J Balvin: The Leading Latin Act Dominating The Music Front
Everytime a newbie to the industry carves out a fresh hit, the tune often goes on to land some sweet numbers on the charts before invariably landing under the radar of much more seasoned acts. And that’s exactly what happened to 24kGoldn and Iann Dior’s ‘Mood’. The groovy tune blasted onto the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, and not long after, it followed due process and got treated to a fiery new remix.
The remixed version of the track comes from two of the biggest musical acts out there: Justin Bieber and J Balvin. While you might be well aware of all the feathers sitting on the former’s cap, we figured the latter might just be our area of interest. Over the past few years, J Balvin has skyrocketed to superstardom, being credited as one of the lead artists to bring Latin music to the global stage. While you might’ve seen Balvin’s name floating around some funky remixes and infectious Latin jams, we figured it’s only right to show you just how far up the ladder the star really is. So with that, buckle up, because we’re going to run you through all the sparkling accolades under J Balvin’s belt and boy, are there a lot!
Photo Credits: J Balvin Official Instagram
1. For starters, if you weren’t aware, J Balvin is one of the best-selling Latin music artists with sales of more than 35 million records (albums and singles) worldwide.
2. The star has a whopping five Billboard Latin Music Awards and four Latin Grammy Awards under his belt.
3. While we’re on the topic of honorable accolades, in 2017, the BMI Latin Awards named him the Contemporary Latin Songwriter of the Year for his contribution in Latin music industry. He’s also won the first Global Icon Award given by Lo Nuestro Awards, in recognition of his contribution to spread Latin music worldwide.
4. Now, as you let that digest, get a load of this: J Balvin became the first Latino to headline some of the biggest music festivals like Coachella, Tomorrowland, and Lollapalooza.
5. Not to mention that the Guinness World Records even acknowledged him as the “leader of a second-generation reggaeton”.
6. J Balvin has also fallen under the radar of a number of prestigious charts out there. In fact, his tie up with Cardi B and Bad Bunny on the hit track, ‘I Like It’ earned him a No. 1 claim on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and even scored a nomination for the Grammy Record of the Year.
7. The star’s smash hit, ‘Ay Vamos’ became the first reggeaton song to exceed one billion views on YouTube. Further, Balvin was named the “most viewed artist on YouTube Global” as of 2019.
8. Speaking of the One Billion Club, the young star became the first Latin artist to reach one billion streams on Apple Music.
9. J Balvin’s global success with his Spanish recordings has been praised by music critics. In fact, Billboard even described him as “the biggest breakout act Latin music has seen in many years”.
10. But the praises didn’t stop there, Iman Amrani from The Guardian articulated that Balvin is “now arguably Colombia’s biggest cultural export” and described him as example on “how embracing national pride can be a force for cultural good”.
By: Nina Karun
