Rosalia: strength and fragility, tradition and modernity

Catalan musician Rosalia Vila Tobella in art Rosalie Today he turns 31 years old. In the space of three albums – “Los Angeles” (2017), “Evil Querer” (read the review here) (2018) e “Motomami” (2022) – and for five years he conquered: first his native Spain, then the Spanish-speaking musical universe and, finally, the whole world. Rosalie returning to tradition – to see the revival of flamenco, but not only – he breathed new life into Latin American music. To celebrate his birthday, we listened to each other again. “Motomami”his latest work, reading a review published March 2022.

When “La fama”, the first single from Rosalía’s long-awaited new album, was released, everything from the sounds to the atmosphere running through the aesthetic suggested that by allowing new generations to rediscover flamenco with his “El mar querer” Mixing it with r&b and electronica, the Spanish singer’s new mission was to make cool another musical genre associated with the Latin American or Latin tradition: namely, bachata. Shortly after releasing a duet with the now ubiquitous The Weeknd, the 28-year-old Spanish pop star made a surprise appearance on stage at Santo Domingo’s Félix Sánchez Olympic Stadium during a Romeo Santos concert, performing a duet with “el rey de la bachata” on the tune “Obsesión,” the Aventura hit that brought Santos and company to the top of the world charts exactly twenty years ago: a video of the performance in which Rosalía reinterpreted the chorus, originally performed by Judy Santos, drove fans of the genre crazy on social networks.

“Motomami,” the name of the singer’s new album, contains bachata, but not only that. The common thread that connects the sixteen tracks that make up the tracklist of the perfect successor to “El mar querer” – winner of the Latin Grammy Award for Album of the Year and the Grammy Award for Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative. The album,” among other awards, is a rediscovery of the musical tradition in which Rosalia grew up and with which it is no coincidence that she defined “Motomami” as a “love letter” to her favorite music. The album is full of quotes from small but great masterpieces of Latin musical culture. In “Bulerías,” one of the most beautiful pieces on the album, Rosalía pays homage to “La niña de fuego” by Manolo Caracol, a Spanish singer born in 1909 and died in 1973 who brought the voice of flamenco to the collective. imagination: “You soy la niña de fuego como canta Caracol / como canta Caracol,” the pop star says in the lyrics, in which she also mentions – via Auto-Tune – other flamenco artists such as Niña Pastori and José Mercé.

In “Delirio de grandeza,” he reinterprets the song of the same name by Cuban Justo Betancourt, now 82 and considered the inventor of Puerto Rican salsa. “Saoko”, the second single from Motomami after “La fama”, combines industrial and reggaeton, in addition to sampling “Saoco” by Wisin and Daddy Yankee, there is also an avant-garde jazz interlude – It International critics compared it to the “Sun of Latin music ” Eddie Palmieri, one of the greatest masterpieces of a musician who, throughout his career, made significant contributions to the creation of a hybrid of Latin American music, jazz and salsa. He is played by Sir Dylan, a multi-instrumentalist who has previously worked with Solange, SZA and Frank Ocean.

Speaking of guest stars: in “Diablo” the hand of James Blake, in “Hentai” – Pharrell Williams. “Eh, yo soy muy mia / yo me Transformo / una mariposa / yo me Transformo,” Rosalía sings in “Saoko,” showing off her versatility. On “Motomami,” where contributions from Frank Dudes, Noah Goldstein, Tiny and Skye Rompiendo, among others, are added to the notes of El Guincho, already at his side on “El mar querer,” he blends the highs and lows. Latin American music without fear of disorientation: it knows how to be deeply connected to tradition, as in “Sakura” (which has an almost Pasolinisque flavor), but also proudly tamarra, as in “Teriyaki Chicken,” between rollers, drums and kuduro dancing.

The singer, who spoke of “Motomami” as a celebration of the feminine universe (the title is a mash-up of the two concepts “moto” and “mami”, which express strength and fragility respectively), said of the album: “I would be very happy if it served as a counterbalance to male artists who, in many genres, glorify misogyny and their masculinity”), in these sixteen works he finds his roots not only cultural, but also personal. In “G3 N15,” after a coda in which Sir Dylan himself plays on a keyboard that reproduces the sound of a Hammond, there is a touching voice message from the singer’s grandmother in Catalan: “La família és tan important, carinyo, family is always important.” Family is very important, and the one in which Rosalía grew up musically is simply beautiful in this generational photo.