De Los not too long ago did a staff huddle to find out our private checklist of greatest albums, in addition to our favourite songs launched in 2025. This isn’t one other backyard selection Latin style checklist, however a spotlight reel of 2025 releases that showcases artists from Latin America and the diaspora.
20. Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco feat. the Marías, “Ojos Tristes”
Launched months earlier than their highly-publicized wedding ceremony in September, “I Stated I Love You First,” the album by multi-hyphenate celebrity Selena Gomez and hit songwriter-producer Benny Blanco, was first conceived from nights spent perusing one another’s classic file collections. Gomez resonated with the spectral 1982 ballad “El Muchacho de Los Ojos Tristes,” as initially recorded by the O.G. unhappy lady en español, Jeanette. After seeing the Marías in live performance, the couple hit up the band to additional maximize their joint slay — and revamp the basic as a bilingual dream-pop observe, merely named “Ojos Tristes.” It not solely topped the Billboard Sizzling Latin Songs chart, but it surely launched a brand new era to Jeanette’s timeless attract. —Suzy Exposito
19. JR Torres, “Desde Abajo Vengo”
It by no means fails: True to its ever dependable, unassuming ethos, the style of música mexicana invariably delivers among the yr’s most beautiful tunes. The melody on this two-minute single by Culiacán, Sinaloa, native JR Torres is a pearl of astounding purity, a theme developed alternately by the accordion and vocal line, and one which — like so many norteño hits — conveys an ocean of longing. The lyrics belong to the himnos de superación canon: a self-taught man outlines his street to success, paved with honesty, resilience and onerous work. However it’s the music itself that cements “Desde Abajo Vengo” as a Mexican basic for the ages. —Ernesto Lechner
18. Juana Rozas, “WANNA HOTEL”
Juana Rozas understands the rising queer Latin underground, in all of its swirling style hodgepodge, higher than most. Her album “TANYA” is an unrestrained porteña whirlwind, quickly shifting between industrial, electroclash, and doom metallic, with all of those disparate influences coalescing on the spotlight observe “WANNA HOTEL.” The music splits the distinction between atmospheric lure heaven and hardstyle hell, putting you squarely in a warehouse mosh pit. It’s vertigo-inducing sonic whiplash, full with thumping techno and copious nostril medication. You’ll be able to attempt to head to the hallways for a breather, but it surely feels higher to be within the depths of Rozas’ debauchery. —Reanna Cruz
17. Macario Martinez, “Sueña Lindo, Corazón”
There isn’t a greater feel-good story this yr than Macario Martínez’s sudden rise to fame. The Mexico Metropolis native and now former avenue sweeper went viral in January after importing a TikTok video that confirmed him driving at the back of a sanitation truck at night time. Soundtracking it’s a snippet of “Sueña Lindo, Corazón,” a young, stripped-down folks lullaby for a wounded coronary heart. The clip included the next caption: “Life asks for lots and I’m only a avenue sweeper who desires you to take heed to his music.” Pay attention they did. The video has been considered tens of hundreds of thousands of occasions and was shared by the likes of Harry Kinds. turning Martínez into some of the promising rising skills in Latin music. —Fidel Martinez
16. Dareyes de la Sierra, “Frecuencia”
The opening line of “Frecuencia” — “Yo sé que voy a morirme por eso bien loco vivo” (“I do know I’m going to die, that’s why I reside crazily”) — hits slightly bit totally different when you be taught that singer José Darey Castro survived an try on his life in 2004. Don’t let the utilization of conventional música Mexicana devices idiot you; the cadence of this braggadocious observe about hedonistic extra and indulgence is nearer to hip-hop. With “Frecuencia,” and the album it comes from (“Redención,” which interprets to “Redemption”), the regional veteran with greater than twenty years of expertise beneath his belt proves that it’s by no means too late to reinvent your self. —F.M.
15. Cuco, “Ridin’”
For his third studio album, “Ridin’,” Cuco mentioned he wished to embody the timelessness of Chicano soul with out being spinoff. “I wished to go for extra pure sounds with the soul sound, however I believe it’s simply inevitable for me generally,” the 27-year-old multi-instrumentalist from Hawthorne advised De Los this summer time. “I’m simply going to finish up doing a little psychedelic elements with the music as a result of that’s what I’ve all the time been.” This joyful marriage of influences is most obvious within the LP’s titular observe, which begins off feeling such as you’re cruising together with your sweetheart down a Southern California freeway in a 1964 Chevy Impala earlier than taking off into house. —F.M.
14. Mon Laferte, “Las Flores Que Dejaste En La Mesa”
Lately, Mon Laferte advised me that she was particularly pleased with a verse on this music the place she rhymed the outline of a former lover’s erection with the phrase structure. The juxtaposition of poetic wordplay with graphic sexuality is among the Chilean singer’s favourite units — right here, it provides a frisson of decadence to a lush orchestration paying homage to John Barry’s 007 themes. A key observe off Laferte’s noirish “Femme Fatale,” “Las Flores Que Dejaste En La Mesa” takes off with the quiet longing of bossa nova, boils into unhinged bolero territory, then incorporates the icy electro loops of trip-hop icons Portishead. Nonetheless, the center of the music is Laferte’s vocal efficiency — wounded and incandescent. —E.L.
