The 50 Songs We Loved in 2016: Part Two

25. Triángulo de Amor Bizarro - "Baila Sumeria" (Spain)

If you’re familiar with the catalog of Galician foursome Triángulo de Amor Bizarro, there was no way to predict that they would have released one of the catchiest songs of the year. The band has evolved from a noisy punk outfit with compelling melodic ideas to a noisy dream pop act with increasingly destructive experimentation, culminating in 2013’s Victoria Mística. For the first single from their 2016 effort Salve Discordia, the band turned down their guitars, pushed the keyboards forward, and let melodies dominate – a feat they haven’t accomplished since their 2010 single “De La Monarquía A La Criptocracia.” Their melodies don’t sacrifice power, a trick previously pulled by classic acts like New Order. Don’t be fooled: the music here is rich and expansive, and the hooks are sticky. Lyrically, the band references the dawn of civilization (Sumeria, Mesopotamian temples known as ziggurats) as well as somewhat satanic imagery. In spite of its cryptic lyrics, this song exemplifies what great pop songs are capable of achieving. –Marcos Hassan

24. "Element of Risk" - Grenda (Mexico)

2016 witnessed the release of Grenda’s debut album Untouchable Skin through Tijuana imprint Static Discos. “Element of Risk” was one of its first previews, delivering on the promise of his 2015 Living Right EP, a mature and well-balanced blend of tight hip-hop beats and dream pop aesthetics. The track showcases his penchant for spectral atmospheres that would lift you off the ground if it wasn’t for the meaty “Teardrop”-like drum programming. Eduardo Amezcua loops melodies like a pop mantra, and with each repetition, he reinforces the importance of taking chances today because tomorrow is uncertain. In a year that saw the release of his full-length and performances at festivals like Nrmal, SXSW, LAMC, Marvin, and Viva Pomona, Grenda is definitely taking risks and seeing the results. Amezcua is turning 18 next year, so we can go ahead and predict a bright future for this promising young producer. –Cheky

23. "Más" - Audri Nix (Puerto Rico)

The new era of Puerto Rican hip-hop is in full swing, leaving followers of the scene ready to welcome new boricua talent into the fold. Audri Nix released her first EP El Nuevo Orden Vol. 1 in early 2016, and just because she and producer Overlord couldn’t, wouldn’t stop, 2016 was blessed with another collab from the duo. “Más” typifies the relaxed R&B flow Nix bodies on tracks, and in addition serves as a mission statement. In an interview with Ebro at Beats 1, Nix explains, “When I wrote this song I was kind of in the mood of, ‘I want to talk about power.’” Overlord’s orchestral production fuels her on the song’s ascendant feel, giving distinct English hunting horn vibes. As an intrepid member of PR’s new guard, the vibe is appropriate for the ambitious Nix. –Caitlin Donohue

22. "Trembla" - Santa Muerte & King Doudou (Mexico)

It’s no secret that Santa Muerte are rising stars in underground club circuits across the globe. In 2016, they successfully launched their Majía microlabel, adding both up-and-comers and seasoned stalwarts to the roster. Panchitron and Sines have found a creative groove by forging their own industrial reggaeton sound while reaching out to an extensive network of DJs and producers the world over.

Perhaps their strongest release this year, “Trembla” is an excellent example of the promise of artistic collaboration. A joint production with French producer King Doudou, “Trembla” was the opener on SM’s Oraciones EP and the first release on Majía. On it, dark, harsh dembow riddims collide with sharp drums and quick industrial stabs. “Trembla” proved to be a powerful prelude to the second half of 2016, which saw Santa Muerte playing Red Bull’s 12 Hours of NAAFI event and teasing their upcoming Cicatriz EP. With this collaborative composition, Santa Muerte and King Doudou prove that “focus grouping” pays dividends. –Jorge Courtade

21. "Summer Romance" - Coral Casino (Argentina)

2016 was the year that reggaeton flipped, twisted, and swerved into a thousand different concoctions. Coral Casino was down to provide the Argentine R&B vision of dembow, somehow having it all make auditory sense. That effort is why we’re giving this track (featured on their EP of the same name) a nod in our top 25. “Summer Romance” is the soundtrack to a fling with a boo that came so natural, all you had to do was lay in the grass and hold hands to feel destiny at work. Vocals by Lara Artesi and Roque Ferrari alone serve as justification for their continued artistic pairing, marked by a desire to explore the magic brought to R&B by dancehall and perreo rhythms. Press play if you’re looking to call visions of July lovers into your dreams. –Caitlin Donohue

