NorteñoBlog

NorteñoBlog returned from Easter break to a special treat — and no, I’m not talking about the controversial, NSPT “Fuiste Mia” video where Gerardo Ortiz catches his mujer with another dude, shoots the dude, helps said mujer into the trunk of his car, and then lights the car on fire. If you’re thinking, “That sounds like a 15-year-old Eminem song” — you’re right! It’s basically the plot of “Kim” (and, to a lesser extent, “Stan”), only none of that drama actually occurs in the lyrics of “Fuiste Mia,” itself an anodyne but pretty obsession anthem. This video raises complex moral questions. Is depicting femicide in a music video more arbitrary, and therefore less defensible, than depicting the same crime in song? Is the “Fuiste Mia” video less hypocritical, and therefore more defensible, than that Séptima video where the singer sells his cheating mujer into slavery, only to end with a Muy Especial message against “la trata de blancas”? NorteñoBlog will consult with our team of ethicists and get back to you approximately, oh, never.

You see, I’m too excited about this other treat: Billboard has expanded its website’s Hot Latin Songs chart from 25 songs to 50 songs! (I’m pretty sure it’s always 50 songs long in the magazine.) It’s too soon to tell whether this is a one-week oversight, a permanent change, or a joyful seasonal rite meant to commemorate the 50 days of Eastertide feasting. One thing I can tell: you’re not as excited as I am. Here’s why you should be.

1. More songs! Although many of the new ones turn out to be boring ballads (*COUGH* Sin Bandera) or tedious reggaeton bangers (*BARK*angel I mean Arcangel), there are a couple winners in the chart’s lower reaches. Chiquito Team Band has a lovely salsa take on Arrolladora’s “La Llamada de Mi Ex,” and Reykon’s reggaeton banger “El Error” piles on thick synths like slabs of meat. This week’s Pick to Click is in at #50 and absent from the Regional Mexican airplay chart, meaning I probably would have missed it any other week. “Rumbo a Maza,” by noted El Chapo trollers Los Titanes de Durango, is the whipcrack tale of an hombre who talks his way out of a speeding ticket after he gets pulled over for doing 280 in a 110, I’m guessing on the 15D outside Mazatlán. Turns out our speedy hero Knows People and commands the respect of the police, who graciously compliment the beautiful muchacha seated beside him before letting him drive away. And people think Mexican police are corrupt!

The Corvette owner’s manual claims you’ll get 29 mpg on the highway, but I seriously doubt he’s getting that kind of mileage.

2. We can fully appreciate the internet-but-not-radio phenomenon that is Los Plebes del Rancho. The Hot Latin chart, you’ll recall, includes streams and downloads along with radio play to figure its rankings. With and without the late Ariel Camacho, Los Plebes have seven songs in the Hot Latin top 50. Only one of those, “Hablemos,” is getting appreciable radio play. This makes me think Los Plebes are attracting a younger, more internet-savvy and video-driven audience than are, say, the radio-centric Pesado — unusual for a Sierreño trio, but not unusual for three attractive young hombres with a recently dead pinup idol friend.

3. We can better pinpoint which radio songs are getting little internet love. Pesado’s cover of Los Alegres de Terán seems made for radio, where old corridos frequently sneak into the rotation. But I’m surprised that Omar Ruiz‘s ode to George Jung, “El Americano,” remains bigger on radio than the internet — especially since, as Manuel pointed out, compelling video renditions exist. Don’t get me wrong, “El Americano” sounds great on the radio; but it also seems tailor made for internet WTF-ery.

One more thing: you’ll note that Nicky Jam’s “El Perdón” is no longer on the Hot Latin chart, after spending 58 weeks there. Unlike King Romeo’s “Propuesta Indecente,” which held court in the top 5 for more than two years, Sr. Jam had the good grace to drop below #5. And if your song is more than a year old and you drop below #5, Billboard says “hasta la vista.”

These are the top 25 50 Hot Latin Songs and top 20 Regional Mexican Songs, courtesy Billboard, as published April 9.

