| Vibras | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 25 May 2018 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 43:44 | |||
| Language | Spanish | |||
| Label | Universal Latin | |||
| Producer |
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| J Balvin chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Vibras | ||||
Vibras (English: Vibes [3] ) is the third studio album by Colombian reggaeton singer J Balvin released on 25 May 2018 through Universal Latin. The album was promoted with five singles, including the international hit, "Mi Gente", which was released as the lead single of the album.
Even though you don't understand what I’m saying, you are going to really feel it. The same thing happened to me when I used to listen to English music. I didn't even understand one word. You know? But, it just makes me feel great.
—Balvin talking to NBC News about the fact that album was completely done in Spanish [4]
In June 2017, Balvin together with French producer and DJ Willy William released the single, "Mi Gente". The song became a major commercial success reaching number one in over thirty countries worldwide, including number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart; it stayed on the chart for 35 consecutive weeks. [5] According to Balvin he developed the concept for the album from the moment "Mi Gente" started "connecting with audiences around the world", wanting to make a fusion of different world beats and rhythms and refine the reggaeton music. [6]
In an interview with Ebro Darden for Beats 1 Radio on Apple Music in April 2018, Balvin described the sound of the record as 33% dancehall, 33% R&B, and 33% reggaeton. Balvin further elaborated that a lot of love was put into the album's work and that contains different vibes, hence the name, Vibras, "The real meaning of this album was what's going on with Spanish music that's going so global, the fact that we did an album that the beats are so amazing that you don't have to understand what we say, you just have to love the songs." [7]
Talking to NBC News Balvin explained how the core of the album is still the reggaeton, but according to him you can present the genre "in a way that people that don't know reggaeton or don't understand it, they would feel great." The singer further elaborated that he went back to his roots, but also "added some extra spice to it". [4] Apart from William, the album features multiple other collaborators including the reggaeton duos Wisin & Yandel and Zion & Lennox, Brazilian singer Anitta, Mexican indie-pop musician Carla Morrison, flamenco singer Rosalía and Aruban singer Jeon. [4]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 80/100 [8] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| The Guardian |  [1] |
| Pitchfork | 8/10 [9] |
| Rolling Stone | [10] |
Vibras received generally favorable reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 80 based on 4 reviews. [8] Thom Jurek of AllMusic described Vibras as Balvin's attempt to reach English-speaking audience without singing in English. He wrote that the singer's ambition on the record is "grand" and further called it more "consistent" and "varied" than his previous album, Energia (2016), "its songwriting, performances, and production are truly inspired, making for an utterly compelling listen and one of the essential soundtracks of summer." [5] Juana Giaimo of The Guardian gave the album four out of five stars commending its production, lyrics and Balvin's vocals. She also praised the sound of the reggaeton music on the album calling it "smooth" and "sensual", "tracks such as this still make Vibras perfect as a party playlist, but confirm that the noisy style of early reggaeton hits such as Daddy Yankee's 'Gasolina' is slowly being left behind." [1] Rolling Stone 's Will Hermes stated that Vibras "happens to be a pan-Latin masterstroke of its own, a set of primo Spanish-language pop with vibe deep enough to make it universal." [10]
Raisa Bruner of Time magazine named Vibras the fifth best album of 2018, writing "[J Balvin] has carved out a space in mainstream music on his own terms; he makes no concessions for English speakers, instead serving up a colorful tour of Latin America's hottest musical trends." [11] Billboard ranked it at number nine on their year-end list. [12]
Vibras achieved the highest first-week streams for a Latin album on Apple Music globally, replacing Romeo Santos' 2017 album Golden . It also claimed the record for the most-streamed Latin album in 24 hours on the streaming platform for 2018. [13] In the United States, it debuted at number one on the Top Latin Albums chart for the issue dated 9 June 2018. According to Nielsen Music, the record sold 22,000 album-equivalent units and became Balvin's second number-one album on the chart, following Energia in 2016. Out of the starting sum, 10,000 were in traditional album sales, which marked the second largest sales week of 2018, behind only CNCO's self-titled album that sold 13,000 copies. Additionally, Vibras scored the largest streaming week ever for a Latin album by an artist; its songs were streamed 16.1 million times. [14] Subsequently, it debuted at number 15 on the US Billboard 200 and became his highest-charting album on the chart. [15]
To further promote the album, Balvin began The Vibras Tour [16] [17] in Mexico City, Mexico on 26 May 2018.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vibras" (featuring Carla Morrison) |
|
| 1:06 |
| 2. | "Mi Gente" (with Willy William) |
| William | 3:05 |
| 3. | "Ambiente" |
|
| 4:09 |
| 4. | "Cuando Tú Quieras" |
|
| 3:25 |
| 5. | "No Es Justo" (featuring Zion & Lennox) |
|
| 4:11 |
| 6. | "Ahora" |
|
| 4:15 |
| 7. | "Brillo" (featuring Rosalía) |
|
| 2:40 |
| 8. | "En Mí (Interlude)" |
|
| 0:54 |
| 9. | "En Mí" |
|
| 3:16 |
| 10. | "Peligrosa" (featuring Wisin & Yandel) |
|
| 3:22 |
| 11. | "Noches Pasadas" |
|
| 3:42 |
| 12. | "Tu Verdad" |
|
| 3:25 |
| 13. | "Dónde Estarás" |
|
| 3:12 |
| 14. | "Machika" (with Jeon and Anitta) |
|
| 3:10 |
| Total length: | 43:44 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Positivo" (with Michael Brun) | Osorio | Brun | 2:53 |
| 16. | "Ginza" |
|
| 2:51 |
| 17. | "Safari" (featuring Pharrell Williams, BIA and Sky) |
|
| 3:25 |
| 18. | "Bobo" |
|
| 3:29 |
| Total length: | 56:29 | |||
Credits adapted from AllMusic and Tidal. [20]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) [35] | Diamond | 160,000* |
| Canada (Music Canada) [36] | Gold | 40,000‡ |
| Mexico (AMPROFON) [37] | 3× Platinum+Gold | 210,000‡ |
| Poland (ZPAV) [38] | Gold | 10,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA) [39] | 8× Platinum (Latin) | 480,000‡ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Region | Date | Formats | Labels | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | 25 May 2018 | Universal Latin | [18] [40] [41] | |
| Japan | 11 July 2018 | CD | Universal Music Japan | [19] |
Nick Rivera Caminero, known by his stage name Nicky Jam, is an American singer. He is best known for hits such as "X", "Travesuras", "En la Cama", "Te Busco", "El Perdón", "Hasta el Amanecer", and "El Amante"; the later three are from his 2017 album Fénix. He has frequently collaborated with other Latin artists such as Daddy Yankee, J Balvin, Ozuna, Plan B and Anuel AA. While his early music exemplified traditional fast-paced reggaeton, his newer compositions place more emphasis on sung vocals and romantic lyrics.
José Álvaro Osorio Balvín, known professionally as J Balvin, is a Colombian singer. He has been referred to as the "Prince of Reggaeton", and is one of the best-selling Latin artists, with over 35 million records sold worldwide. Balvin was born in Medellín. At age 17, he moved to the United States to learn English, where he lived in both Oklahoma and New York. He then returned to Medellín and gained popularity performing at clubs in the city.
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Colombian singer J Balvin has released 5 studio albums, one collaborative album, three mixtapes, three EPs, sixty-nine singles, thirty featured singles, and ten promotional singles. He is one of the best-selling Latin artists, with over 45 million singles and over 4 million album sales
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