20. "F" - Jesse Baez (Guatemala)

Finesse Records had a quiet storm kind of 2016. The Mexico-based crew founded by producer Teen Flirt consistently delivered reports from the far edges of electro R&B exploration, fueled by powerfully emotive vocalists and producers willing to push electronic levers to hit that bedroom-ready heat. Guatemalan singer Jesse Baez emerged as this year’s Finesse standout based on strong collaborations and an impossibly smooth, bilingual answer to Drake-style inner monologues and crew anthems. The Teen Flirt-produced “F” off Baez’s debut EP is the perfect synthesis of cannabis-fueled sex, honest appeals to emotion, and shoutouts to the homies that make up the JB oeuvre. –Caitlin Donohue

19. "Trå" - Füete Billëte (Puerto Rico)

With the exception of a couple loosie releases, fans of Füete Billëte’s filthy rhymes have had little to chew on since the group’s 2013 debut album Música de Capsulon. This summer, the trio made their long-awaited comeback with “Trå,” a squeaky and sabroso banger that suggests our continued wait for upcoming album Papelón City will all be worth it. With its nasty beats and effortless, marijuana-infused flow, “Trå” reflects NAAFI’s now signature sound – one that is fully embodied by the song’s hook and Pepper Kilo’s irresistible command: “muévelo.” It’s pretty straight and to the point: get on the dance floor, and get turnt. What more do you need? –Alexis Hodoyán-Gastelum

18. "House of Love (Ogbe Yekun)" - ÌFÉ (Puerto Rico)

Both through painful events like the Pulse Nightclub shooting and Trump’s election, as well as in joyous celebrations of holistic pride like the Afro-Latino Festival and the Barry Jenkins-directed film Moonlight, 2016 was a year in which the diversity of blackness and Afro-Latinidad were explored publicly and prominently. ÌFÉ (stemming from the Yoruba word for “love” and “expansion”) follows in this legacy. The Puerto Rico-based group was created by African-American artist Otura Mun, and bridges diverse experiences of the African diaspora. In “House of Love,” a synthy electronic skeleton is fleshed out with Afro-Latino percussion, crafting a divine groove that holds together ethereal voices singing Yoruba chants and Spanish lyrics about cycles. Beyond the Santería symbolism and language, the track is sacred in its ability to bridge electro-influenced Cuban rumba and R&B in one composition. –Luna Olavarría Gallegos

17. "Mala" - Maluca (Dominican Republic)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05vdDFUsp4k

All piercing synths and steel drums, “Mala” begins with a beat as urgent as its message. This seductive record is one for the bad bitches, the goddesses, the unapologetic mujeres who need permission from nobody. “Mala” is a self-love anthem for an era in which an ongoing exploration of Latinx identity has brought conversations of race and Latinidad to the forefront. A Dominican New Yorker who fully knows the political context of her homeland’s internalized racism (and the absence of a black empowerment discourse), Maluca reclaims racialized and anti-black insults (“pelo malo, pelo suelto como una bruja”) while at the same time making brilliant commentary on the cultural appropriation that often comes along with systems of racial injustice (“cada vez que yo tengo algo usted lo quiere”). But don’t let its boldly pointed politics fool you; “Mala” is a jam, brilliantly produced and flawlessly executed. –Verónica Bayetti Flores

16. "Extravío" - Imaabs (Chile)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggjzjERxZy8

“Extravío” is perhaps the most accomplished storytelling moment in Imaabs’ experimental club narrative to date. Alongside fellow Chilean artists Lía Nadja and Felicia Morales, the producer created the track as part of the inaugural Red Bull Music Academy Bass Camp Santiago this year. We’re familiar with Imaabs’ affinity for harsh, metallic textures and fractured dembow foundations, but this track lays his cinematic sensibilities bare. The Chilean artist bombards the production with spectral effects, but the structure is so dynamic, it’s impossible not to pay attention. Nadja’s wordless chant goes from calm to heart-wrenching, and Morales’ cello makes the atmosphere even more affecting. But as the song’s ringleader, Imaabs composes each element in a way that makes the track throb with life.

