Tropical Airplay is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks the top-performing songs (regardless of genre or language) on tropical radio stations in the United States, based on weekly airplay data compiled by Nielsen's Broadcast Data Systems (BDS). [1] It is a subchart of Hot Latin Songs, which lists the best-performing Spanish-language songs in the country. [2] In 1998, 15 songs topped the chart, in 50 issues of the magazine. Due to damage to the BDS monitors in Puerto Rico caused by Hurricane Georges, the Tropical Airplay chart, along with the other Latin song charts, was not published in the issues dated October 10 and October 17. [3]
At the start of the year, Gisselle was at number one with her first chart-topper "Quiero Estar Contigo". [4] She went on to have another number one in 1998 with a cover version of Lani Hall and Camilo Sestos's "Corazón Encadenado" with Sergio Vargas; it would be the latter artist's only number one. Víctor Manuelle had three number ones in 1998 topping the listing with "Así es la Mujer", "Se Me Rompe el Alma" and "Que Habría Sido de Mí". Following a successful stint with Grupo Manía, Elvis Crespo launched his solo career and released his debut album Suavemente (1998). [5] The album spawned two number one singles: the title track and "Tu Sonrisa". [5] "Suavemente" was the longest-running number one of the year with nine weeks and the best-performing tropical song of 1998. [6] [7] Grupo Manía themselves reached number one with "Me Miras y Te Miro". [8] Marc Anthony was the only other artist to reach number one with more than one track in 1998 with "Contra la Corriente" and "Si Te Vas", the latter a cover version of Pedro Fernández's song. [9]
Other acts to reach number one for the first time include Olga Tañón, [10] Ricky Martin, [11] Servando & Florentino, [12] and Juan Luis Guerra. [13] Servando & Florentino's debut single, "Una Fan Enamorada", [14] spent a total of six weeks on top of the chart. Guerra had the final one of the year with "Mi PC" from the album Ni Es lo Mismo Ni Es Igual (1998), which marked the artist's return to the music scene after a four year absence. [15] Juan Manuel Lebrón (credited as Juanma y su Tuna Para Todo el Año) [16] and Michael Stuart obtained their first and only chart-toppers in the year. [17]
† | Indicates number 1 on Billboard's year-end tropical chart [7] |
Para Ti is the ninth studio album by singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his band 4.40. It was released on August 31, 2004, by Vene Music and distributed by Universal Latin Music. It was his first studio album in six years since Ni es lo mismo ni es igual (1998) and is his first Christian-gospel inspired album. The lyrics are inspired by his conversion to Christianity and his experience of been a born again Christian. The album explores music genres from gospel and ballads to the salsa and merengue. The album was supported by the release of three official singles: "Para Ti", "Las Avispas" and "Dinteles".
Ni Es lo Mismo Ni Es Igual is the eighth studio album recorded by Dominican singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his backup vocals 4–40. It was released by Karen Records on 15 December 1998 and distributed by PolyGram Latino. It was Guerra's comeback album after four years of silence, out of the public eye and since his conversion to Christianity. It was his first studio album since Fogarate (1994). The album production and songwriting were done by Guerra. The album was supported by the release of four official singles: "Mi PC", "Palomita Blanca", "El Niagara en Bicicleta" and "La Hormiguita". Two singles were released as promotional singles: "Vale La Pena" and "Quisiera".
Suavemente is the debut studio album by American merenguero recording artist Elvis Crespo. Released by Sony Music Latin on April 14, 1998, the album established Crespo as a leading artist in the Latin music market. He collaborated with several songwriters and record producers to create an overall tropical music-flavored recording.
The Tropical Airplay chart is a record chart published by Billboard magazine introduced in 1994. The first number-one song on the chart was "Quien Eres Tu" by Luis Enrique. Originally, rankings on the chart were determined by the amount of airplay a song received on radio stations that primarily played tropical music, namely music originating from the Spanish-speaking areas of the Caribbean such as salsa, merengue, bachata, cumbia, vallenato, and tropical fusions. Any song, regardless of its genre, was eligible for the chart if it received enough airplay from the panel of tropical music radio stations being monitored.
"Mi PC" is a song by Dominican Republic singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his band 4-40 from his eighth studio album, Ni Es lo Mismo Ni Es Igual (1998). The song was released as the lead single from the album in November 1998 by Karen Records. The song was written and produced by Guerra. It is a pop merengue track in which Guerra uses computer terminology to narrate a love story. "Mi PC" was met with positive reactions from music critics who found the lyrics to be clever and its music catchy.
"Palomita Blanca" is a song by Dominican Republic singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his band 4-40 from his eighth studio album, Ni Es lo Mismo Ni Es Igual (1998). As with the rest of the album, the song was written and produced by Guerra. The song was released as the second single from the album in March 1999 by Karen Records. It is a bachata acoustic ballad about a man who is immensely in love with a woman and refuses to let her go.
"El Niágara en Bicicleta" is a song by Dominican Republic singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his band 4-40 from his eighth studio album, Ni Es lo Mismo Ni Es Igual (1998). The song was written and produced by Guerra. It was released as the third single from the album in 1999 by Karen Records. A merengue rap song, it sees the protagonist finding himself in a hospital that is in poor condition, based on Guerra's experience in one. The song received positive reactions from three music critics, who praised who praise its music and social conscious lyrics.
