Over the past few years, the popularity of Latin Music in the United States has grown exponentially. Part of this growth may be attributed to the rise of social media, especially TikTok. On TikTok, hundreds of Spanish sounds are used in the background of viral videos, increasing the outreach of this genre of music.
Artists like Shakira and Daddy Yankee have been popular in United States culture for years. Shakira has released multiple songs for the FIFA World Cup that have dominated the charts in the United States, and Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” is widely known by most Americans. But recently, new Latin artists have begun climbing the charts of Top Albums and Songs.
A name that everyone in the United States knows by now, is Bad Bunny. Bad Bunny’s music has exploded in popularity over the past few years, with his album Un Verano Sin Ti hitting the #1 spot on Billboard’s Top 200 and winning a Grammy. Un Verano Sin Ti was the first album by a Latin artist to reach 10 billion streams on Spotify, and Bad Bunny is sitting in the top 3 most streamed artists of 2023.
Bad Bunny is not the only Latin artist whose music gained acclaim in the United States. According to Billboard “the top 50 most streamed global artists featured 16 Latin artists, including Bad Bunny at No. 2, as mentioned above, and Peso Pluma, the year’s breakout Mexican star at No. 5, who debuted with more than 9 billion streams”. Latin American music revenues “[surpassed] $1 billion for the first time” according to the Recording Industry Association of America. The consumption of Latin music has increased by “15% compared to the first half of 2022” (Variety Magazine).
What is the reason for this staggering increase in popularity? Many people attribute it to the rise of streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music. Every language and culture of music was available to everyone, and people began to explore Latin genres. In my opinion, the rise in popularity is a result of social media. When influencers post videos with Spanish music in the background, people notice and search for these songs on their respective streaming platforms. I know that I have added multiple songs that I have heard on TikTok to my Spotify playlists.
“The top 50 most streamed global artists featured 16 Latin artists, including Bad Bunny at No. 2″ — Recording Industry Association of America
We are not only seeing the rise of Latin music in the United States, but other genres, such as K-pop have grown at the same surprising rate. Music from the United States has always been popular in other countries, but now other countries are becoming increasingly popular in the United States.