“Extravío” is a high point for Imaabs, and it’s no coincidence that it was released through NAAFI, the Mexican club label whose dance floor machinations (and international profile) continued to soar this year. We’re ready for more of this Imaabs sound in 2017. –Cheky

15. "Beautiful" - AJ Dávila (Puerto Rico)

Self-love is our greatest defense against disrespect and hatred; it helps fortify us to push back against the most negative of forces. AJ Dávila reminded us of that this year, right when we needed it most.

Though written during his own personal struggle to renew a sense of self-worth after emotional devastation, “Beautiful” took on universal meaning when it debuted a week after Trump’s plans for a hateful takeover became reality. Downcast synth tones and a darkly foreboding bass line are thwarted by the cheery, uplifting guitars and AJ’s recurring declarations of respect and high regard for himself. While the latter clearly triumphs here, the bleak and bitter rest is ever-present. The results of that battle feel much like our hopes for the next four years as we work to rise above an awful situation. When our collective emotional resilience is tested — we’re already feeling it — we can revisit AJ’s empowering anthem to draw strength. –Jhoni Jackson

14. "La Ocasión" - De La Ghetto, Arcangel, Ozuna, and Anuel AA (Puerto Rico)

https://soundcloud.com/rapetonmusic/de-la-ghetto-feat-arcangel-ozuna-y-anuel-aa-la-ocasion

Five years ago, a six-minute trap song featuring heavyweights from the Puerto Rican old and new school would have been an unlikely contender for the best song of the year. But what’s more 2016 than genre-hopping artists like De La Ghetto linking with the new generation of island rappers? “La Ocasión” is a snapshot of Puerto Rican trap’s emboldened future, where the beats are dark and the lyrics are filthy. Macabre piano keys and gritty snare drums serve as the soundtrack for Ozuna’s brilliantly catchy R&B chorus, which is guaranteed to have you brooding about when you’ll see that one-time boo again. “La Ocasión” is straightforward and unapologetic, a moody burst of aggressive hetero male sexuality (choice lyrics include “este bicho parece cemento”). It’s an ode to fucking in the highest degree, inhabiting the space between trap and R&B that more and more Caribbean artists are exploring in 2016. File this one alongside the great sex jams of the 2010s. –Isabelia Herrera

13. "La Estrella Irregular" - Algodón Egipcio (Venezuela)

At the heart of “La Estrella Irregular,” the lead single from Algodón Egipcio (aka Cheky Bertho)’s first solo album in five years, is the notion of accepting the present while preserving a little nostalgia for what gets left behind. In the time since 2011’s La Lucha Constante, Bertho left the turmoil of his native Caracas behind for Mexico City, and “La Estrella Irregular” reflects his personal journey to settle into a new country. But like the best art, the song takes on a bigger, more universal meaning in a year in which immigration and refugee crises shook the world. In the face of xenophobia and fear, “La Estrella Irregular” doesn’t offer so much a lament but a party. Bertho’s track is a transnational carnival for those who yearn for the places and things left behind, distilling Afro-Caribbean rhythms into a singular pulse accompanied by digital harmonies and warm vocals. Like many celebrations, “La Estrella Irregular” bears a hint of sadness – but that won’t stop you from surrendering yourself to its euphoric rhythms. –Marcos Hassan

Editor’s note: Cheky Bertho is a regular Remezcla contributor.

12. "All the Way Up (Remix)" - Fat Joe, Remy Ma, and Jay-Z feat. French Montana & Infrared

It’s hard to imagine a time when Fat Joe’s Terror Squad was on nearly equal footing with Jay-Z’s Roc-A-Fella Records, but in the late 90s, Joey Crack rode Big Punisher’s considerably broad shoulders to the top of the pops. That rivalry between the two ascendant crew chiefs has simmered over the years, but this year it was finally put to bed when Joe invited Jigga to jump on this remix for “All The Way Up,” the ubiquitous early single from his project with Remy Ma, Plata o Plomo. It’s a “remix” in the modern hip-hop parlance, with a beat identical to the original and a Jay-Z verse wedged in. He wastes no time showing everyone up, tipping his Yankee cap to Gangstarr’s Guru while brushing off the side-eyes from his feet-kissing turn in his wife’s film (“You know you made it when the fact/Your marriage made it is worth millions/Lemonade is a popular drink and it still is/Survival of the littest”). The sly reference to this 2Pac photo shoot is just icing on the cake of the year’s most fun rap comeback. –Matthew Ismael Ruiz