13. Planta Industrial, “Oi”
Hilariously named “Punkwave Sin Barreras” — a nod to the ESL studying sequence “Inglés Sin Barreras” — the debut EP by the Bronx Dominican duo Planta Industrial is a beneficiant serving to of punk rock, darkwave and dembow fusion. The venture is powered by highschool associates turned rappers, who go by the names A.Okay.A. The Darknight and Saso (not too long ago featured on the music “Caribeño” with Rauw Alejandro). On “Oi,” a intelligent stand-in for the phrase “hoy,” the duo deploy frenetic breakbeats, Ramones-style gang vocals and a contact of Toño Rosario freakness to demand their dues from a cheapskate boss. “F— you, pay me, “ chant the MCs. “Mañana, no — oi oi oi!” —S.E.
12. Six Intercourse feat. MCR-T, “Bitches Like Me”
This yr, Argentina established itself because the Latin rave epicenter, with Six Intercourse main the cost. Alongside Berlin-based membership DJ MCR-T, and a propulsive synth line from Kylie Minogue’s “Can’t Get You Out of My Head,” the Buenos Aires baddie crafts one of many chicest earworms of the yr. The fantastic thing about utilizing among the finest pop melodies of all time is that it’s already engineered for achievement, so MCR-T retains it easy and foolish with the addition of a thumping, four-to-the-floor beat. It performs out like a drunken freestyling session in your coolest buddy’s condominium — with strains like “you aren’t that bitch” delivered with a heavily-accented affectation that feels seductive, however extra importantly, unbothered. —R.C.
11. Rosalía feat. Yahritza Y Su Esencia, “La Perla”
Though the Spanish singer could be ineligible for this checklist on her personal, Rosalía’s diss observe “La Perla” — a scathing, ranchera-style ballad devoted to a sure fairly boy ex with a large assortment of different girls’s bras — shines brilliant amongst her in any other case glowing assortment of orchestral pop songs in “Lux.” Rosalía correctly recruited the swooning Mexican American sierreña trio, Yahritza Y Su Esencia, to assist her higher emulate a Paquita La Del Barrio dress-down of a lover gone astray. The spirit of “La Perla” articulates not what it sounds wish to be cherished Mexicanly, however to be loathed Mexicanly — á la Catalana. —S.E.
10. Netón Vega, “Me Ha Costado”
Netón Vega’s sprawling debut album “Mi Vida Mi Muerte” makes a formidable try and outline the rapidly-shifting sound of corridos tumbados, courtesy of one of many style’s eminent songwriters. On “Me Ha Costado,” Vega, who hails from Baja California Sur, combines blown-out 808s with a G-funk whine to create a pan-Californian posse observe. There’s an overload of shot-calling swagger dripping from each part right here, from Alemán’s bouncing hook to Victor Mendivil’s shoutouts to San Andrés and Mazamitla. If you happen to shut your eyes, you can see the trio’s lowrider rolling down Whittier Blvd, with all three mischief-makers hanging out the home windows. —R.C.
9. Cardi B, “Bodega Baddie”
I’m uninterested in celebrities pretending that they go to the bodega for avenue cred: “if you realize, you realize.” One factor about Cardi B, although? I consider she remembers the place she got here from. “Bodega Baddie” is a bilingual ode to the Bronx’s Dominican enclaves the place Cardi From The Block spent her childhood. It’s lower than two minutes lengthy, however strikes at such a breakneck tempo that should you shut your eyes, you’re transported exterior a deli on Dyckman on a sizzling summer time day — the place the fireplace hydrants are open, 808s are shaking storefront home windows, and the entire block is exterior. It’s among the most electrical mise-en-scène this yr, anchored by a pattern of Magic Juan’s “Ta Buena (Tipico)” merengue. —R.C.
8. Kali Uchis, “Sugar! Honey! Love!”
The Colombian American soulstress has performed many roles in her songs: a baddie, a psychic, a girl adrift at sea in a yellow raincoat. However within the making of her 2025 album “Sincerely,” she explored the profound vulnerability of turning into a mom — and her sighing revelations in “Sugar! Honey! Love!” soften most superbly into the hazy pop ether. “I used to be already an emotional individual, [but] since my being pregnant I’ve been in a position to really feel so much deeper,” she advised De Los in Could. “When your youngster is born, you’re reborn in loads of methods. It’s a dying and a rebirth of your self. However I believe loads of pleasure and hope comes with that.” —S.E.
