If the 2017 Latin Grammy Awards left us with anything besides the confirmation of ‘Despacito’ as a global phenomenon, is that Colombian reggaeton singer J Balvin now holds the torch and has been entrusted with the future of mainstream Latin music. The 32-year-old performer performed 3 different songs at the 18th edition of the annual award ceremony.
Balvin kicked off his highly produced performance with early year hit single “Sola” alongside Bad Bunny; the stage the pair was standing on had a moving square made out of green lasers that surrounded the artists during their performance. The singer then reappeared in a new stage where he and French Montana were now surrounded by flames while performing a Spanish version of his song “Unforgettable”.
However, the night couldn’t be complete without fan favorite “Mi Gente”, which is currently J Balvin’s most popular song especially after Beyonce featured the remix which garnered Balvin a load of crossover success. The crowd at the ceremony went wild as soon as the beat dropped, but what really made the night special was the collaboration with Steve Aoki, the DJ turned the night of gala into a rave with his custom techno remix of the hit song.
Balvin appeared on stage in a hot pink tracksuit surrounded by break dancers in black & white chequered outfits who energetically danced to the beat of this season’s hot banger, the performers were surrounded with multiple LED screens featuring wacky colorful animations that really gave the place that rave ambiance that Aoki evokes at his shows. Balvin would later present Steve Aoki to the crowd who joined the Colombian singer to dance the final minutes of the song.
My brother @JBALVIN pic.twitter.com/6qPosMiQiB
— Steve Aoki (@steveaoki) November 17, 2017
On November 18 the Colombian singer released a new single alongside Brazilian singer Anitta called “Downtown” the provocative R rated song will surely turn some heads for its highly sensual content, as of now no music video for the single has been released.
HINOOOOOOO! Downtown, Anitta feat J.Balvin saiu no Spotify https://t.co/xdgdZBwiN7
— PAN (@forumpandlr) November 19, 2017
DJ Steve Aoki also released an album this year that marks the fourth installment of his career, the record is called Kolony and featured the popular single “Lit” which was written by Aoki and Yellow Claw and recorded with the musical collaboration of Gucci Mane and T-Pain.
New Single “Downtown” with @JBALVIN @Spotify 😍😍 https://t.co/elBXw8A8Sw pic.twitter.com/YIcBLfWRGh
— Anitta (@Anitta) November 19, 2017
Meanwhile “Mi Gente” is still climbing positions in the iTunes Singles chart and sits at number 28 for now.
Article inspired by Pop Sugar // J Balvin’s Latin Grammys Performance Was So Rowdy, It Turned Into a Rave