11. "Siempre Es Viernes en Mi Corazón" - Alex Anwandter (Chile)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecC-HMZPPMs

Chilean pop singer Alex Anwandter has always been a fan of metaphors, favoring subtlety and expert shade throwing in his musical and political statements. However, as Anwandter’s star has risen – and with it comfort within his own skin – he has sought to use his platform more directly as a mouthpiece for his activism. Disco symphony “Siempre Es Viernes En Mi Corazón” is nothing if not direct, aimed straight at the heart of Chile’s conservative patriarchal structures. The song is nihilistic and combative, and who could blame him for feeling such a way? As he sings “La iglesia me mandó al infierno, y el congreso piensa que estoy enfermo,” he mirrors a reality felt deep within Chile’s LGBTQ community. Yet the song is still an incredibly satisfying disco cut, and his inclusion of Juliana Gatas and Ale Sergi of Miranda! adds a wink and much-needed levity to the overall result. There is no doubt this is the year’s most audacious takedown, but perhaps it’s more than that. Perhaps it’s a beacon of hope for all those still confined to a closet, where Friday represents the end of a weeklong performance of conformity leading up to a weekend of salvation and authenticity. –Richard Villegas

10. "Woman is a Word" - Empress Of (US/Honduras)

Empress Of’s “Woman is a Word” opens with a frenzied choir of clanging bells that sounds like someone clinking a wine glass before making a speech. The Honduran singer-songwriter is demanding our attention, and she’s got it. The next three minutes reveal Empress Of (aka Lorely Rodriguez) at her most cerebral and introspective, verbalizing all the complexities of womanhood and the limiting nature of gender divisions. We’ve heard Rodriguez get personal and political before (take 2015’s anti-street harassment anthem “Kitty Kat”), but “Woman is a Word” may be her most defiant performance to date. “I’m only an image of what you see/You don’t know me/ I’m only a woman if woman is a word,” she sings. Her voice, which is accustomed to gauzy and ethereal arrangements, is loud and determined here as she recites the chorus over and over like a mantra. By the end of the song, the powerful repetition illustrates how hollow words and labels truly are; “woman” is just a catch-all noun that tells us so little, after all. Bold and thoughtful, the song is a brilliant anthem of women’s empowerment — the kind that gets stuck in your head for both its catchiness and insight. –Julyssa Lopez

9. "Retumba" - MULA (Dominican Republic)

We might not have gotten the new MULA LP that we were expecting this year, but that didn’t stop us from bumping “Retumba” all summer. The Dominican electronic trio — fronted by twins Anabel and Cristabel Acevedo with production from Rachel Rojas — built a minimalist dance composition on the dembow riddim, taking the parts of reggaeton that they liked and leaving the rest on the cutting room floor. “Retumba” is a perfect summer soundtrack for cruising down the Malecón, preferably in a car with subs that rumble like the song’s namesake. The trio spent the year playing in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and at home in the DR, making a case for a new pan-Caribbean sound uninhibited by regional restrictions. Whenever the next project does drop, we’ll be there. –Matthew Ismael Ruiz

8. "La Nueva Ciudad" - Balún (Puerto Rico)

“La Nueva Ciudad” appeared just a few months ago, a brilliant multi-colored jewel, and the first sign of Balún‘s long-awaited, forthcoming second full-length Prisma Tropical. The Brooklyn-based band – whose members all hail from Puerto Rico – has been experimenting with dembow on their last two singles, incorporating the reggaeton rhythm into their layered electronic indie pop. Accurately and adorably, they’ve dubbed the resulting sound dreambow.

