"Baila Esta Cumbia" (English: "Dance This

Cumbia Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, enslaved Africans during colonial times, and Europeans. Examples include: ...

") is a song recorded by American

Tejano Tejanos (, ; singular: ''Tejano/a''; Spanish for "Texan", originally borrowed from the Caddo ''tayshas'') are the residents of the state of Texas who are culturally descended from the Mexican population of Tejas and Coahuila that lived in the ...

singer

Selena Selena Quintanilla Pérez (; April 16, 1971 – March 31, 1995), known mononymously as Selena, was an American Tejano singer. Called the " Queen of Tejano music", her contributions to music and fashion made her one of the most celebrated Mex ...

for her second studio album, '' Ven Conmigo'' (1990). It was released as the second single by

EMI Latin Capitol Latin (formerly EMI Latin) is a brand of Universal Music Latin Entertainment, a division of Universal Music Group. Previously, it was a subsidiary of EMI. History In 1989, José Behar, the former head of CBS Discos, signed Selena to E ...

on August 28, 1990, behind "Ya Ves". It was composed by her brother–producer

A.B. Quintanilla Abraham Quintanilla III (born December 13, 1963), known professionally as A.B. Quintanilla III or A.B. Quintanilla, is an American record producer, songwriter and musician, and the older brother of singer Selena, known as " The Queen of Tejano ...

, and

Selena y Los Dinos Selena y Los Dinos ( en, Selena and the Guys, Selena And the Dinos=Selena And The Dinos) was an American Tejano band formed in 1981 by Tejano singer Selena and her father Abraham Quintanilla. The band remained together until the murder of Sele ...

backup dancer,

Pete Astudillo Pedro Astudillo (born December 1, 1963) is an American singer and songwriter. He was a backup vocalist for Selena y Los Dinos and has released several albums as a solo artist. Early life Astudillo was born on December 1, 1963, in Laredo, Texas, t ...

. The recording is an

up-tempo A variety of musical terms are likely to be encountered in printed scores, music reviews, and program notes. Most of the terms are Italian, in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical conventions. Sometimes, the special mus ...

Mexican cumbia Mexican cumbia is a type of cumbia, a music which originated in Colombia but was reinvented and adapted in Mexico. Origins The cumbia started in Colombia in the 1800s. In the 1940s Colombian singer Luis Carlos Meyer Castandet emigrated to Mexic ...

song. It was well received by

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

who enjoyed its cumbia-feel and rhythm. The track received exposure on radio stations that predominately played cumbia music, and as a result the recording became a

hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...

for the singer. It was named among her best recordings in her career by music critics. "Baila Esta Cumbia" peaked at number ten on the US ''Billboard'' Regional Mexican Digital Songs chart. In 2005, A.B. Quintanilla recorded a remix/duet version of the track with his band

Kumbia Kings The Kumbia Kings were a Mexican-American cumbia group from Corpus Christi, Texas, created by A.B. Quintanilla. Their music encompasses the styles of cumbia (hence their name), hip hop, and R&B. They produce songs in both Spanish and English. ...

, which peaked at number 16 on the US ''Billboard''

Regional Mexican Airplay Regional Mexican Airplay (also referred to as Regional Mexican Songs) is a record chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine. It was established by the magazine on October 8, 1994, with "La Niña Fresa" by Banda Zeta being the first number-one so ...

chart and number 44 on the

Hot Latin Tracks The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart rankings are based on digital sales, rad ...

chart. Other cover versions include recordings by Mexican singers

Diana Reyes Diana Reyes (born November 18, 1979) is a regional Mexican musical artist. Reyes was born in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico. She has released three gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic nu ...

and

Yuridia Yuridia Francisca Gaxiola Flores, commonly known as Yuridia, (born October 4, 1986) is a Mexican singer. She came in second place in the fourth season of the reality show ''La Academia'', which launched her career. In 2005, Yuridia released her d ...

Background and release

"Baila Esta Cumbia" was released as the second single from '' Ven Conmigo'' (1990) in the United States and in Mexico. A compilation album of the same name was released in Mexico and sold 150,000 copies. It was certified

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...

by the

Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (AMPROFON) (English: Mexican Association of Producers of Phonograms and Videograms, A.C.) is a non-profit organization integrated by multinational and national record companies in M ...

(AMPROFON), denoting sales of 250,000 units. "Baila Esta Cumbia" was written by Selena's brother and principal record producer,

and

' backup dancer,

. During an interview in 2002, A.B. said that the recording helped the band's exposure on radio stations that predominantly play

cumbia music Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, enslaved Africans during colonial times, and Europeans. Examples include: ...

recordings. The song is an

song. It is set in

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

and moves at a moderate rate of 90

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. "Baila Esta Cumbia" is written in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

. The

vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of stud ...

of the melody extends from the note G₃ to A₄.

