Romeo Santos

Bachata has no shortage of stars, yet Romeo Santos rightfully reigns as its biggest. Rising to fame as part of Aventura, the Bronx artist (born Anthony Santos in 1981) penned and sang their signature singles, including “Obsesión” and “El Perdedor”. With him as its leading voice, the group revolutionised the well-established, Dominican-bred genre. “Bachata is just something that you feel,” he told Apple Music in 2019. “It has a very sexual rhythm, and you don’t necessarily need to be Latin or familiar with Latin music to just enjoy that.” Aventura made the style even more appealing to younger audiences through hugely popular hybrids, like the reggaetón blend “Ella y Yo” with Don Omar. When the quartet announced a hiatus in 2011, capping off a decade’s worth of classics and sold-out arena concerts, Santos struck out on his own in a big way. Released that same year, his solo debut, Fórmula, Vol. 1, built upon the crossover momentum of Aventura’s The Last. Eager to expand the genre’s boundaries even further, he went toe-to-toe with Usher on the bilingual R&B hit “Promise” and employed flamenco guitarist Tomatito’s flair on “Mi Santa”. Fórmula, Vol. 2 arrived in 2014, taking his career to exponentially greater heights through smashes like the tropically hypnotic “Propuesta Indecente” and the impassioned balladry of “Eres Mía”. That album’s “Odio” added Drake to Santos’ mix of fluttering guitars and earnest vocals. (It preceded the Canadian rapper’s collab with Bad Bunny, “MIA”, by almost five years.) Golden followed in 2017, solidifying his hitmaker status while flirting further with the rising urbano wave. After making a few one-offs with Anuel AA and Ozuna, he returned to bachata’s roots for Utopía, performing duets with favourites of the previous era and successfully reuniting with Aventura.