This most recent single is as dreamy as it gets, sophisticated and, indeed, prismatic tropical pop built on a foundation of steady dembow thump. Bolstered by wobble bass and rising skyward from there, the song is a like a living web of Caribbean-inspired hooks and beats. There’s more than a hint of champeta in the twinkling hook, which stirs the song like gentle tide, and a cabasa-like rattle adds texture here and there. Angélica Negrón’s airy vocals delineate the melody and her surreal but emotional lyrics complete the mood. Taken as a whole, it confirms Prisma Tropical as a major 2017 release to look forward to. –Beverly Bryan

7. "Tu Señora" - Tomasa del Real ft. Talisto

“Tu Señora” plays with some strange contrasts: Talisto’s soft crooning meets Tomasa del Real’s lusty rhymes, while dreamy electronic melodies are set to a heavy dembow beat. But the two styles comes together masterfully, the lyrics of long-distance love delivered with enough conviction to transport any listener. I spent the months after its release with this shimmering gem on repeat – singing along to Tomasa’s words, involuntarily whining my waist, and completely swept away by the fantasy, yearning for a faraway lover whose imaginary existence lasted only the duration of the song.

“Tu Señora” was the pinnacle of a year that saw the continued growth of experimentation with reggaetón in independent and underground music scenes across Latin America, a movement taking dembow in unexpected and sometimes surprising directions. While these endeavors are not always successful – or respectful of the genre’s Panamanian, Afro-Puerto Rican, and working-class roots – Tomasa’s self-dubbed neo-perreo hits the mark, and harkens back to the DIY days of a genre that has grown so large and commercial that it tends towards the formulaic. At a moment when everyone – from mainstream pop stars to underground darlings – is trying to shape the future of reggaetón, “Tu Señora” is a shining beacon. –Verónica Bayetti Flores

6. "Snapchat" - J Balvin (Colombia)

J Balvin represents a new brand of reggaeton – one fueled by sugary, chart-topping hits brewing outside of the genre’s former Caribbean stronghold. When his long-awaited album Energía dropped earlier this year, the world was ready to hear where the Medellín-born singer would take the genre next.

One thing became immediately clear when the album was released: from start to finish, Energía is ripe with bangers. I mean, coño, “Safari” features Skateboard P singing in Spanish, a savvy industry move that barely scratches the surface of how Balvin is shaking up the genre. If “Safari” is the album’s shining beacon in the sky, then “Snapchat” is its hidden gift, the one that pops up in your playlist like…well, a snap from the most alluring person in your contact list.

There are few songs that capture the zeitgeist like this ode to risqué, disappearing messages over trap snares – in Spanish, no less. Bouncy by nature and convincing in its delivery, “Snapchat” finds today’s biggest reggaeton star pining to see “ese booty en 3D baby.” Suffice it to say, that’s a message everyone can stand behind. –Jorge Courtade

5. "Tártaro" - Buscabulla (Puerto Rico)

Brooklyn-based duo Buscabulla had been a little too quiet for our taste this year, but they cheered us up in November when they premiered a bewitching ode to their fellow Puerto Rican and legendary salsero Frankie Ruiz. The single takes its title from Ruiz’s nickname “Tártaro,” and it’s so sultry that it could double as pillow talk. Lead singer Raquel Berríos coos over a shimmery tangle of synths, her come-hither whispers channeling the spirit of Ruiz’s erotic salsa masterpieces. Midway through the song, the 80s-inspired sexpot vibe clears, just for a moment, to expose a muted percussion sample that takes listeners back to Ruiz’s signature drumbeats. It’s a mischievous touch that makes you want to stop batting your eyelashes for a second and break into dance. This is Buscabulla’s sound at its best: dreamy, playful, nostalgic and always ready to make us move. –Julyssa Lopez

4. "It's My Brown Skin” - Helado Negro (US/Ecuador)

Roberto Carlos Lange’s downtempo sci-fi lullabies are the perfect antidote to the fear and anxiety that accompany being brown in the United States. His latest full-length, Private Energy, provides a road map to survival in these trying times. Every time we read, watch, or listen to the news, we’re bombarded with reasons why it’s tough to be brown, but “It’s My Brown Skin” celebrates everything beautiful and powerful about dark skin. Yes, it might not protect you from police, but it will protect you from the sun’s rays. He reminds us that there’s no one way to be brown, and that no matter the color or culture, people of color have more in common than they do differences: “There’s friends of similar shades/of different ways/who feel the same way/don’t ever forget them.” This year, Lange gave us just what we needed: protest songs that look inward for affirmations of self-worth, love, and hope. Because in a society that criminalizes your existence, being proud of your brown skin — denying your oppressors the ability to devalue your sense of self — is as powerful an act of defiance as shouting it in the streets. –Matthew Ismael Ruiz

