As we’ve been saying for some time now, corridos are no longer just your tio’s favorite music to blast while crushing canned beer at the carne asada (though that’s a great way to spend a Saturday night, no doubt). The genre has taken on a mesmerizing transformation in the last few years, with artists like Legado 7 and La Plebada flipping the entire concept on its head, and adding urbano and trap elements to a style of music that is closer in spirit to hip-hop and trap than many might think. Slowly, we’ve seen ostrich boots be traded in for Balenciagas, and the tuba go from clunky and awkward instrument, to the backbone of trap corrido bangers – or corridos tumbados.
And Nataneal Cano, who we recently featured in our Nuevo Noise series, is the next generation of trap corrido artist to push the genre in new directions – making him the perfect choice for Bad Bunny to launch the world’s first true urbano/corrido junte. The surprise release – a San Benito-assisted remix of Cano’s hit “Soy El Diablo,” came this morning – just weeks after Benito posted a video of himself on Instagram singing along to the song while chugging a bottle of Patron.
“It’s something I never imagined. Like, zero percent,” Cano tells Remezcla about the remix. But he also knows the regional Mexican scene he’s a part of fits naturally in with the already-massive urbano scene. “We’re the new generation [of regional], and we have that other sound naturally inside of us. It’s organic.”
The song begins with Bad Bunny emitting a chill-inducing “Ajuaaaa” before the infectious Sierreño corrido cradles Bad Bunny’s effortless bars that make him look as though he’s been vibing with Recodo since day one. His delivery, and even his slang – which include shout outs to Canelo Álvarez, Rancho Humilde (Cano’s label, and one of the main powerhouses behind the new corrido sound) and words like “compa,” and “banda” to refer to the people – show the care with which Benito handled this remix.
“Para mi gente linda de Mexico, Puerto Rico, Latinoamerica” Conejo Malo says, “Eso es pa’ toda mi raza/ America es nuestra casa” he adds as the song comes to a close.
It was only a matter of time before the worlds of urbano and corrido collided, and watching Bad Bunny so effortlessly embrace the style – with such addictive results – proves this is just the beginning. Ajua culture is here to stay.
Stream “Soy El Diablo” Remix feat. Bad Bunny here.