Why 2015 Was the Year of the Latino Remix

There’s something to be said for that head-turning moment, when artists use the element of surprise and translate the track of the day into something equally debaucherous en Español. But there’s also something discursive about it – a sense that we’re participating in the playful flipping of tradition that goes back to the birth of club tracks. What would hip-hop be without Sugarhill Gang jumping on Chic disco breaks for “Rapper’s Delight”? And what would pop music in 2015 be without J Balvin jumping on basically everything?

There’s “Bitch Better Have My Money,” then there’s Natti Natasha and Messiah’s “Yo Tengo Lo Mio.” Never forget La Mafia del Amor out-sucioing Chris Brown (by miles) on their Spanish version of “Ayo.” Then there’s Drake’s most Dominican, bachata-esque moment to date on “Hotline Bling,” and Fuego tearing up the versión en Español.

By year’s end, it was clear that 2015 brought the Latino remix to fever pitch. Fuego’s “Hotline Bling” redux broke beyond the Latino digital realm, Latino USA took note of the trend in a podcast, and the remixes shook Washington Heights nightclubs hasta la madrugada. We covered more remixes than ever this year, and artists dropped them like flies. Some musicians here stood out on the strength of their reworks this year, rather than their original material, but one thing is clear: the Latino remix offered a space for emerging dembowseros, singers, and rappers to break into the market and put their names in the spotlight.

On this list, we’ve got covers, but they’re also instances where we claim the moment for ourselves, in our language – Spanish or English or Spanglish, or any gray area in between.