By: Marysabel Huston, music journalist
In case you didn’t know, 2023 is the year of Regional Mexican music! Just this past week, Spotify crowned “Ella Baila Sola,” Eslabón Armado, and Peso Pluma’s smasher, as the summer song. The hit also topped the Billboard Global 200 chart in April.
“Mexican music has had explosive growth in recent years. At Spotify, we have seen a 413% increase in consumption in the last five years. In 2021, it represented more than 39 billion streams,” Antonio Vazquez, Head of US Latin Editorial Spotify, said.
The trend garners attention from industry professionals, the press, and music lovers.
Gen Z influence in Regional Mexican music
But, who’s behind the movement? Generation Z is the primary driver, according to Vazquez.
“One in three listeners of Mexican music belongs to Generation Z. While most listeners are located throughout the United States and Mexico, we have also seen growing demand in other countries such as Guatemala, Chile, and Colombia.”
AJ Ramos, US Latin and Latin America Artist Relations Manager at YouTube, agrees.
“The Gen Z, especially those with the [cultural] crossover representing the 200% – 100% American, 100% Mexican– are killing it. It is being noticed more than ever on the charts. In the United States, the largest diaspora of our Latino community are Mexicans,” AJ Ramos said CNN en Español.
The rise of corridos tumbados
The corridos tumbados is one of the genres driving the numbers. Artists like Peso Pluma, Natanael Cano, and Junior H are at the front of these trends.
“The corridos tumbados, for example, are narrating the life stories of young people on both sides of the border who struggle to excel despite their daily challenges. It especially resonates with youth seeking music that reflects their experiences and realities. The growing audience and technological adoption of this demographic have also contributed to the spread of these songs faster and in greater proportion than ever before,” said Vazquez.
These artists’ ability to connect with their audience through their stories is vital to the rise of Mexican music in the charts, says Eddie Ramos, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Strategy, and Brand & DSP Partnerships at DEL Records.
“Mexican music is dominating in 2023 for its ability to connect with the public through lyrics that represent the daily experience of the Mexican while modernizing its sound with the incorporation of young talents and collaborations of various genres that attract new listeners. No longer is ‘Regional’; our music is already global!”
According to Luminate’s mid-year report, the US demand for Regional Mexican music grew more than 50% this year compared to 2022.
The music and entertainment industry data company, formerly Nielsen Music, indicates that only in the US, the Regional Mexican genre garnered 10.4 billion streams as of July 13th, 2023.
“Ella Baila Sola” is featured as one of the tops on-demand songs in streaming this year, occupying the 8th position in Luminate’s chart.
James Guerra, Luminate’s Customer Success Associate, says Regional Mexican is the fastest-growing subgenre in Latin music.
“It is certainly the fastest-growing of the Latin subgenres (up 49% YOY) and has produced some of Latin’s biggest songs this year; Eslabón Armado and Peso Pluma’s ‘Ella Baila Sola,’ a Regional Mexican song, is the most streamed song within the broader Latin genre this year.”
A pop rebranding
A singularity that also catches the attention of experts is the rebranding singers such as Natanael Cano and Peso Pluma to the genre.
They have adopted a more urban look, making them appealing to a broader audience.
Félix García, vice-president of marketing for Monitor Latino, told CNN en Español that Peso Pluma is a clear example of this rebranding and its impact on the audience.
“We see a much fresher image, which is very compatible with any young person from anywhere in the world. He doesn’t wear a [Mexican] hat but a baseball cap. He has a much more pop look and some lyrics that are much more compatible with this Gen Z,” García said.
This generation’s authenticity is a key to their success, told AJ Ramos to CNN en Español.
“If they wear a cap, that’s fine, but they have their Gucci and Supreme. They put on their beanie, they put on their Yeezys, and they put on their Jordans,” added the YouTube executive.
Part of the pop rebranding of Regional Mexican music is the integration of other sounds and collaboration between genres.
Bad Bunny’s collaboration with Grupo Frontera in “1x100to” proved successful. The hit propelled the Texan group to a global audience as it conquered charts left and right.
“The trigger for how Mexican music became viral in 2023 was the ability of the genre to reinvent itself with talents and musical fusions that made it relevant for the new generations,” Eddie Ramos said. The genre is hotter than ever, and there are no signs the trend will die down.
