through “Mujeres,” a collab with fellow country singer Juanes, for one week on top in December 2023.

“Santa Marta” places Luis Fonsi back at the lead on Latin Pop Airplay after almost three years, as the Puerto Rican last occupied the No. 1 spot with “Bésame,” with Myke Towers, in November 2021.

He managed, though, three top 10s in between: “Vacaciones” with Manuel Turizo (No. 6 high in 2022), “Buenos Aires” (No. 10, September 2023) and “Pasa La Página” and “Panamá” (No. 6 high in January) The latter two (along with “Santa Marta”) are all from El Viaje.

Elsewhere, despite its 1% lift in audience impressions, “Santa Marta” dips to No. 32 on the overall Latin Airplay chart, after its No. 31 high (August 31-dated list) during its nine-week run so far.

Karol G’s “Provenza” Music Video Becomes Ninth to Enter YouTube’s Billion Views Club

Karol G is on Cloud Nine.

The 33-year-old Colombian Grammy-winning singer/songwriter has achieved yet another career milestone as herher “Provenza” music video surpasses one billion views on YouTube, just two years after it was released.

Karol GFilmed by Pedro Artola on the island of Lanzarote, the beachy music video marks Karol G’s ninth clip to enter the coveted “Billion Views Club” as a lead, featured artist or collaborator.

She also ranks No. 17 on the Global Top Artists chart.

On the Billboard charts, “Provenza” hit No. 1 on both the Hot Latin Songs and Latin Airplay charts in 2022.

“Provenza” follows her other one-billion titles: “China” with Anuel AA, Daddy Yankee, Ozuna & J Balvin; the Nicki Minaj-assisted “Tusa”; “Secreto” in collaboration with Anuel AA, as well as “Culpables”; “Bichota”; “TQG” with Shakira; “El Makinon” in collab with Mariah Angeliq; and the Bad Bunny-assisted “Ahora Me Llama.”

Climbing up the list with more than 750 million views each are “Mi Cama,” “A Ella,” and the heartfelt “Creéme” with Maluma.

The news comes on the heels of Billboard’s 2024 Woman of the Year and Latin Woman of the Year unleashing her summer-friendly tropical tune “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido.”

The feel-good track, produced by Edgar Barrera, Sky Rompiendo and Karol, is a flirty merengue inspired by her love and admiration for the Dominican Republic.

“Its culture, its music, its colors, the hospitality, the energy … everything feels very authentic and special there,” she expressed of the Caribbean island in Instagram an post. “Its people have embraced me in a way that fills my heart and inspires me all the time.”

DJ Luian to Make Feature Debut in Indie Horror Film “You Lose You Die”

DJ Luian is readying for his feature film close-up.…

The 33-year-old Puerto Rican DJ and producer is set to make his feature debut in Carlos “Spiff TV” Suarez’s indie horror film You Lose You Die.

DJ Lujan joins previously announced stars Freddy Rodriguez, who also executive produces, Ashley Elizabeth Fliehr (WWE star Charlotte Flair) and Anuel AA, who will also be making his feature debut.

Shooting is due to wrap imminently in the Dominican Republic and the project will be shopped following post-production.

You Lose You Die follows sociopathic tech expert Mr. Fantastik (Rodriguez), who runs a popular show on the dark web with two other sociopathic tech experts, Ms. Perfect (Fliehr) and Mr. Creep (Anthony Alvarez). On the show, thousands of viewers vote on games and challenges for prisoners to participate in. If the prisoners lose, viewers vote on the weapons the sociopaths use to kill them.

In addition to DJ Lujan, who plays Ice Pick, the cast includes Josh Bredl as Mr. Large, Sophia Zimba as Kara, Ashley Hernandez as Julie, Alejandro Duran as Alfonso, Noah Crider as Chase, Marcella Acuña as Christie, Mercy Grant as Darling and Lydia Faith Gomez as Jamie.

Rodriguez, Josue “Sway” Mendez and Ulysses Terrero serve as executive producers, with Mendez also producing.

Michael Patti is director of photography.

DJ Luian has collaborated with Daddy Yankee, Nicky Jam, J Balvin and Ozuna.

His notable songs include “La Ocasión, “Mia” featuring Drake and Bad Bunny and “Sensualidad.”

With “Mia,” he reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 2015, DJ Luian co-founded the music label Hear This Music with Mambo Kingz and is credited with discovering and signing global superstar Bad Bunny, whose breakthrough hit “Diles” was released under the label.