Reception and impact

The majority of contemporary reviews on "Baila Esta Cumbia" were positive. ''Billboard'' contributor Ramiro Burr praised the song for its "melodic hook". Burr, who wrote in ''

The Billboard Guide to Tejano and Regional Mexican Music ''The Billboard Guide To Tejano and Regional Mexican Music'' is a music reference and encyclopedia on Tejano and Regional Mexican music. Written by ''San Antonio Express-News'' music editor Ramiro Burr, the music guide was published in 1999 by ...

'' (1999), opined that Selena "evolved a rhythmic style" which paved way for "catchy cumbias", giving "Baila Esta Cumbia" as his example of her "increasing prowess". Italian essayist Gaetano Prampolini, called "Baila Esta Cumbia" a "plain cumbia dance pleasure" in his book ''The Shade of the Saguaro''. In a 2013 contribution to ''

OC Weekly ''OC Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly paper distributed in Orange County and Long Beach, California. OC Weekly was founded in September 1995 by Will Swaim, who acted as editor and publisher until 2007. The paper was distributed at coffee ...

'', Marco Torres added that "Baila Esta Cumbia" is a "fun song" and noted its "lively" addictive nature. John Storm Roberts wrote in his book ''The Latin Tinge'', that the recording is an "up-tempo romantic piece" for his review of Selena's live album, ''

Live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music *Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of albums ...

'' (1993). Roberts added that with "

Como la Flor "Como la Flor" ("Like the Flower") is a song that was recorded by American singer Selena for her third studio album ''Entre a Mi Mundo'' (1992). It was written by A. B. Quintanilla and Pete Astudillo. The song was conceptualized in 1982 afte ...

", the two "mixes pop vocalism, some quite free scatting, and a classic banda keyboard sound." Federico Martinez of the San Antonio ''La Prensa'' called the recording "upbeat". Deborah R. Vargas wrote in her book ''Dissonant Divas in Chicana Music: The Limits of la Onda'' (2008), that Selena reconstructed Tejano music with the additions of cumbia music, giving credit to "Baila Esta Cumbia" as an example of Selena's blended musical compositions. The recording became one of Selena's biggest

hit singles A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...

. It has appeared on a number of critics' "best Selena songs" lists, including ''OC Weekly'' (at number five), and ''

Latina Latina or Latinas most often refers to: * Latinas, a demographic group in the United States * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America. *Latin Americans Latina and Latinas may also refer ...

'' magazine (at number three). It entered The TouchTunes Most Played chart on ''Billboard'' on the issue dated April 7, 2001, with 1.5 million airplay spins. The song was included in the set list for the '' Selena Forever'' musical, which ran for one year in 2000.

Cover versions

Mexican singer

recorded the song for her album ''Ámame, Bésame'' (2010). Mexican singer

performed "Baila Esta Cumbia" during her tour in Mexico in 2013 to a positive reception.

Kumbia Kings version

"Baila Esta Kumbia" is a song by Mexican-American cumbia group

y Los

featuring Mexican-American singer

. It was released on March 15, 2005 as a single from their album '' Duetos'' (2005). A.B. Quintanilla is the brother of Selena. ;Background Selena's brother and principal record producer, A.B. Quintanilla formed

in 1999. In 2005, the band remixed "Baila Esta Cumbia" into a duet version for their album '' Duetos'' under the title "Baila Esta Kumbia". Evan C. Gutierrez music reviewer for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

believed that the Kumbia Kings' version is a "postmortem love letter" to Selena. Kumbia Kings performed their version for the tribute concert '' Selena ¡VIVE!'', which premiered live on

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...

on April 7, 2005. The track debuted at number 35 on the US ''Billboard''

chart on the issue dated April 2, 2005. It eventually peaked at number 16. ;Personnel * Written by

and

* Produced by A.B. Quintanilla * Lead vocals by

* Intro and outro by A.B. Quintanilla * Background vocals by A.B. Quintanilla, Fernando "Nando" Domínguez, Frank "Pangie" Pangelinan, and

Abel Talamántez Abel Talamántez Mendoza (born October 16, 1979 in Pecos, Texas), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is currently a vocalist for the bands Cruz Martínez Y Los Super Reyes and Los EnVivo Kings. He is also a former member ...

;Charts

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Good article 1990 songs 1990 singles 2005 singles Selena songs Kumbia Kings songs Songs written by A. B. Quintanilla Songs written by Pete Astudillo Song recordings produced by A. B. Quintanilla Spanish-language songs Cumbia songs EMI Latin singles