In 2015, Jorge Fonseca, an A&R veteran for Sony Music Latin, arrived in Puerto Rico looking for new sounds. “When you pass to the island, the streets talk to you,” he told Rolling Stone. “You listen to young people with cars, and they tell you what is happening. ” During this specific visit, he saw any other through moving cars that passed: “I began to listen to less reggaeton and more trap. “

Reggaeton has been the commercially dominant hip-hop wing in Spanish for more than a decade, launching global stars such as Don Omar and Daddy Yankee. But a sound of Latin trap that follows reaction to the most recent advances in the American rap, which covers slow rhythms and a popular sticky vocal delivery through the southern hip-hop. “Latin Music has needed something new and back for a long time,” said Luis Rivera, director of the Latin Music program in Music Choice, who controls the audio and video content for cable television subscribers. Although almost completely excluded from American radio, the Latin trap has taken off.

Last year, Fonseca presented Puerto Rican artists such as Anuel AA, Brye Myers and Noririel in the compilation of boss: Season 1, which has become the first “Latin trap” of LP to succeed in number one in the graphic of Latin Billboard’s albums. Now, a variety of artists related to the motion is high: five of the 30 most productive clips in the YouTube graph in question last week of artists related to the Latin trap: Bad Bunny, Chris Jeday, Karol G, accumulating more than 170 million perspectives in total. Bad Bunny, the most productive promoter known in Sound, also gave the impression 3 times in the Top 25 of the Latin songs of Billboard. Indivision deployed a chain of traps in its application in January and April, station X96. 3 belonging to Indivision in New York began to transmit an hour of Latin trap at night. Ismar Santacruz, vice president and managing director of the Radio Radivision strategy, estimates that the scene has quadrupled in length in the year beyond the year.

“It goes beyond the trap: the music we call” Urban Latin “is now diversifying in many other forms,” ​​explains Horacio Rodríguez, Vice President of Marketing of Universal Music Latino. “It seems in the streets at this time with Zero Radio Airplay. It is a counterculture of young people who listen to this music. “

There have been types in the term “urban Latin”, but reggaeton has long been the main cash manufacturer. “An artist who enjoyed rap would make a rap song and then 3 reggaetons, that is, in the graphics, which brings the invoices,” explains Messiah, the Dominican rapper founded in New York who says he is “one of the pioneers of the Latin trap. “

“I grew up listening to the hip-hop, so I wanted to make hip-hop in my market,” adds Alejandro “Sky” Ramírez, who produces for J Balvin. “But I never had the opportunity, because it wasn’t commercial. I had no chance. “

The Messiah saw a replacement after making a Spanish remix from Kazzie and Rick Ross “Yeah Ok” in 2014 and listened to packaged clubs. Last year, the established Ghetto star launched the Smash “the occasion” with the Archangel collaborator and the young stars Anuel AA and Ozuna. The official video is lately more than 418 million visits.

“When this song came out here and the super catchy choir, this wave there to stay,” Rivera said. He presented the first selection of musical videos of musical reading committed to the Latin trap this month.

The foundations of “The occasion” will be familiar with a transitional wisdom of the American fashion rap. Instead of the reggaeton firm’s rhythm, there is a wooden bass, hi-cats that Type 32nd Notes and a keyboard loop cut and induce the stupor. Young singers in the song Combine gently by making a song and a rap, while veterans remain closer to the declarant hip-hos scratches. Both camps are offering vigorous. There is even a recombine of stars with Papa Yankee, Nicky Jam, J Balvin, Farruko and Zion.

Dj Luch, who copied the song, also manages the Puerto Rican imprint listening to this music, now distributed through Sony Music Latin. He helped free the race to listen to this signer Bad Bunny after listening to his “diluents” single in Soundcloud. Bad Bunny sings and has a hurry of conversation; His video “I am a péor” now has 330 million visits.

“You can make a song with Drake; you can make a song with Travis Scott,” says Sky about Bad Bunny. “He is the guy who takes this to the place. “

The oldest stars built to approve the last style, strengthening their client exhibition. The Energy Album of the Colombian star J Balvin contained songs like “35 pa las 12”, a collaboration of American rays and rays with the Dominican singer / rapper Fuego. Farruko’s next album is titled Trapxficador. Maluma, a pop-reggaeton heart, has anchored the hook of the “Four Babys” bosses.

Fonseca succeeded in Smash when he asked Maluma, who is also signed with Sony Latin, to participate in Trap Capos. “We had to make a foreign song of good fortune: we had to put someone who big there,” said the veterinarian A&R. “It’s over when we released this song. “

Not everyone was fascinated: some denounced Maluma for having sung for juggling with 4 women who sleep with him in command. A petition at Change. org asked the transmission platforms to eliminate the traffic song because “the lyrics and photographs inspire direct violence against women. ” This month, the managers of the Canary Islands revoked public investment for a concert from Maluma, saying: “We cannot with cash that denies women. “

The controversy did not seem to slow down the propagation of music: “Four Babys” is now certified by quadrado. “They looked later to prevent it, but instead, it ended up growing,” Maluma said. “I realize that it would be a song that just underground, and has become this global feeling. ” Responding to criticism, he adds: “In the end, other people are not obliged to pay attention to this type of music if they do not need it. “

There is still a way to conquer: radio. Although the chart of hot Latin songs of Hot with the total year only breaks the Latin AirPlay record this week as “elders” by Becky G. “now says” through Chris Jeday is one of the rare ones in the pleasure of calling radio programmers. Although Ozuna, the young popular singer related to the rise of the trap, has been successful on the radio, undeniable since “you photo” leans towards Reggaeton.

“You and I can have this verbal exchange 15 years ago in Reggaeton,” he acknowledges Victor Martínez, president of the radio of Hispana, questioned the lack of Latin trap songs in the air. “It would be the same verbal exchange: we have disorders with words, with torrids.

“The radio has open doors so that [the Latin trap] arrives, they just have to help us,” he adds. “The challenge for my appearance is that they do not publish their own versions. ” However, the radio takes themes by hand. According to Santacruz, “Cuatro Babys” has become so popular so temporarily that its programmers have designed their own circle of the assembly of relatives.

The great fortune of the new wave of Latin urban artists also temporarily won the opinion of American singers and rappers. “We already obtain calls from classic artists who need remixing or paintings with our artists of Latin traps,” says Rodríguez, and Maluma says he recently entered the studio with several American manufacturers in Los Angeles last month, PNB Rock remembered Bad with “I am worse. “

Fonseca is in the expansion without stopping the motion and lately he is running to gather Capos of Traps: Season 2. “Music is no longer in the United States,” he said. “The views can come from anywhere. A blow can come from anywhere. “