Anuel AA to Make Feature Film Debut in Indie Horror Film “You Lose You Die”

Anuel AA is set to make his big screen debut…

The 31-year-old Puerto Rican rapper and singer, whose real name is Emmanuel Gazmey Santiago, will make his feature debut in Carlos “Spiff TV” Suarez’s indie horror film You Lose You Die.

Anuel AAHe joins previously announced stars Freddy Rodriguez, who also executive produces, and Ashley Elizabeth Fliehr (WWE star Charlotte Flair).

Shooting is due to wrap imminently in the Dominican Republic and the project will be shopped following post-production.

You Lose You Die follows sociopathic tech expert Mr. Fantastik (Rodriguez), who runs a popular show on the dark web with two other sociopathic tech experts, Ms. Perfect (Fliehr) and Mr. Creep (Anthony Alvarez). On the show, thousands of viewers vote on games and challenges for prisoners to participate in. If the prisoners lose, viewers vote on the weapons the sociopaths use to kill them.

In addition to Anuel AA who plays EZ Money, the cast includes Josh Bredl as Mr. Large, Sophia Zimba as Kara, Ashley Hernandez as Julie, Alejandro Duran as Alfonso, Noah Crider as Chase, Marcella Acuña as Christie, Mercy Grant as Darling and Lydia Faith Gomez as Jamie.

Rodriguez, Josue “Sway” Mendez and Ulysses Terrero serve as executive producers, with Mendez also producing.

Michael Patti is director of photography.

Anuel AA is a Latin trap music pioneer. He recorded his debut album Real Hasta La Muerte (2018) which topped the U.S. Top Latin Albums chart.

He has collaborated with notable artists such as Daddy Yankee, Karol G, Ozuna and J Balvin. His hits include “Secreto” and “China.” He won the Billboard Latin Music Award for New Artist of the Year in 2019.

Genesis Rodriguez to Star Opposite Zoe Saldaña in Paramount+’s “Lioness” for Season Two

Genesis Rodriguez is ready to roar

The 36-year-old Cuban-Venezuelan actress has joined the Season 2 cast of Taylor Sheridan’s Lioness.

Genesis Rodriguez, Rodriguez will portray Captain Josephina Carrillo, a dedicated soldier and skilled helicopter pilot with a fierce personality.

Starring Zoe Saldaña and Laysla De Oliveira, the drama was renewed for a second season by Paramount+ earlier this month. Season 1 is available to stream in its entirety via P+.

Lioness is based on a real-life CIA program and follows Cruz Manuelos (De Oliveira), a rough-around-the-edges but passionate young Marine recruited to join the CIA’s Lioness Engagement Team to help bring down a terrorist organization from within.

Saldaña plays Joe, the station chief of the Lioness program tasked with training, managing and leading her female undercover operatives.

The series also stars Dave Annable, Jill Wagner, LaMonica Garrett, James Jordan, Austin Hébert, Jonah Wharton and Hannah Love Lanier.

Rodriguez most recently wrapped production on Kevin Smith’s The 4:30 Movie, in which she stars alongside Justin Long, Jason Lee and Rachel Dratch.

She recently starred in the series Neon, executive produced by Daddy Yankee, and can also be seen in Season 3 of the hit series The Umbrella Academy.

Additional film credits include TuskBig Hero 6, Casa De Mi PadreMan On A LedgeIdentity Thief and Run All Night.

She can also be seen in the independent films Centigrade and Fixation.

Rodriguez previously shot a leading role opposite Kiefer Sutherland and Boyd Holbrook for the series The Fugitive.

RBD Earns Highest Grossing Touring Act Honors for November

RBD is celebrating a November to remember…

After two months at No. 2, the reunited Mexican Latin group takes the helm as the highest grossing touring act of November.

RBDThe group’s Soy Rebelde Tour grossed $71.1 million and sold 734,000 tickets from November 3 to 30, per Billboard Boxscore figures. The tour is the act’s first trek since 2008’s Tour del Adios.

Current through November 30, the Soy Rebelde Tour has grossed $197.1 million since launching in August. About half a million dollars shy of Daddy Yankee’s 2022 farewell tour, RBD’s reunion will become the second-highest grossing tour by a Latin act once its December shows are reported, behind Bad Bunny‘s World’s Hottest Tour.

RBD’s monthly crown is due to hustle. Other than Trans-Siberian Orchestra, the perennial holiday favorite that includes two touring ensembles for either coast of the U.S., RBD played more shows in November than any act among the top 30. With 17 shows split between seven markets, the group earned its spot atop the heap by playing hard.

After sitting at No. 2 behind Beyoncé and Pink in September and October, respectively, RBD levels up, and its routing has much to do with it. Not only did the group play more shows than in either of the previous months, but after touring the U.S., RBD took on Latin America in November, transitioning to a primarily Spanish-language audience.