3. "Mexican Chef" - Xenia Rubinos (US/Cuba)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkySjt87lXo

Much of the music released this year took on prophetic qualities in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s shocking victory in the US presidential election. With a success largely predicated on the othering of immigrant and Latinx communities, we were left with little more than art and self-reliance to cling to.

Enter Xenia Rubinos. A high point off her excellent Black Terry Cat LP, “Mexican Chef” is not only a fierce assertion of the essential and under acknowledged role Latinxs play in day-to-day American life, it is also a humanizing portrait of communities disparaged by the xenophobic fears of a changing country. “Brown walks your baby/Brown walks your dog/Brown raised America in place of its mom,” she charges over a funky guitar riffs. The song’s chorus, “Nouveau America, bachata in the back” is Xenia’s defiant and somewhat mocking wake up call to those who’d rather oppress than embrace the realities of a changing world. The song is epic, from the infectious guitar riffs to Xenia’s own fluttering vocals; she manages to turn the conversation and its presentation on its head. She’s a badass with a simple message: We are your nannies, your nurses, your chefs, and so much more. Brown is here to stay and no walls can hold us. –Richard Villegas

2. "Tomboy" - Princess Nokia (US/Puerto Rico)

http://soundcloud.com/destiny-frasqueri/2-tomboy-prod-saint

After a brief foray into gauzy ballads and throwback disco, Destiny Frasqueri returned to rhyming as Princess Nokia this year with her 1992 EP. On “Tomboy,” one of its standout tracks, she manages to both harken to classic New York hip-hop and to do something completely new. A snare march opening the song indicates clearly that this is a battle cry; revving motors make way for a relentless, pulsing beat, and by the first 30 seconds it’s evident that Princess Nokia is here to win this battle. “Tomboy” is at once an energetic documentation of gender rebellion, a body positive affirmation, and an ode to defiant New York City girlhood. It is a clarion call to girls and young women everywhere: be weird, be sexual, be who you are on your own terms, and be proud. “Tomboy” succeeds not only musically, but also in clarifying the link between the smallest of personal revolutions – like celebrating physical traits seen as undesirable in normative narratives of female beauty (“my little tittles and my fat belly”) – and the defiant, thriving existence of street kids, brown weirdos, gender rebels, and all those who were never meant to survive. –Verónica Bayetti Flores

1. "35 Pa Las 12" - Fuego (Dominican Republic)

Fuego descended on 2016 with hawkish precision, deploying his album Fireboy Forever II in the first month of the year, a silky remix of “35 Pa Las 12” with J Balvin in April, and nabbing writing credits on the Colombian singer’s virtuosic reggaeton album Energía in June. These were strategic, calculated moves that catapulted the Dominican MC into the national spotlight of the urban music industry, as Miguel Duran positioned himself as a new leader in Spanish-language hip-hop.

But anyone can strategize. What sets Fuego apart from the pack is his impressive ability to translate, adapt, and personalize the rhythms and flows of English-language rap for Latinx and non-Latinx audiences alike. Perhaps no other song evinces this skill like “35 Pa Las 12,” a breezy rush of summertime party rap that captures the euphoria of just-before-midnight turn ups. Over warm, arpeggiated synths, Fuego delivers a hook describing life (and party) essentials: hookah, Henny, and rosé. The singsongy refrain – which resembles an auto-tuned version of Eddy Herrera’s “Pegame Tu Vicio” in the (superior) album version of the song – is sticky and soft, an immaculate pop composition in a year where hip-hop often embraced its doomsday sensibilities. “35 Pa Las 12” was the soundtrack to endless Uptown car rides, Miami Beach pregames, and Santo Domingo jumos. In a year where we desperately needed respite from this painful political reality, “35 Pa Las 12” gave us vital moments of Henny-fueled glee. –Isabelia Herrera