"Viviré" is a song by Dominican Republic singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra released as the second single for his album Fogaraté (1994). It is a Spanish-language adaptation of "Vivi" by Congolese musician Papa Wemba with Guerra writing the song in Spanish. It became his first song to reach number-one on the Billboard Latin Pop Airplay in 1994. At the 1995 Latin Billboard Music Awards, "Viviré" won Tropical/Salsa Song of the Year. It was recognized as one best-performing Latin songs of the year at the 1996 BMI Latin Awards. The music video for the song was directed by Gustavo Garzón and received a nomination for Video of the Year at the 1995 Lo Nuestro Awards. On the review of the album for the Miami Herald, Fernando Gonzalez called the song "the best of the lot". A writer for Music & Media described the track as a Cuban son.
"Loco de Amor" is a song by Puerto Rican singer Jerry Rivera from his seventh studio album Fresco, (1996). The song was written by Mary Lauret and produced by Sergio George and Cuto Soto. It is a salsa tune, in which Rivera confesses that he is crazy in love. The song received positive from music critics, being identified by them as a standout from the album. It was nominated for the Tropical Song of the Year award at the 9th Annual Lo Nuestro Awards in 1997 and was a recipient of the ASCAP Latin Award in the tropical field in the same year. In the United States, "Loco de Amor" reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart and topped the Tropical Airplay chart, spending eight weeks at this position on the latter chart. A music video for the song was filmed in a barn.
"Rezo" is a song by Puerto Rican entertainer Carlos Ponce from his 1998 eponymous debut album. The song was co-written by Ponce and Freddy Piñero, Jr. with productions being handled by Emilio Estefan and Kike Santander. It was released as the lead single from the album on May 12, 1998. A pop and tropical power ballad with a gospel chorus, the singer leads a prayer for a woman he desires. A remix of the track was also included in the album. The song received positive reactions from three music journalists.
"Dejaría Todo" is a song by Puerto Rican singer Chayanne from his ninth studio album, Atado a Tu Amor (1998). The song was written and produced by Estéfano and released as the lead single from the album in September 1998 by Sony Discos.The rock ballad details everything the singer is capable of doing for his lover. The song received generally positive reactions from music critics and is listed among Chayanne's best songs. A music video for the song was filmed and features a dark scenery. Commercially, it topped the Billboard Hot Latin Songs and Latin Pop Airplay charts in the United States. The track was nominated for Pop Song of the Year at the 11th Lo Nuestro Awards and Song of the Year at the inaugural Ritmo Latino Music Awards in 1999 and was acknowledged as an award-winning song at the 2000 Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) Latin Awards.
Servando & Florentino is a Venezuela music duo consisting of brothers Servando Primera and Florentino Primera. They are sons of Venezuelan musician and activist Alí Primera, who died in 1985. They began their music career as part of the salsa band Salserín and left the group in 1997. In the same year, they released their debut album, Los Primera, which contained the lead single, "Una Fan Enamorada". The song topped the Hot Latin Songs and Tropical Airplay charts in the United States. The duo received three Lo Nuestro nominations for "Tropical/Salsa Duo or Group of the Year", "New Tropical/Salsa Artist of the Year", and "Tropical/Salsa Song of the Year" for "Una Fan Enamorada" in 1999. Their album, Los Primera, was nominated at the 1999 Latin Billboard Music Awards for "Tropical/salsa album of the year, duo or group" and "Tropical/salsa album of the year, new artist".
"Una Fan Enamorada" is a song by Venezuelan duo Servando & Florentino from their debut album Los Primera (1997). It was written by Venezuelan musician Ricardo Montaner and released as the album's lead single in 1997. The song was recorded in salsa and ballad. It speaks of a "direct intimacy and understanding to every smitten fan who pined for the guys". Diana Raquel of La Prensa praised as a "catchy song where the voices of Servando and Florentino are heard in perfect harmony." The Miami Herald critic Eliseo Cardona was less impressed with the track, stating it should only be listed to once as it has "the same plot of a Venevision soap opera". "Una Fan Enamorada" served as the closing theme for the Venezuelan telenovela Todo por tu amor (1997). "Una Fan Enamorada" was nominated in the category of Tropical Song of the Year at the 11th Annual Lo Nuestro Awards, but lost to "Suavemente" by Elvis Crespo.
Frio Frio or Frio, Frio is the lead single of the sixth studio album Areito by Dominican superstar Juan Luis Guerra. The song is considered to be a bachata by many, however it is actually a bolero. It was written based on a poem by Federico García Lorca and was released in August 1991. The track received positive reviews from critics and was nominated for Tropical Salsa Song of the Year at the 4th Lo Nuestro Awards. Frio Frio was a success peaking at number 4 on Billboard Hot Latin Tracks and at the Top 5 airplay in Panama and Uruguay.
"Píntame" is a song by Puerto Rican American singer Elvis Crespo from his 1999 second studio album of the same name. The song was written by Crespo with Luis Angel Cruz and Robert Cora handling its productions. It is a merengue song in which Crespo asks an artist to materialize his lover by painting her. The song was met with positive reactions from three music critics who found the song to be catchy. An accompanying music video for the single features Crespo dancing with other performers in a white background.
Despues de cuatro anos de ausencia, Juan Luis Guerra regresa con renovados brios con su mas reciente produccion que lleva por nombre Ni es lo mismo, ni es igual, del que se desprende el sencillo 'Mi PC'.[After a four year absence, Juan Luis Guerra returns with renewed spirits with his most recent production that carries the name Ni es lo mismo, ni es igual, from which the single 'Mi PC' is derived.]