If you’re a faithful Remezclero, by now you know that we’ve been patiently waiting for this Pharrell and J Balvin collab for months, ever since we lurked Instagram and discovered the news back in February. Last night, Balvin finally premiered “Safari” on Ebro’s Beats 1 radio show on Apple Music. “Safari” is radically different from lead single “Bobo,” which was a bit of a reggaeton romántico snooze. “Safari,” on the other hand, is a fresh new direction for Balvin, a slow burning perreo spell boasting acoustic strings, an instrumental dembow riddim, and live percussion.
While the hook is a bit simpler than tracks we’ve heard from Balvin in the past (“a ella le gusta, a mi me gusta”), this is the kind of track that exemplifies Balvin’s versatility and willingness to color outside the lines of top 40 trends. The star has his go-to producer Sky singing on one of his tracks for the first time, and as he told Ebro, he invited Pharrell to sing in Spanish.
Apple Music is also hosting an exclusive stream of “Malvada,” another new cut from Energía, which is set drop on June 24. “Malvada” takes the more traditional reggaeton route, but its he-said-she-said hook is a promising glimpse into what will come from the reggaetonero’s second studio album. Listen to the premiere of “Safari,” check out all of Apple Music’s exclusive stream, and revisit our recent interview below.
You can pre-order Energía on iTunes now.