"Cántalo" () is a song recorded by Puerto Rican singer

Ricky Martin Enrique Martin Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography incorporati ...

with Puerto Rican rappers Residente and

Bad Bunny Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio (; born March 10, 1994), better known by his stage name Bad Bunny, is a Puerto Rican rapper and singer. Known as the " King of Latin Trap", Bad Bunny is credited with helping Spanish-language rap music achieve m ...

for Martin's first

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

, ''

Pausa In linguistics, pausa (Latin for 'break', from Greek παῦσις, ''pâusis'' 'stopping, ceasing') is the hiatus between prosodic declination units. The concept is somewhat broad, as it is primarily used to refer to allophones that occur in ...

'' (2020). The song was written by Residente, Bad Bunny, Danay Suárez, Martin, Rubén Blades, and Johnny Pacheco, while the production was handled by Residente and Trooko. It was released for digital download and

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Sony Music Latin Sony Music Entertainment US Latin LLC (often referred to as Sony Music Latin) is an American record label owned by Sony Music. The label focuses on artists of Latin music. Sony Latin was also a division of the Sony Discos label. History In ...

on November 12, 2019, as the

lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...

from the EP. A Spanish language salsa and

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...

song, it is about union and celebration. "Cántalo" received widely positive reviews from

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 ...

, who complimented its lyrics, and fusion of sounds and genres. The song reached the top 10 in Martin's native Puerto Rico, and the top 15 in Panama. It was nominated for Best Urban Fusion/Performance at the 21st Annual Latin Grammy Awards. To promote the song, Martin, Residente, and Bad Bunny performed it at the 2019 Latin Grammy Awards. For further promotion,

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promoted the release on billboards in

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Background and development

Telegramgate, also known as Chatgate, was a political scandal involving

Ricardo Rosselló Ricardo Antonio Rosselló Nevares (; born March 7, 1979) is an American former politician, businessman, neurobiologist and educator. He served as Governor of Puerto Rico from 2017 until his resignation in 2019. In 2021, he returned to active ...

, then

Governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico () is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. Elected to a 4 year-term through popular vote by the residents of the archipelago and island, ...

, which began on July 8, 2019, with the leak of hundreds of pages of a group chat on the messaging application

Telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...

between Rosselló and members of his cabinet. The messages were considered vulgar, misogynistic, and homophobic toward several individuals and groups, including

. Therefore, Martin,

, Residente and several other artists, and more than half a million Puerto Ricans led the call to take to the streets of Puerto Rico, demanding Rosselló's resignation. Martin started recording his eleventh studio album, initially titled ''Movimiento'', in the second half of 2019, inspired by the political protests in Puerto Rico. On November 6, 2019, Martin shared the artwork for his new single on his

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

and announced that it would be a collaboration with Bad Bunny and Residente, titled "Cántalo". The cover replicates Puerto Rican protest posters demanding the resignation of Roselló. Four days later, Martin shared a photo of himself and his fellow artists in studio, and revealed the single's release date as November 12, 2019. In an interview with '' El Nuevo Día'', he told the newspaper about "Cántalo", saying it has "a fascinating story, starting with the fact that La Fania gave me the master ecordingsof ' Mi Gente' to work on this song, which is a very great responsibility and it fills my heart with pride". He continued: Residente also told ''El Nuevo Día'' about the collaboration, saying it "continues to show the union through music and within a circle of different generations that represent our culture and heritage", going on to call the song "an incredible experience to integrate 'Mi Gente' a song with a rich history from its creation in Africa to its global impact". "Cántalo" marked the first collaboration between Martin and the two other artists, while Residente and Bad Bunny had previously worked on the 2019 singles "Bellacoso" and " Afilando los cuchillos" together.

Music and lyrics

Musically, "Cántalo" is a Spanish language salsa and

song, written by Residente, Bad Bunny, Cuban singer-songwriter Danay Suárez, Martin, Panamanian musician Rubén Blades, and Dominican musician Johnny Pacheco. Its production was handled by Residente and Trooko, and the song features elements of trap,

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

Latin pop Latin pop () is a pop music subgenre that is a fusion of US–style music production with Latin music genres from anywhere in Latin America and Spain. It originates with List of countries where Spanish is an official language, Spanish-speaking ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, and bossa nova. The song runs for a total of 3 minutes and 38 seconds, uses several instruments including a tambora and trumpet, and inspires the union of the human race regardless of religion, social status or flag color. Throughout the roaring and richly cultural song, the trio sing about union and celebration. The

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

of the track references

Héctor Lavoe Héctor Juan Pérez Martínez (September 30, 1946 – June 29, 1993), better known as Héctor Lavoe, was a Puerto Rican people, Puerto Rican salsa music, salsa singer. Widely regarded as one of salsa’s most important and influential vocalist ...

's 1974 song " Mi Gente", and reverts to "full-throttle salsa" between Residente and Bad Bunny rap verses. After Bad Bunny's verse, the song nods to a half-time

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

, before another chorus.

Release and promotion

The song was released for digital download and

as a single by

on November 12, 2019. For further promotion,

promoted the release on billboards in

. Because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and subsequent personal experiences, Martin decided to split the album ''Movimiento'' into the two EPs ''Pausa'' and ''Play''. "Cántalo" was included as the sixth track on his debut EP ''Pausa'', released May 28, 2020. On June 23, 2020, an accompanying

lyric video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to promote the sale of m ...

was released on Martin's

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channel. A headphone mix of the song, created using " Orbital Audio" technology, was included as the sixth track on the headphone mix version of the EP, released July 30, 2020. Martin, Residente, and Bad Bunny gave their first live performance of "Cántalo" at the 20th Annual Latin Grammy Awards on November 14, 2019, which was ranked as one of the best moments of the ceremony by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''. The song was included on Martin's the Movimiento Tour, which began at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico on February 7, 2020. During the performances of "Cántalo" for the tour, he wore a black outfit, and usually appeared at the top of a staircase placed in the middle of a stage. Martin also performed "Cántalo" along with his other hits during the 61st Viña del Mar International Song Festival on February 23, 2020.

