Gente de Zona | |
|---|---|
 Gente de Zona in 2022 | |
| Background information | |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2000–present |
| Members |
|
| Past members |
|
Gente de Zona (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈxenteðeˈsona];lit. 'Locals') is aCubanreggaeton duo made up of musiciansAlexander Delgado andRandy Malcom Martínez. In 2016, the duo gained success with the song "Bailando" withEnrique Iglesias. This hit gave the duo numerous prestigious awards including theLatin Grammy andLatin Billboard Award. The duo was known for its Cubatón hits before succeeding on the international stage with major hits and collaborations that infused "tropical" rhythms to mainstream pop and urban music. Their song "Bailando" (with Enrique Iglesias) became the first Spanish language song to get 1 billion views on YouTube and their song "La Gozadera" has been described by many as "Latin America's official hymn."
Gente de Zona was founded in 2000 in theAlamar neighborhood of Havana,[1] consisting initially of Alexander Delgado and Michel Delgado. They initially performed at smaller events and parties in the Havana area, including Alamar,Regla andGuanabacoa. Two years later, they joined theAsociación Hermanos Saíz, a government-sponsored Cuban cultural organization, and signed with the Empresa Comercializadora de la Música y los Espectáculos Antonio María Romeu (Commercial Business of Music and Performances Antonio María Romeu), which allowed them to perform across the country. This same year, they became one of the first members of theCuban Rap Agency, a government agency involved with promoting and commercializing rap on the island.[2]
In 2005, Michel Delgado departed from the group, while rapper Jacob Forever (Yosdany Jacob Carmenates) and DJ and producer Nando Pro joined.[2] The trio released the albumLo Mejor Que Suena Ahora in 2008. In March 2013, the members separated, with Jacob Forever embarking on a solo career supported by Nando Pro. Delgado continued the group under the Gente de Zona moniker after bringing on ex-Charanga Habanera singer Randy Malcom Martínez.[2]
In their early years, the group's appeal was mostly limited to Cuba, with some fans in Europe, until the release ofEnrique Iglesias's "Bailando" in 2014. Although work on the song began in 2009, it was several years before fellow Cuban musician and songwriterDescemer Bueno went to Cuba and recruited Gente de Zona to be part of the song.[3] With newfound international recognition, the group subsequently released collaborations withPitbull,Chino & Nacho,Marc Anthony andJuan Magán in the year that followed.[2]
In 2019, Gente de Zona was initially announced as part of a Pitbull-organized New Year's Eve concert lineup Miami, but was later withdrawn due to concerns from the local community that the group was too close with the Cuban government.[4] Then-Miami mayor, Cuban AmericanFrancis Suarez, criticized the choice of the group for the event, stating, "You have to understand that an artist who declares themselves in favor of communism or gives communism credibility is considered persona non grata. It's not about intolerance or censorship, it's about respect and recognizing the mortifying history of communism, especially in Cuba."[5]
Two years later, in February 2021, Gente de Zona, with other Cuban artistsYotuel, Beatriz Luengo,Descemer Bueno,Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, Maykel Osorbo and El Funky released "Patria y Vida" paying tribute to theSan Isidro Movement and criticizing the Cuban government's repression of artistic expression in the country, shortages of essential items, and management of the country's currency.[6] The song was Gente de Zona's first politically partisan song, with Delgado later saying, "It becomes a commitment that you have with your people, who have followed you and given you everything you have today. We never knew that your talent and a song could be the weapon to hit these people hard, this government."[7] The song was subsequently banned in Cuba, and Gente de Zona stated that they were subsequently been banned from performing concerts on the island.[8]
| Title | Album details | Certifications |
|---|---|---|
| Lo Mejor Que Suena Ahora |
| |
| A Full |
| |
| Visualízate |
| |
| En Letra de Otro |
| |
| Otra Cosa |
|
|
| De Menor a Mayor |
|
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Lo Mejor Que Suena Ahora v2.0 |
|
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Oro: Lo Nuevo y Lo Mejor |
|
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEX [17] | SPA [18] | US Latin [19] | US Latin Airplay [20] | US Latin Tropical [21] | US Latin Rhythm [22] | VEN [23] | |||||||
| "Le Gustan Los Artistas" | 2008 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Lo Mejor Que Suena Ahora | ||||
| "Pinocho" | 2013 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | ||||
| "Yo Quiero (Si Tu Te Enamoras)" (featuringPitbull) | 2014 | — | — | — | — | 34 | 15 | 9 | Dale andVisualízate | ||||
| "Ponte Bonita" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |||||
| "La Gozadera" (featuringMarc Anthony) | 2015 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| Visualízate | |||
| "Traidora" (featuringMarc Anthony) | — | 8 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | — | ||||||
| "Más Macarena" (featuringLos Del Río) | 2016 | — | 33 | — | — | 23 | — | 13 | Los Del Río: Tropical | ||||
| "Cuando Calienta el Sol" | 2017 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | En Letra de Otro | ||||
| "Si No Vuelves" | — | 8 | 35 | 33 | 3 | 14 | — | Otra Cosa | |||||
| "Te Duele" | — | — | — | — | 6 | — | — | ||||||
| "Solterita De Oro" (with Lerica andLeslie Shaw) | 2019 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | ||||
| "Muchacha" (withBecky G) | 2020 | — | 82 | — [A] | — | 5 | 22 | — |
