FOUR SPANISH FEMALE SINGERS YOU CAN’T POSSIBLY MISS OUT ON THIS SUMMER

Although Spain is mostly recognised all around the UK for its breath-taking beaches, the diversity of its landscapes and its beautiful and probably romantic language, it also possesses a unique music industry. It is true that traditional music genres such as flamenco still hold a strong popularity in this Iberian country, however, many Spanish singers have transformed mainstream music and have adapted its conventional sound patterns to their mother tongue and the Spanish perception of music. In the case of female singers, they can be considered absolute divas. Not only have they adjusted music industry conventions to their linguistic background but also, they have created a distinctive project, which distinguishes them from the rest of singers in Spain and other countries. Furthermore, their music illustrates the ongoing feminist struggle in Spain, as the lyrics make it explicit and sometimes deal with topics that can be considered taboos. In addition, the music videos act as a representation of this non-stopping battle, preaching diversity, equality The joyful rhythms, the tone of celebration and most importantly, the diverseness of messages behind the lyrics demonstrate that women can be devoted to music in the same way men are.

• Aitana

It could be said that Aitana is the biggest exponent of Spanish pop all around the world. Her sweet voice, immaculate vocals and charming personality have captivated an entire nation. The 22-year-old singer shot to fame thanks to her appearance in Operación Triunfo, a Spanish talent show that culminated in thousands of daily viewers and a national tour around the country. Although Aitana came second, her multi-talented nature was enough to become one of the most successful singers in Spanish history. Throughout her career, this young singer has won many national prestigious awards in addition to international recognition by worldwide popular distinguished professionals and music academies, such as MTV or The Recording Academy (GRAMMYs). Many critics believed she was a temporary mass phenomenon due to her innocent personality, her lack of enough knowledge when she first entered the world of music and undoubtedly-appealing beauty. Nevertheless, she has proved that young teenagers whose biggest passion was singing in front of their families can make history if they are willing to be fully dedicated to the fulfilment of their artistic dream. With over 400 million worldwide streams on Spotify, Aitana was named the most listened artist on the platform in 2021. In addition, she has received over 70 platinum and 20 gold records and even diamond certifications for the successful sales of her singles in Spain and other countries, as Portugal, Mexico and even the United States.

Aitana’s music transcends boundaries and a proof of this is the fact that her upcoming projects are focused on an international market. In some months, she will head to Latin America to start her first international solo tour. Her latest single Mariposas (butterflies), featuring the Italian sensation Sangiovanni, also proves her intention and effort to expand her music and grow artistically. This bilingual bop, in which Italian and Spanish are harmonically intertwined, is already a total success in Spain, being one of the most played songs of the summer on streaming platforms in the country (so far) and eligible to be awarded again, as many of the singles Aitana has launched during the course of her triumphant career.

• Bad Gyal

Barcelona born and based Alba Farelo, known as Bad Gyal, started her career uploading covers of her favourite songs and even brand-new tracks written by herself on Youtube while working in a bakery. Since the beginning of her unquestionably prosperous career, she has been working hard to make herself different from the rest of Spanish urban musicians. With over 3 million Spotify monthly listeners and many songs surpassing 100 million streams on the platform, Bad Gyal has become one of the musts in every single Spanish club. What is more, her aesthetically-pleasant and 90’s divas–inspired image and looks have motivated thousands of people to re-discover and explore their identities and find out the style they feel more comfortable with. Furthermore, her songs could be considered a ‘self-esteem booster’ as they preach female liberty, express willingness to smoke weed, defend sexual freedom and encourage women to wear clothes that make them feel sexy and empowered.

It could be said that platinum-certified songs like Fiebre (fever), Hookah, Alocao’ (crazy) or Flow 2000, among many others,constitute some of the most iconic songs of our generation. Not only have they acquired national recognition but also international acknowledgement, and a proof of this is the way music portals such as Pitchfork, The Fader or The Guardian havestated that Bad Gyal is the future of Spanish urban music industry. Her growing popularity is reflected in the frequency she has toured around Europe, Latin America, the States and even some Asian countries. In fact, she has performed in the United Kingdom many times. Bad Gyal is currently working on her upcoming album, which so far shows a strong Dembow influence she is gradually exploring, studying and experimenting with in her usual trips to Dominican Republic and other Latin American countries, where this music genre finds its origin.

• Ana Mena

Malaga pop sensation Ana Mena rose to fame after winning My Camp Rock 2, a contest organised by Disney Channel Spain paying homage to the aforementioned worldwide acclaimed Disney movie. Throughout her childhood, Mena made many appearances on TV shows and films, not only acting but also giving voice to their soundtracks, as she did for Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure when she was chosen to sing the Spanish version of the movie’s main track Gonna Shine (in Spanish, Voy a Brillar).

The Andalusian singer has been awarded with 36 platinum records and 3 gold ones, which demonstrates how important, powerful and notorious her contributions to the Spanish music industry are. Nevertheless, during the last few years Ana Mena has not remained in the Spanish sphere only, she also holds a strong popularity in Italy thanks to different collaborations with Italian singers, which reached the first position in Italian charts. Furthermore, she joined the Sanremo Music Festival, the most popular, important and characteristic Italian song contest and awards ceremony.

Mena is currently focused on her 2022 tour, which goes around multiple Spanish and Italian major cities and towns. This tour includes her latest bop Las 12 (twelve o’clock) in its setlist, which is a collaboration with the Spanish-Mexican pop diva Belinda. As a matter of fact, it is the Spanish version of her Italian bop Mezzanotte (midnight). It is also believed to be one of the most played songs in Spain during the summer, as its number of streams is rapidly increasing and its position in Spanish charts is higher every week.

• Rosalía

Eight-times Latin Grammy’s winner Rosalía has the entire music industry looking at her. After releasing her second album El Mal Querer, the Barcelonese singer has not stopped growing professionally. She has collaborated with worldwide famous artists such as The Weeknd, Bad Bunny, Travis Scott or Billie Eilish and also, she has been praised for her unique and transcendent artistic work by innumerable music portals and magazines like The Rolling Stone, Billboard or The LA Times. Moreover, she could be considered the chief representative of Spanish music all around the world, as she made history at the GRAMMYs, not only because of her outstanding performance but also, due to the fact that she was the first-ever Spanish musician to be nominated for the Best New Artist category.

Embracing her Spanish cultural roots and at the same time experimenting with R&B, reggaeton and electronic sound patters, Rosalía has constructed her own artistic or musical identity, which makes her highly distinguishable and unique from any artist in the entire music industry. Her charismatic personality, her vocal capability, astonishing performances and cutting-edge music production constitute the ingredients of her own formula of success. After releasing her third full-length record, Motomami, which is considered one of the best albums in Spanish of the year, Rosalía will start her Motomami World Tour around Europe and the Americas. On December 15^th, she will steep foot on the Londoner stages, concretely at The O2, where artists such as Rihanna, Beyoncé or The Spice Girls have performed. This demonstrates she is not a local artist who remains inside the borders of her country, but rather a versatile singer who, despite making music in a foreign language, goes beyond physical boundaries and settles down in people’s hearts, without taking nationality, gender and any other social construct into account.

Being completely different from each other, these four artists are the living proof of how versatile Spanish music industry is in spite of being still quite unknown in the United Kingdom. Their contributions to the world of music are gradually surpassing the linguistic and social threshold and rising more interest outside the Iberian country. While Aitana and Ana Mena match with some of the pop-diva patterns and conventions, Bad Gyal and Rosalía’s music are rather shaped by its urban beats, always preserving their own style and identities above any other artistic element.