That move allowed RBD to move from arenas to stadiums, multiplying its nightly audience by more than two. In the U.S., the group paced about 18,000 tickets per night before rocketing to more than 43,000 each show in Colombia, Brazil and Mexico.

But the ticket pricing economy is much different in these geographical regions, and RBD’s average ticket price went from $241.30 in the U.S. to $96.81 in Latin America.

In all, its average gross stayed almost the same, even dipping by 4%. But the pure volume of seats that RBD could sell made up the difference, giving RBD its first monthly win yet.

At No. 1 for November, RBD is only the third Latin act to lead the monthly Top Tours chart. Los Bukis first broke ground in September 2021, and Bad Bunny pushed the boundaries further, ruling in February, March, August and September of 2022. Aventura, Daddy Yankee, Maluma and Rauw Alejandro have also hit the top five.

That means that RBD is the source for the genre’s first female artists to hit the top tier. The mixed-gender group’s reunion features original members Anahi, Dulce Maria and Maite Perroni, all hailing from Mexico. Beyond Latin music, they continue a hot streak for women atop the chart: after a nearly four-year drought, Beyoncé, Pink and RBD have kept women at No. 1 for six of the last seven months.

Beyond the No. 1 act, Pink and Madonna add support at Nos. 3 and 5, respectively. Mariah Carey, Shania TwainMs. Lauryn Hill and in her monthly Boxscore debut, Doja Cat, follow. While a grand total of seven women acts in the top 30 doesn’t give them a majority, the 23.3% gender split is up from the 2023 year-end wrap, where women’s representation doubled from the previous year.

Four of RBD’s seven stops in November crack the 30-position Top Boxscores chart. Four shows at Allianz Parque in Sao Paulo, Brazil (Nov. 16-19) earned $17.4 million and sold 191,000 tickets, while another four at Estadio Antanasio Girardot (Medellin, Colombia; Nov. 3-6) took in $17.2 million from 150,000 tickets.

In Sao Paulo, RBD played another two shows at Estadio do Morumbi on Nov. 12-13, grossing $11 million. If the group had consolidated their Sao Paulo run at one venue, the combined gross would’ve given them the No. 1 spot with more than $28 million.

Daddy Yankee to Livestream His Last “La Última Vuelta” Show Globally in December

Daddy Yankee is taking his final show global…

The 46-year-old Puerto Rican reggaeton superstar is closing out his farewell tour, La Última Vuelta, with a series of four back-to-back shows, dubbed “La Meta,” in his native Puerto Rico kicking off on November 30. The last show, however, will be live-streamed globally.

Daddy YankeeTaking place on Sunday, December 3, at the Coliseo, the final concert, which, according to a press release, will be a “totally new show,” will be able to be streamed by fans who purchase a $20 ticket.

The live stream event will be powered by streaming company Kiswe with a “state-of-the-art technology will guarantee that fans worldwide experience the passion and thrill of Daddy Yankee’s final show.”

Yankee’s La Última Vuelta trek, which kicked off last year following his retirement announcement, landed at No. 13 on the Top 40 Tours of 2022 with a total gross of over $125 million, according to last year’s Year-End Boxscore charts.

The “Con Calma” singer announced in March 2022 that he was retiring and would culminate his decades-long career with a world tour and his album Legendaddy, which he dropped that same month. The set peaked at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Latin Albums chart dated April 9, 2022.

“This career, that has been a marathon, I finally see the finish line. Now I get to enjoy what you all have given me. They say that I made this genre global but it was you guys that gave me the key to open the doors to make this the biggest genre in the world,” Daddy Yankee said in a statement then. “I confess that it’s the biggest treasure I can have in my career. I always worked so I didn’t fail you, so I didn’t get into problems, with much discipline, to inspire the new generation to be leaders. Today, I’m announcing my retirement from music by giving you my best production and my best concert tour.”

Born Raymond Ayala, his career exploded with 2004’s breakthrough hit “Gasolina,” launching a genre that altered the sound and business of Latin music and became a global phenomenon.

“This historic night will mark the end of a three-decade journey for one of the most iconic Latin American artists of our time,” said Glenn Booth, CEO of Kiswe. “We are thrilled that we have been chosen to help millions of fans experience Daddy Yankee’s final performance on a touring stage and witness his heartfelt farewell.”