| De Menor a Mayor | |||
| "La Noche Pinta Buena" (with Pacific Broders andCarlos Vives) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |||||
| "Otra Botella" (withGerardo Ortíz) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | De Menor a Mayor | |||||
| "Loco Por Bailar Contigo" (with El Chulo) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |||||
| "Patria y Vida" (with Yotuel,Descemer Bueno, Maykel Osorbo and El Funky) | 2021 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ||||
| "Tuki Tuki" (with Pucho y Tucutu, Motiff featuring Tony Succar) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "Se Vuelve Loca"[28] (withDeorro) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "Háblame De Miami" (with Maffio) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | De Menor A Mayor | |||||
| "Que Locura" (with Ovi) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |||||
| "Tulum" (with Nia and JC El Diamante) | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||
| "Q’lona" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | De Menor A Mayor | |||||
| "Hice Bien Quererte" (with Kassav) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |||||
| "El Negrito" (with Carlos Vives) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | De Menor A Mayor | |||||
| "—" denotes a title that was not released or did not chart in that territory. | |||||||||||||
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COL [29] | MEX [17] | SPA [30] | US [31] | US LATIN [32] | US LATIN RHYTHM [22] | US TROP [33] | VEN [23] | ||||||
| "Dame Una Noche" (DJ Chino featuring Gente de Zona, Fito Blanko, andFuego) | 2014 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | N/a | |||
| "Bailando" (Enrique Iglesias featuring Gente de Zona andDescemer Bueno or featuringSean Paul, Gente de Zona, and Descemer Bueno) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 1 | — | 1 | 17 | Sex and Love | ||||
| "Tu Me Quemas" (Chino & Nacho featuring Gente de Zona and Los Cadillacs) | 6 | — | — | — | 27 | 6 | 1 | 1 | Radio Universo andVisualízate | ||||
| "Piensas (Dile la Verdad)" (Pitbull featuring Gente de Zona) | 2015 | — | — | 22 | — | 11 | 1 | 8 | — |
| Dale andVisualízate | ||
| "He Llorado (Como Un Niño)" (Juan Magan featuring Gente de Zona) | — | 26 | 12 | — | — | 23 | 33 | — |
| The King Is Back (#LatinIBIZAte) | |||
| "Lo Que Dios Quiera" (Fanny Lu featuring Gente de Zona) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | N/a | ||||
| "Arena y Sol" (Anahí featuring Gente de Zona) | 2016 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Inesperado andThe Fate of the Furious | |||
| "La Mala y La Buena" (Alex Sensation featuring Gente de Zona) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | TBA | ||||
| "Ni Tú Ni Yo" (Jennifer Lopez featuring Gente de Zona) | 2017 | — | — | 12 | — | 15 | — | 2 | — | TBA | |||
| "Lo Digo" (Carlos Rivera featuring Gente de Zona) | 27 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Yo Creo | ||||
| "3 A.M." (Jesse & Joy featuring Gente de Zona) | 55 | 2 | — | — | 22 | — | 2 | — | Un Besito Más | ||||
| "Baddek Enayah" (Mohammed Assaf featuring Gente De Zona) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Ma Wahashnak | ||||
| "Quédate Conmigo" (Chyno Miranda featuring Wisin and Gente de Zona) | — | — | — | — | 25 | — | 2 | — | Quédate Conmigo | ||||
| "La Vida Me Cambió" (Diana Fuentes featuring Gente De Zona) | — | — | — | — | — | — | 10 | — | TBA | ||||
| "Stop Me from Falling" (Kylie Minogue featuring Gente de Zona) | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Golden | |||
| "Lento" (Thalía featuring Gente de Zona) | — | 12 | 88 | — | — | — | 4 | — | Valiente | ||||
| "Nadie Como Yo" (Malu Trevejo featuring Gente de Zona) | 2019 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | TBA | |||
| "Tulum" (NIA featuring Gente de Zona and JC El Diamante) | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | N/a | |||
| "—" denotes a title that was not released or did not chart in that territory. | |||||||||||||
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Latin American Music Awards | Favorite Urban Duo or Group | Gente de Zona | Won | |
| Favorite Tropical Song | "La Gozadera" | Won | |||
| 2016 | Premios Juventud | La Combinación Perfecta | "La Gozadera" | Won | [40] |
| Mi Artista Tropical | Gente de Zona | Nominated | |||
| 2016 | Latin American Music Awards | Favorite Artist – Tropical | Gente de Zona | Nominated | [41] |
| Favorite Album – Tropical | "Visualízate" | Won | |||
| Favorite Song – Tropical | "Traidora" | Nominated | |||
| 2016 | Latin Grammys | Best Tropical Fusion Album | "Visualízate" | Won | [42] |
| 2017 | Premio Lo Nuestro | Grupo o Dúo del Año / Group Or Duo Of The Year | Gente de Zona | Won | |
| Album Tropical del Año / Tropical Album Of The Year | "Visualizate" | Won | |||
| Album del Año / Album Of The Year | "Visualizate" | Won | |||
| 2017 | Billboard Latin Music Awards | Tropical Albums Artist Of The Year, Duo or Group | Won | ||
| Tropical Album Of The Year | "Visualízate" | Won | |||
| 2019 | Billboard Latin Music Awards | Tropical Arista, Duo or Group | Nominated | ||
| 2020 | Tu Musica Urbana | Cancion Tropical Urbano | El Mentiroso | Nominated | |
| 2020 | Premios Lo Nuestro | Colaboración del Año - Tropical | El Mentiroso | Nominated | |
| Colaboración del Año - Tropical | Tan Buena | Nominated | |||
| 2021 | Premios Lo Nuestro | Pop Collaboration of the Year | Muchacha ft. Becky G | Nominated | |
| Tropical Artist of the Year | Nominated | ||||
| 2021 | Billboard Latin Music Awards | Artista Tropical del Año | Nominated | ||
| 2021 | Latin Grammys | Song of the Year | Patria y Vida | Won | |
| Best Urban Song | Patria y Vida | Won |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
