The 42-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American urban singer-songwriter is heading to Europe with his Dímelo Europa Tour, which will kick off on June 23 in Switzerland and end August 6 in Italy.
The tour, produced by CMN together with AP Live (Alexis Peña) and La IndustriaInc (the company belonging to Nicky Jam’s manager Juan Diego Medina) will see Nicky Jam playing only festivals during a two months span.
Although Nicky Jam has long toured Europe, this marks his first all-fest tour, which in turn underscores the growing popularity of Latin music in Europe; many of the fests on his itinerary, including Puro Latino in Spain and Vívelo in Switzerland, are Latin music-centric.
Nicky Jam will kick off his trek at stalwart Vívelo in Zurich June 23 and will play a total of 14 European cities.
He’ll stop in Madrid, Milan and the South of France, among others, before ending his stint August 6 at the Rimini Festival in Italy.
Nicky Jam’s latest single, “69” with Feid, is climbing Billboard‘s Hot Latin Songs chart, where it currently sits at No. 41 in its second week on the chart.
He’s also expected to play from a stable of huge hits, including “El Perdon,” “X,” “Te Bote” and “El Amante.”
Across his two-decade-plus career, Nicky Jam has scored a staggering 16 No. 1 hits on Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart, as well as nine entries on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 — led by the No. 34 peaking “Otro Trago,” alongside Sech, Darell, Ozuna and Anuel AA.
Nicky Jam is providing a financial assist to the music world’s next prodigy…
The 41-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American artist will finance the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation’s next four-year Prodigy Scholarship, which will fully fund a student’s bachelor’s degree in music at Berklee School of Music starting in the fall 2023.
“I’ve always wanted to help and I don’t have my own foundation,” Nicky Jam tells Billboard. “My publicist knows that this is something I’ve been wanting to do and when the opportunity came with the Grammys, I was very excited. I see myself in this type of project because music saved my life. Music gave me everything I needed.”
News of Nicky’s involvement comes just a month after he performed his hit song “El Perdón” with four former scholarship recipients (Xavier Cintrón, Valentina García, Nicolle Horbath and Sergio de Miguel Jorgequera) at the Latin Grammys.
“First of all just seeing those kids sing my song, that was incredible. To let them use my platform to create their own platform, that’s what it’s all about,” he adds. “There was this one kid who wouldn’t stop smiling when he was performing, so he was making me feel better because I was nervous. I was performing in a format that I don’t really sing in, it wasn’t reggaeton, but it felt so good. I felt more love onstage with these kids that I’ve felt in years with a bunch of people I’ve performed with.”
The scholarship, created eight years ago, holds a maximum value of $200,000 and the application period will be open from now until April 10, 2023.
The scholarship is traditionally awarded to “exceptionally talented music students, with financial needs, to support their educational and musical aspirations,” according to the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation.
“When it comes to pursuing a career in music, finances should not be a deterrent to cultivating talent,” Raquel “Rocky” Egusquiza, executive director of the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation, said in a statement. “We are grateful for Nicky Jam’s generosity, which makes music education a reality for future generations of Latin music creators and preserves our legacy for years to come.”
Nicky Jam, one of the pioneers of reggaetón with more than three decades in music, says this opportunity is special because “low-key” he always dreamed of studying music. As a struggling musician in his early days, receiving a scholarship would’ve had a huge impact on him.
“The fact that I could’ve studied music, that’s already huge. I would’ve gone crazy and studied what I love. No one knew that I’ve always wanted to study music and now people tell me I don’t need it but we could always learn to be better. But I’ll be happy for those kids who do get the opportunity. Maybe the next Nicky Jam, Bad Bunny or Beethoven comes out of this. You never know!”
The foundation is accepting applications for all 2023 scholarships, and alongside Nicky Jam and his manager, Juan Diego Medina (also CEO of La Industria Inc.), is also sponsoring one of the Gifted Tuition Scholarships of up to $100,000.
All scholarships are available to music students between the ages of 17 and 25.
In previous years, the Prodigy Scholarship has been co-sponsored by Latin stars including Enrique Iglesias, Juan Luis Guerra, Miguel Bosé, Carlos Vives, Emilio and Gloria Estefan, Julio Iglesias, Juanes and Sofia Carson.
Manuel Turizo has danced his way to the top of another chart…
The 22-year-old Colombian singer has secured his fifth No. 1 on Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart as “La Bachata” advances from No. 4 to lead the October 29-dated ranking.
The track concurrently notches a sixth week at No. 1 on Tropical Airplay.
“La Bachata,” released on La Industria/Sony Music Latin, tallied 10.7 million in audience impressions, up 29%, earned in the U.S. in the October 17-23 tracking week, according to Luminate.
The song, written by Turizo, Edgar Barrera, Andrés Jael Correa, Juan Diego Medina and Miguel Andrés Martinez, is the first single from Turizo’s forthcoming album 2000 (release date TBD).
The new leader is the fifth champ for Turizo among 24 Latin Airplay chart entries.
