DECODING "DESPACITO"

An up-tempo journey through some of Latin music’s greatest hits.

How did “Despacito,” by Luis Fonsi and featuring Daddy Yankee, a “juggernaut of a song” that “reigned at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for an astonishing sixteen weeks,” become such a massive hit in the U.S. in 2017? As Cobo, the vice president and Latin industry lead at Billboard, shows, it wasn’t just the music; it took armies of savvy producers, a legacy of risk-tasking musicians, and a sprinkle of serendipity. In a book that spans seven decades and many more countries, the author examines the births of notable songs that captured Latin culture in the global imagination. Cobo tells these stories through interviews with the eclectic mix of people who created them—Luis Feliciano, Willie Colón, Enrique Iglesias, Marc Anthony, Ricky Martin, Shakira, Rosalía, et al.—as well as the masterminds who elevated their regional sounds and amplified them on to a world stage. The narrative is rapidly paced, just like the music that fills its pages, and is best served while playing the songs it chronicles. At its core, this is a book about believing in what many considered impossible: “It’s too much Spanish,” said American radio programmers about the titular megahit, which demonstrates the power of music to change attitudes. There is something special about learning the magic of this music from the people who were there and how seemingly niche sounds like salsa, which began in the streets of New York City in the 1960s, would end up resonating in places as far-flung as Japan. The organizer and host of Billboard’s annual Latin Music Conference, Cobo is a highly knowledgeable guide, and she delves deep into the canon to make a convincing case for Latin music as a significant driver of American culture at large.

An entertaining oral history of the songs that put Latin culture on the map.