Music

Ivy Queen, Natalia Lafourcade & More Feature on iLe’s New Album “Nacarile”

Lead Photo: Photo by Eric Rojas.
Photo by Eric Rojas.
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iLe is back with her new album Nacarile, out today (Oct. 21). The Puerto Rican singer-songwriter teamed up with multiple artists like Ivy Queen, Natalia Lafourcade, and Mon Laferte on the personal and political LP.

iLe started working on the album at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. That year, she also released the enchanting “En Cantos” featuring Lafourcade. iLe traded verses with the Mexican singer about their burning desires for someone they felt completed them. At the Latin Grammy Awards later that year, their collaboration won Best Alternative Song. 

Last month, iLe teased the album with her song “Traguito” featuring Mon Laferte. iLe tackled the classic bolero sound and put her own alternative spin on it. The lyrics were inspired by the poem “Yo Misma Fui Mi Ruta” by Puerto Rican writer Julia de Burgos. iLe and the Chilean chanteuse sang together about getting over heartbreak at the bar. “Cheers my loves, drinking is a pleasure as well as a right to take away those chest pains that can no longer be endured,” iLe croons in Spanish.

Among the new songs on the album, iLe teams up with reggaeton pioneer Ivy Queen for “Algo Bonito.” In the knockout collaboration, she and Ivy Queen sing common misogynistic sayings (like “Nunca he creído que callai’ta me veo mas linda”) with a reinvigorating feminine power. In the chorus, they also use the phrase that machistas often tell women: “Dime algo bonito,” or “Tell me something good.” About what she is seeking with the song, iLe said in a statement, “We want safe and legal abortion. Those are the good things we want to hear.

iLe’s album also includes collaborations with Argentinian rapper Trueno, Flor de Toloache, and Rodrigo Cuevas. She will tour the U.S. next year in support of the album. The Nacarile Tour will kick off on March 3, 2023 in Washington, D.C. The tour will also visit cities like New York, Chicago, and L.A. 

Check out the visualizer for iLe’s “Algo Bonito” with Ivy Queen.