Viva Friday is a compilation of the best new Latin songs, albums and videos recommended by the Billboard Latin editors.
Tainy x Dalex x Alvaro Diaz – “Mera” (Roc Nation Records / NEON16)
Paving the way for the new generation of urban music comes Tainy with his new single “Mera” in collaboration with Dalex and Alvaro Diaz. The Puerto Rican producer, who landed at No. 1 on Billboard’s year-end Hot Latin Songs Producers chart in 2019, joined forces with two of the most promising newcomers to combine old-school reggaeton with modern sounds. With sultry lyrics like "I become desperate when you look at me/ Those hypnotizing eyes invite me to sin,” Dalex and Alvaro sing about a secret affair that must be kept under wraps. Directed by Elliott Muscat, the music video shows all three artists roaming the Miami streets in a convertible as they flee from “temptation.” “Mera,” released Roc Nation and NEON16, is the first single from Tainy’s upcoming EP coined The Kids That Grew Up on Reggaeton: Neon Tapes. — JESSICA ROIZ
Gloria Trevi & Monica Naranjo – “Grande” (Universal Music Group)
It’s a dream pop collaboration: Gloria Trevi and Monica Naranjo join forces and bless fans with their recently released new single “Grande,” an empowering track that will make you feel like you can take on the world. It’s the first time Mexican diva Trevi and Spanish singer Naranjo have collaborated. The feel-good single is accompanied by a music video in which the pop stars, who would, of course, be wearing sparkly ball gowns and crowns, showcase stories of people who have been bullied or abused but, in the end, rise above it all. — GRISELDA FLORES
Bunbury – “Deseos de Usar y Tirar” (Warner Music Spain)
Spanish rock singer-songwriter Enrique Bunbury flirts with electronica in the intimate synth-bolero “Deseos de Usar y Tirar,” the first advance from his upcoming ninth studio album slated for April 17. With his usual emphatic gestures, Bunbury seizes the moment in this almost byzantine tune: “Como me dijo Nick Cave, tú no eres tu pasado y hoy me das la promesa de un acorde mayor” (“how Nick Cave told me, you are not your past, and today you grant me the promise of a major chord”). With Sherilyn Fenn as the lead actress in collaboration with transgender actress Jessica Hogan, the song’s music video, directed by photographer Jose Girl and produced by Timber Films, is an audiovisual journey back to Twin Peaks' mythical “Audrey dance” scene. — PAMELA BUSTIOS
Los Tigres del Norte – “La Ley del Monte” (Universal Music Group)
Following their critically acclaimed Netflix documentary Los Tigres Del Norte at Folsom Prison and live album, the Regional Mexican group kicks off 2020 with their revamped version of Vicente Fernandez's “La Ley del Monte.” Fusing their distinctive Norteño style with the song’s traditional mariachi essence, Los Tigres pay their admiration and respect to the renowned Chente. The song is accompanied by a vibrant music video that shows the band performing the song as calavera catrinas and men wearing lucha libre masks dance in between shots. “La Ley del Monte” forms part of Los Tigres del Norte's next album Y Su Palabra es la Ley… Homenaje a Vicente Fernández set for a Jan. 31 release. — JR
Lasso & Cami – “Odio Que No Te Odio” (Universal Music)
After making the rounds with “Un Millon Como Tu” in 2019, Lasso and Cami team up once again for “Odio Que No Te Odio,” which means "I hate that I don’t hate you." In this Latin pop ballad-meets-'50s doo-wop song, the Venezuelan and Chilean artists sing about a couple who’s very much in love despite each other’s issues. In the nearly four-minute track, Lasso and Cami go back and forth on everything they dislike about each other to only admit in the end that what they hate the most is that they don’t really hate each other. The vintage-inspired music video, directed by Nuno Gomes and Charlie Nelson, shows Lasso and Cami portraying a couple during the best and worst moments of their relationship. — JR
Juan Pablo Vega & Esteman – “Eso Que Me Das” (Warner Music Mexico)
Colombian compatriots Juan Pablo Vega and Esteman continue their journey of collaborations taking hitmaking soul-funk legends Earth, Wind & Fire as the main source of inspiration. “Eso Que Me Das” is the first cut from Vega’s forthcoming set, an uptempo dynamically propulsive song that reminisces on '70s soul, R&B and funk and displays their creamy vocals. With synth-pulsations, the song is convoyed by a music video produced by Andrés Gómez (Aterciopelados), that evokes classic '80s television shows. — PB
Jungle Fire – “Quémalo” (Nacional Records)
The Los Angeles 10-piece tropifunk band delivers another belter with “Quémalo,” the first single from their eponymous album, a hard-hitting instrumental fusion of psychedelia and Cuban pilón and ode to Cuban funk master Juan Pablo Torre. Rooted in strong bass instrumentation, the tune jolts between a propulsive horn section and percussion. Originally an Afro Latin funk jam ensemble, the band’s sonority quickly incorporated tropical rhythms while blending in deep funk, Western African dance music and Afro-Caribbean rhythms, pulling influences from Irakere, Ray Barretto, James Brown, Fela Kuti and Manu Dibango. — PB
Danny Ocean – “Que Lo Que” (Warner Music Latin)
Two minutes and five seconds. That’s all the time Danny Ocean needs to pen his feelings on the social injustices happening around the world. “Que Lo Que” is a modern protest song in which the Venezuelan artist calls out police who have unfairly violated the human rights of protesters. “We kill each other, we unite, we kill each other, we unite, what’s the deal?” Ocean raises his voice over a melody that fuses EDM with hip-hop beats. “Que Lo Que” is a cry for freedom with the intention of stopping violence and oppression in the world. — JR
Lyonz x Itawe – “Price to Pay” (Lyonz Music / Miami Beat Wave)
Singer-songwriter Andy Gonzalez, known as A.G. Lyonz, and Itawe, lead vocalist of Locos or Juana, unite in their first collaborative effort “Price to Pay,” a time-stopping fierce bilingual tune about the burden of work and the making of diamonds where, haunted by everyday pressures, poverty, pain and struggle take center stage: “Why do we keep fighting/ What's the perfect timing/ Tell me what it takes/ Maybe we're just blinded/ By the lights that's shining/ What’s the price to pay?” The tribal-tinted track with strong percussion reflects the Spanish rapped vocals by Itawe and was written by both acts and produced by Miami Beat Wave & BlaKat ENT. — PB