Juan Luis Guerra Earns 12th No. 1 on Billboard’s Tropical Airplay Chart with “Mambo 23”

Juan Luis Guerra has returned to the top of the charts…

The 66-year-old Dominican Grammy-winning musician, singer, composer and record producer is back at the summit of Billboard’s Tropical Airplay chart as “Mambo 23” advances 3-1 to lead the November 25-dated list.

Juan Luis GuerraThe new champ arrives nine years after he last led through “Tus Besos” in 2014, for one week in charge.

“Mambo 23” climbs to No. 1 with a 9% gain in audience impressions, to 4.45 million, earned during the November 10-16 tracking week, according to Luminate. The song, released September 22 via Rimas, is the first single from Guerra’s recently released EP Radio Güira.

With the new champ, Guerra collects his 12th No. 1 on Tropical Airplay and breaks a tie with India for the eighth-most, a score led by Marc Anthony with 35 champs since the ranking began in 1994.

Here’s the scoreboard:

35, Marc Anthony
29, Victor Manuelle
23, Prince Royce
18, Romeo Santos
14, Elvis Crespo
14, Gilberto Santa Rosa
13, Jerry Rivera
12, Juan Luis Guerra 440
11, India

Guerra last landed at the summit with “Tus Besos” in 2014. (He notched seven hits between “Tus Besos” and “Mambo 23,” including six top 10s.)

The nine-year span becomes the longest between No. 1s since Don Omar took an equal nine years (and eight months) to dominate Tropical Airplay with the one-week ruler “Dutty Love,” featuring Natti Natasha (April 2012) and “Se Menea,” with Nio García, (Dec. 2021).

“Mambo 23” rules the tropical ranking as it ejects Chayanne’s “Bailando Bachata” from its 14-week domination; along with Manuel Turizo’s “La Bachata,” the third-longest run this decade, both with 14 weeks atop.

The pair trail Prince Royce’s “Carita de Inocente” with 29 weeks at No. 1, the most in the 2020’s decade, and Daddy Yankee and Marc Anthony’s “De Vuelta Pa’ La Vuelta” (22 weeks in charge).

Elsewhere, “Mambo 23” lifts 25-21 on the overall Latin Airplay, Guerra’s highest rank since “Muchachita Linda” reached No. 15 in October 2015.

Daddy Yankee Comes Out of Retirement to Release New Single “Bonita”

Daddy Yankee is has come out of retirement with a positive message…

The 46-year-old Puerto Rican superstar and reggaeton legend has released the new single “Bonita.”

Daddy YankeeWith a mix of tropical rhythms, the summer song intended to warm up the fall has been well-received on his social media.

“There are good people and there are bad things / Everything is going to be okay / Live today not tomorrow,” he asserts in the lyrics.

Daddy Yankee shared the song with a lyric video and an uplifting message on his networks: “If you are reading this it means that God gave you one more day of LIFE! We can fall into the deepest black hole and get up to see the LIGHT on the path and sing: ‘BEAUTIFUL LIFE IS’. Your life is worth a lot, don’t forget it.” “

Bonita” provides a message to lift our spirits with a contagious rhythm.

Bad Bunny Ties J Balvin on YouTube’s List of Artists with Most Videos on Billion Views Club with 14

Bad Bunny is a YouTube sensation… 

The 29-year-old Puerto Rican Grammy-winning superstar has logged his 14th music video with more than 1 billion views on YouTube as a lead, featured artist or collaborator with his collaboration on Nacho’s “Báilame (Remix),” also featuring Yandel.

Bad BunnyBad Bunny now ties J Balvin’s record as the artist with the most videos in the Billion Views Club.

The official music video of the infectious “Báilame (Remix)” came out on August 11, 2017, and features Nacho, Yandel and a then-rising Bad Bunny performing the song together. Nacho’s original track peaked at No. 5 on the Hot Latin Songs chart in October 20217.

Earlier this year, Bad Bunny earned his 13th title in the coveted video club with his collaboration on J Balvin’s “Si Tu Novio Te Deja Sola,” also released in 2017. Other of his titles on the list include “Te Bote (Remix),” “Mayores,” and “No Me Conoce (Remix)” — all of which have now surpassed 2 billion views.

Bad Bunny’s next five videos in line to enter the Billion Views Club are: Lunay, Daddy Yankee & Bad Bunny’s “Soltera (Remix)”; Prince Royce, J Balvin, Bad Bunny, DJ Luian & Mambo Kingz’s “Sensualidad”; Bad Bunny’s “Yonaguni”; Arcángel & Bad Bunny’s “Me Acostumbré”; and Farruko, Bad Bunny and Rvssian’s “Krippy Kush.”

J Balvin and Bad Bunny previously surpassed previous titleholders Ozuna and Justin Bieber.