7. Adrian Quesada feat. Angélica Garica, “No Juego”
In the beginning of “No Juego,” we hear the sound of tape being rewound, as if to recommend that we’re about to take heed to one thing from a distinct period. Certain sufficient, the psychedelia of the keyboard, guitar and drums transports us to the late Nineteen Sixties, solely to be introduced again to the current by the confident supply of vocalist (and El Monte’s personal) Angélica Garcia. “No vine pa’ pedir permiso,” she briefly raps (“I’m not right here to ask for permission”), earlier than throwing theatrical vocal daggers at a former lover who couldn’t keep true. She’s letting us know that we’re in her world and she or he’s not taking part in round. “No Juego” is well the crown jewel of “Boleros Psicodélicos II.”—F.M.
6. Ca7riel y Paco Amoroso, “#TETAS”
Typically a music is barely as profitable as its idea. On “#TETAS,” the Argentine trickster gods Ca7riel y Paco Amoroso attempt to reverse-engineer a pop anthem, ChatGPT buzzwords and all. A flippant listener might dismiss “#TETAS” as only a winking novelty music — in any case, what “severe” observe comprises a personality named Gymbaland, the lyrics “let me be your Chad,” and a post-chorus counting dabs? The factor is, although, between the slinking bass line, the huge 80’s Yamaha pianos, and a closing key change that soars by means of the ceiling, the music turns into the precise pop anthem that they’re attempting to satirize. “This can be a f— smash,” go the ultimate strains of the music. We’re inclined to agree. —R.C.
5. Silvana Estrada, “Como Un Pájaro”
As we compiled the songs for this checklist, we struggled deciding on only one observe off Silvana Estrada’s gorgeous second album. At 28, the singer-songwriter from Veracruz informs her work with a stage of maturity that the majority artists received’t obtain in a lifetime. Like many of the cuts in “Vendrán Suaves Lluvias,” “Como Un Pájaro” attracts from the knowledge of the trova motion; enamored with the immediacy of stringed devices, chronicling the method of therapeutic utilizing metaphors from the pure world. The music’s climax — Estrada’s lustrous voice intertwined with a swelling orchestral association — will most likely deliver tears to your eyes. Enjoyable reality: In live performance, she reproduces the lilting whistled interlude to perfection. —E.L.
4. Astropical, “Fogata (Leo)”
Following a memorable efficiency on the Hollywood Bowl final summer time, it turned obvious that Astropical, the supergroup shaped by members of Colombia’s Bomba Estéreo and Venezuela’s Rawayana, will most likely by no means reconvene once more. We’ll all the time have “Fogata,” although — a music about holding on to the valuable moments of bliss when confronted with the ephemeral nature of… properly, every little thing. The observe combines the heat of a beachside bonfire with slick, Afrobeats-soaked grooves. The celebrities of the present? The honeyed harmonies of Li Saumet and Beto Montenegro, now intertwined till the tip of time. —E.L.
3. Isabella Lovestory, “Telenovela”
Who amongst us hasn’t thought — whether or not or not it’s satirically or authentically — “my life is a film?” Isabella Lovestory takes it one additional: her sexcapades, in all their glamour and drama, are worthy of their very own telenovela. A lot of her sophomore album “Vainness” has most important character power, and Lovestory’s “Telenovela,” with its prolonged metaphors of Barbarella unhealthy bitches, “tragica erotica,” and utilizing “su lengua pa cambiar el canal” is the descriptive centerpiece. If it doesn’t deliver a flush to your cheeks, you’re not listening onerous sufficient; the way in which she coos “uy-uy-uy” will linger the subsequent time issues get slightly sizzling and heavy. —R.C.
2. Fuerza Regida, “Marlboro Rojo”
If I sit on the porch of my Boyle Heights dwelling for quarter-hour, I assure you {that a} pickup truck will ultimately drive by taking part in a corrido at a window-rattling quantity. For the final six months, the music of alternative blasting from the blown out audio system of those mamalonas has been “Marlboro Rojo.” I get it. The observe is so unapologetically — ugh, cringe phrase, I do know — Mexican. What higher option to announce your presence than with the growth growth of the sousaphone? 2025 was a marquee yr for música Mexicana and nobody was extra on prime of their recreation than Fuerza Regida. My private favourite model of this music is from the Apple Music Reside live performance taped earlier this summer time at Mexico Metropolis’s GNP Stadium. Listening to the tens of hundreds of followers singing the refrain again to JOP provides me chills. — F.M.
1. Unhealthy Bunny, “Baile Inolvidable”
Is there a Unhealthy Bunny file that’s not a love letter to his native Puerto Rico? His 2025 juggernaut, “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” nonetheless, goes far past the same old motherland worship; the album’s best takeaway is to cherish not simply the place, however the folks you name dwelling, too. Invoking the feverish, tropical melodrama of salsa titans previous and current, Unhealthy Bunny delivers one in every of his most great vocal performances — powered by his enduring love for a lady he used to know, evaluating her to an unforgettable dance. But it surely’s similar to Benito to chop by means of the gravitas of his personal music by lauding an ex for her sexual prowess — specifically, her boquita — however his magic as a success songwriter is most potent in verses that oscillate between the sacred and profane. —S.E.
