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Guest post by Emily Blake of Next Big SoundIn case you haven’t heard, Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito” is officially the most-streamed song of all time. It’s also the first mostly Spanish language single to top the Billboard Hot 100 since “Macarena.” And there hasn’t been just one version of it on the Top Spins Chart, but three. It is, for lack of a word that is actually a word, yuge.But “Despacito” isn’t just some super catchy anomaly. Rather, there seems to be an increased interest in Latin music over the past few years. In a recent interview with Billboard, chairman & CEO of Universal Music Latin America Jesús Lopez attributed it to the more “democratized” music landscape, thanks to streaming. Streaming, he says, “has made Latin music increasingly relevant on the charts and it has amplified our songs and videos to a world stage.”In this democracy, “Despacito” isn’t the only one with a voice. J Balvin’s “Mi Gente” is a bonafide sensation, currently at #45 on the Top Spins Chart and climbing. But when you venture past the MVPs and onto the Pandora Trendsetters and Predictions charts, there are also a ton of less established Latin acts seizing the moment as well. Let’s take a look.Danny Ocean
Not to be confused with this guy, this Danny Ocean is a rising singer/producer from Venezuela who’s on one hell of a rise. His rapid rise is all thanks to “Me Rehúso,” the breakout single he wrote, produced and sang independently. The song not only landed him on global streaming charts, but also got him a record deal with Warner Music Group. As of this week, he’s officially a Pandora Trendsetter — meaning he’s one of the 20 up-and-coming artists seeing the highest numbers of artist station adds on Pandora.Ocean debuts at #20 this week after seeing well over 1,000 Pandora artist station adds in one week. He’s also seen an increase in spins since the release of “Baby I Won’t,” the English-language version of “Me Rehúso” — +130% month-on-month.Alex Hoyer
Over on the Predictions Chart we have rising Mexican pop star Alex Hoyer. The 20-year-old studied under Ricky Martin when he competed on La Voz… México, Mexico’s version of The Voice, and it seems he’s still taking cues from the Puerto Rican icon, from his crisp dance moves to his balance of songs in both Spanish and English.
Darkiel
Puerto Rican urban singer Darkiel has been bubbling under the mainstream surface for a while now, having previously collaborated with Plan B, J Alvarez and more, but now it seems he’s starting to break through with his latest single, “Hasta el Cielo.” In just three weeks, the music video for “Hasta el Cielo” has racked up over 3 million views on YouTube. The song’s release has also helped him see a 225% month-on-month lift in Twitter followers.Mau Y RickyBrothers Mauricio and Ricky Montaner have been churning out Latin hits as songwriters for years now, but it’s only recently that they stepped up to the mic with the release of their own EP, Arte, via Sony. Mau y Ricky, who are sons of Venezuelan music icon Ricardo Montaner, debuted on the Predictions Chart at the beginning of June, shortly after the EP’s release.