Critical reception

Upon release, "Cántalo" was met with widely positive reviews from

. Suzette Fernandez from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' gave the song a positive review, praising it for leaving aside the commercial sound and becoming a cultural song that carries a message of union and celebration. She also complimented the song for its perfectly fusion of sounds, and admired "the combination of Martin's voice with Residente and Bad Bunny's rap style and the lyrics" that make the track "unique". Writing for ''Hypebeast'', Sophie Caraan praised "Cántalo", saying: "Fusing traditional sounds found in Latin music and Residente and Bunny's trap style, the track calls for everybody to stand for what’s right instead of turning a blind eye to injustice." She also described the song as " cultural anthem that calls for unification and celebration". Alicia Alonso from

Cadena Dial Cadena Dial is a Spanish radio station. The station belongs to the Spanish media group PRISA. It was founded in 1990 and broadcasts exclusively pop music in Spanish (and Catalan, in the case of Catalonia). On 7 April 2017 Cadena Dial began broad ...

described it as "a song with Latin rhythms that promises to be the song that everyone is going to dance and sing". An author of

Los 40 Los 40 (stylized as LOS40, formerly ''Los 40 Principales'', ) is a Spanish Top 40-themed music radio station that broadcasts current and recent music, primarily focusing on genres such as pop, dance, electropop, Electro Latin, and Reggaeton. T ...

complimented the track, labeling it "a song that brings together all cultures regardless of religion or country". An author of Rádio Comercial wrote about the song: "A little bit of classic salsa, a few splashes of reggaeton (enough) and a little bit of hip-hop. Everything moves, joins the power trio Ricky Martin, Residente and Bad Bunny and the result is 'Cántalo'." Writing for ''

20 minutos ''20 minutos'' is a Spanish free newspaper, with local editions in several Spanish cities, published by Multiprensa & Mas S.L. History Multiprensa & Mas S.L. was founded in Madrid in 1999. The founder of 20 minutos is José Antonio Martínez ...

'', David Moreno Sáenz described the song as "a true tribute to Latin music that fuses genres from reggaeton to bossa nova through more urban music or jazz".

Accolades

TNT Latin America ranked "Cántalo" as one of the Best Collaborations of 2019. It was nominated for Best Urban Fusion/Performance at the 21st Annual Latin Grammy Awards, but lost to " Yo x Ti, Tu x Mi" by

Rosalía Rosalia Vila Tobella (born 25 September 1992), known mononymously as Rosalía (, ), is a Spanish Pop music, pop and flamenco singer. She has been described as an "atypical pop star" due to her genre-bending musical styles. After being enthral ...

and

Ozuna Juan Carlos Ozuna Rosado (; born March 13, 1992), known simply by his surname Ozuna, is a Puerto Rican singer, born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico to a Dominican father and a Puerto Rican mother. Five of his studio albums have topped ...

Commercial performance

"Cántalo" debuted at number 35 on the US

Hot Latin Songs The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin music, Latin songs, published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart ranki ...

chart, becoming Martin's 48th entry on the chart, Residente's second, and Bad Bunny's 62nd. It also peaked at number 23 on the US Latin Airplay chart, number 11 on both the

Latin Pop Airplay Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area around Rome, Italy. Through the expansion of ...

and

Latin Rhythm Airplay Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area around Rome, Italy. Through the expansion o ...

charts, and number 3 on the US Latin Digital Song Sales chart, becoming Residente's highest peak and his longest running hit on the last chart. The song was certified Latin gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA), for track-equivalent sales of over 30,000 units in the United States. Besides the US, "Cántalo" reached the top 10 in Puerto Rico, and the top 15 in Panama.

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. *

vocal, composer, lyricist, associated performer, executive producer * Residente vocal, composer, producer, lyricist, associated performer *

vocal, composer, lyricist, associated performer * Trooko producer, recording engineer * Danay Suárez composer, lyricist * Johnny Pacheco composer, lyricist * Rubén Blades composer, lyricist, background vocal * Karina Pagán A&R coordinator * Mireille Bravo A&R coordinator * Amber Urena A&R coordinator * Isabel De Jesús A&R director * Tito Allen background vocal * Carmila Ramírez background vocal * Daniel Díaz congas *

Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' '' Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Early life ...

mastering engineer *

Tom Elmhirst Tom Elmhirst (born 8 June 1971) is a British mix engineer. He has worked with artists including Adele, Beck, David Bowie, Cage the Elephant, Lady Gaga, Residente, and Amy Winehouse, among many others. Elmhirst has received numerous accolades ...

mixing engineer * Leo Genovese piano * Daniel Prim percussion * Enrique Larreal recording engineer * Phil Joly recording engineer * Luis Quintero timbales * Rey Alejandre trombone * Diego Urcola trumpet * Jean Rodriguez vocal engineer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

* {{authority control 2019 songs 2019 singles Ricky Martin songs Bad Bunny songs Songs written by Ricky Martin Songs written by Bad Bunny Sony Music Latin singles Songs in Spanish Songs written by Rubén Blades Residente songs Songs written by Residente