1. “Hasta El Amanecer” – Nicky Jam
2. “Ginza” – J Balvin (36 weeks!)
3. “Encantadora” – Yandel
4. “Solo Con Verte” – Banda MS (#2 RegMex)
5. “Obsesionado” – Farruko
6. “Traidora” – Gente de Zona ft. Marc Anthony
7. “Borro Cassette” – Maluma (36 weeks!)
8. “Ya Te Perdí La Fe” – Arrolladora (#1 RegMex)
9. “¿Por Qué Terminamos?” – Gerardo Ortiz (#3 RegMex)
10. “Te Busco” – Cosculluela ft. Nicky Jam (or vice versa)

11. “Culpa Al Corazón” – Prince Royce
12. “Préstamela a Mi” – Calibre 50 (#4 RegMex)
13. “DEL Negociante” – Los Plebes Del Rancho de Ariel Camacho
14. “Hablemos” – Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes Del Rancho (#11 RegMex)
15. “Tomen Nota” – Adriel Favela ft. Los Del Arroyo (#5 RegMex)
16. “Desde Esa Noche” – Thalía ft. Maluma
17. “Broche de Oro” – La Trakalosa de Monterrey (#6 RegMex)
18. “Embriagame” – Zion & Lennox
19. “Como Lo Hacia Yo” – Ken-Y & Nicky Jam
20. “Tan Fácil” – CNCO

21. “Hasta Que Se Seque El Malecón” – Jacob Forever
22. “No Lo Hice Bien” – Los Plebes Del Rancho de Ariel Camacho
23. “Nadie Como Tú” – Banda Clave Nueva de Max Peraza (#7 RegMex)
24. “Que Caro Estoy Pagando” – Los Plebes del Rancho de Ariel Camacho
25. “¿Por Qué Me Ilusionaste?” – Remmy Valenzuela (#9 RegMex)
26. “50 Sombras de Austin” – Arcangel & DJ Luian
27. “Andas En Mi Cabeza” – Chino & Nacho ft. Daddy Yankee
28. “Me Empezó A Valer” – La Séptima Banda (#8 RegMex)
29. “No Soy Una de Esas” – Jesse & Joy ft. Alejandro Sanz
30. “Vale la Pena” – Roberto Tapia (#10 RegMex)

31. “El Perdedor” – Maluma
32. “En Ésta No” – Sin Bandera
33. “El Error” – Reykon
34. “Si No Es Contigo” – Banda El Recodo (#16 RegMex)
35. “Perdoname” – Ricky Martin
36. “Pero Sin Enamorarse” – Jesus Ojeda y Sus Parientes (#12 RegMex)
37. “Una En Un Millon” – Alexis & Fido
38. “La Llamada de Mi Ex” – Chiquito Team Band
39. “Baby” – Jencarlos ft. Lennox
40. “Yo Quisiera Entrar” – Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho

41. “Ganas de Ti” – Zion & Lennox
42. “El Mentado” – Los Plebes del Rancho de Ariel Camacho
43. “Panchito El F1” – Los Tucanes de Tijuana (#19 RegMex)
44. “Corazon Acelerado” – Wisin
45. “Tu Ausencia” – Intocable (#14 RegMex)
46. “Solo Yo” – Sofia Reyes & Prince Royce
47. “La Ocasion” – DJ Luian & Mambo Kings Presentan: De La Ghetto Featuring Arcangel X Ozuna X Anuel
48. “O Te Vas Tu O Me Voy Yo” – Hector Acosta “El Torito”
49. “Ya Lo Supere” – Los Plebes del Rancho de Ariel Camacho
50. “Rumbo A Maza” – Los Titanes de Durango

¡Adios!
“El Perdón” – Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias (58 weeks!)
—————–

13. “Después de Ti, ¿Quién?” – La Adictiva Banda
15. “El Americano” – Omar Ruiz
17. “Moneda Sin Valor” – Pesado
18. “Qué Tiene Él” – La Maquinaria Norteña
20. “Quién Fue” – Larry Hernández

¡Adios!
“Mi Niña Adorada” – Saul “El Jaguar” Alarcón
“Pistearé” – Banda Los Recoditos