Turizo’s first No. 1, “Vaina Loca” with Ozuna, dominated for two weeks in 2018.
“La Bachata” is also Turizo’s second chart-topper as a soloist, unaccompanied by any other act.
Here’s a look at his chart-topping singles:
Peak Date, Title, Artist (if other than Turizo) Oct. 6, 2018, “Vaina Loca,” with Ozuna
March 9, 2019, “Sola”
July 4, 2020, “TBT,” with Sebastian Yatra & Rauw Alejandro
Jan. 23, 2021, “La Nota,” with Manuel Turizo & Myke Towers
Oct. 29, 2022, “La Bachata”
Elsewhere, the Latin Airplay coronation helps “La Bachata” improve its standing on the multimetric Hot Latin Songs chart. There, the song lifts 8-6, the closest to the top Turizo has ranked since the No. 5 high of “La Nota” in 2021. Plus, “La Bachata” gain 1% in streams, to 5.1 million, while it dips 5% in downloads sold, earned in the week ending October 20.
Further, “La Bachata” holds at No. 1 for a sixth consecutive week on Tropical Airplay (and counting), five weeks after it ascended to the summit. It becomes the third-longest-leading title in 2022, trailing Romeo Santos’ “Sus Huellas” which ruled for 10 weeks and Don Omar and Nio Garciá’s 8-week ruler, “Se Mena.”
The Colombian group, composed of Goyo, Tostao and Slow, has released their new single “Bitcoin.”
Co-written by the group, Gerald Jiménez, Edgar Barrera, Jael Andrés Correa and Juan Diego Medina, the lyrics hold a very mature reflection after a breakup.
“I’m only rising, I look like a bitcoin and you’re calling me like a loser,” chants Goyo. “You never gave me importance, now respect the distance.”
Produced by Slow himself, “Bitcoin” is a catchy urban pop single with the group’s rhythmic melodies at the root.
Goyo recently embarked on her solo career but made it very clear that ChocQuibTown was not separating. This single is evidence of that promise.
The 20-year-old Colombian reggaeton singer has joined voices with Rauw Alejandro and Myke Towers for the new single “La Nota.”
After releasing his quarantine-born single “Quiereme Mientras Se Pueda,” Turizo has released this catchy new single, which was penned by all three talents in conjunction with La Industria Inc.’s CEO, Juan Diego Medina and produced by hitmaker Tainy.
The sensual reggaeton track centers on a bachelorette whose flirtatious and mysterious ways drive men crazy.
In the neon-drenched music video, directed by Daniel Duran, all three artists become real-life toys fighting to catch the attention of the beautiful model who’s having the time of her life at an empty arcade and toy store. Does she walk away with Turizo, Rauw or Towers? You’ll have to watch the video to find out.
Telemundo will premiere a biopic series titled El Ganador about the 35-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American singer, the chart-topping artist revealed on the network’s Un Nuevo Dia morning show.
“They will know my whole story, everything that happened to me, also my childhood,” he said.
The series, with no release date yet, will begin filming this summer. It will be produced by Nicky Jam with his manager Juan Diego Medina and directed by Jessy Terrero.
“El Ganador” is also the first song from his comeback studio album Fenix, which briefly tells his life story through its lyric and a music video released last month.
“The song and video are just a fragment of the story. In the series, I detail my life, what happened to my mom, my dad and all my suffering.”
The “El perdón” singer hopes to help and inspire younger kids and from the series learn that “they too can be down and rise.”
But Nicky Jam’s isn’t the only biopic being released by Telemundo…
The network also announced Mexican singer/songwriter José José‘s series titled Nace un Ídolo.
José José’s story embodies a man’s journey to “reach the status of an idol — including fame and fortune — and the high price he had to pay to achieve his dreams.”
The series, produced by Telemundo Studios, highlights the passion and excitement that a superstar artist feels for his craft and the adoration of his fans. It also displays the frailty of the man coping with his addiction and its damaging effects such as almost losing his family, his voice and his life.
The Latin Grammy-winning Colombian group has signed a management deal with La Industria, according to Billboard.
The trio, comprised of Gloria Martínez “Goyo,” Mike Martínez “Slow” and Carlos Valencia “Tostao, joins the Industria family led by Juan Diego Medina, who manages Nicky Jam, Saga White Black and Valentino.
ChocQuibTown’s 2015 albumEl Mismoreached the No. 5 spot on Billboard‘s Latin Rhythm Albums chart.
Last summer, the Grammy-nominated group scored their first No. 1 on Billboard’s Tropical Songs chart with their single “Desde el día en que te fuiste” (chart dated August 6, 2016).
ChocQuibTown’s “De donde vengo yo” will be the official song for ESPN Deportes‘ 2017 World Baseball Classic coverage.
The tour, produced by CMN together with AP Live (Alexis Peña) and La Industria Inc (the company belonging to Nicky Jam’s manager Juan Diego Medina) will see Nicky Jam playing only festivals during a two months span.
