It is understandable that José Álvaro Osorio Balvín decided to shorten his name when he started making music more than 10 years ago, starting a career that has led him to gather more than 50 million followers on Spotify, design Air Jordans with his own name and amass a list of big game collaborations, including Rosalía, with whom he performed “Con Altura.” At 38 years old, the Colombian has established himself as one of the kings of reggaeton, following a path that distances him from the cliché, born into a middle-class family (his father, a businessman, was his representative for 13 years) and dedicated to composing lyrics who, in his opinion, move away from the sexist stereotype with which the genre is associated, although he has had no problems publishing explicit lyrics such as “Perra” with the Dominican Tokisha.
After becoming a father for the first time and taking some time off, J Balvin has returned to the stage and is embarking on a new tour, titled “It’s good to see you again,” the preface to a new album in the making about which he is reluctant to give any information. “There is going to be a lot of music this year,” he limits himself to commenting from a hotel room in Paris, where he attends ‘La Vanguardia’ by videoconference with his sights set on the concerts he will give on May 28 and 31 in Barcelona and Madrid. , respectively. As a preview, he has just released the single Triple S, accompanied by a video clip where a woman gets rid of all the men who put themselves in front of her.
This last year he has published several singles where he mixes reggaeton and disco…
We just launched Triple S with Jowel and Randy and De la Ghetto, with that super happy and super energetic reggaeton base. This is the first single of the year, the first of many, and I’m really enjoying it. The reception from people has been very positive, I love this new stage of releasing a lot of music and connecting and reconnecting with other fans.
How do you plan all these collaborations?
Normally I bring the song and imagine the artist, then we do the approach and it comes out organically, without much pressure.
Has being a father changed the way you approach your career?
A lot, obviously the priorities are different, although there is also a lot of motivation to continue making music, to continue inspiring, to enjoy this new process. I always like to reinvent myself and give myself spaces for enjoyment. This is a new stage that I love, I am super excited.
Are we going to notice a change?
I’m going to put the accelerator on quite a bit that year, we’re going to get behind (sic) the music that I didn’t give you for almost a year and a half and give you all the music that I owe you.
Are you going to take into account how your child will receive the music?
Yeah, but I’m super calm about that actually, because normally my lyrics have never been very explicit, there’s not much to worry about with that.
You have always been a great defender of reggaeton. What does this genre contribute?
The most important thing is to transmit happiness, that is what we came for, we are transformers of emotions, I think that is the most important thing, people may or may not identify with the lyrics of certain artists or even with myself, but feeling good I think that is the most important.
How do you respond to criticism of reggaeton?
It seems very normal to me, I grew up with all the most criticized heroes, rock, rap, salsa, all the ones I listened to were always totally criticized, heavy metal, they were always totally criticized and today they are still stable there. Artists continue to fill stadiums and continue to tour, so I don’t take it personally at all, I think that when a music makes a lot of noise is when it has many people against it, that’s also normal.
How do you see the role of women in reggaeton?
I strongly celebrate the success of Karol G, who is like a little sister to me. The impact it has had on the global scene lately is supremely deserved. From a very young age I can say that we knew each other, and seeing that she was always there with discipline, with patience until that moment came, seems like a beautiful and inspiring thing to me.
Women have begun to use reggaeton to talk about sex from their perspective.
It doesn’t even have to be said that they are within their rights, it is part of nature, we are human beings and we are under the same conditions, so they can speak what they want. It is extremely respectable.
The Triple S music video stars a woman who kills all the men.
That woman is not leaving nor will she be leaving.
It has been directed by a woman, Patricia Alfonso.
At one point she has been the director of all my new videos and she inspires me a lot, the order, the vision inspires me a lot. I have always had this great respect for women in the way they execute, their processes and how they are always 20 steps ahead of men.
He is approaching 40 years old. How does she feel?
Daddie Yankie is 48, Yandel, Wisin, they are all older than me and they are super stable and super current and making a lot of music. The truth is, it doesn’t worry me, I have always had a childlike spirit all the time, I don’t feel 38 at all, rather I always feel like 18. I think that is seen and felt in the music, in the videos , in your expression, in your security.
What has changed in reggaeton since you started your career?
It has evolved a lot, obviously the sounds, their quality, also in their sophistication, producers like Tiny have been in charge of giving a very special sound to the music, giving it versatility and a very important place, not only to reggaeton, but to Latin producers. .
Is the success of Latin music a fad or is it here to stay?
It has to stay, I mean, we have worked a lot, Yankee worked a lot to open our doors, then Yandel, then we arrived, then we did the collaboration with Bad Bunny, Karol G, that’s what it’s about, being like a replacement, being playing there constantly.
Do you feel like an heir to the Latin musicians of the 60s and 70s?
Of course, 100%, it is part of my DNA, of who I am.
