| "Malamente" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single byRosalía | ||||
| from the albumEl mal querer | ||||
| Language | Spanish | |||
| English title | "Badly" | |||
| Released | 30 May 2018 (2018-05-30) | |||
| Recorded | 2017 | |||
| Studio | Casa Arte (El Hierro, Canary Islands) | |||
| Genre | Flamenco pop[1] | |||
| Length | 2:29 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producers |
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| Rosalía singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Malamente" onYouTube | ||||
"Malamente" is a song by Spanish singerRosalía. It was released on 30 May 2018 byColumbia Records as the lead single from her second studio album,El mal querer (2018). Written by Rosalía andEl Guincho and produced by Rosalía and co-produced byEl Guincho, it was released on 30 May 2018 throughColumbia Records as the album'slead single.
"Malamente" mixesflamenco withurban andpop music. It received positive reviews,[2] and was nominated for fiveLatin Grammy Awards, includingSong of the Year andRecord of the Year, winning forBest Alternative Song andBest Urban Fusion/Performance.Billboard andPitchfork named it one of the songs that defined the 2010s.[3][4][5] Journalist and writerLeila Cobo included the song in her bookLa fórmula 'Despacito', which gathers the most emblematic hits of Latin music of the last 50 years. With this release, media dubbed the artist as "Hurricane Rosalía".[6][7][8]
At the end of April 2018, Rosalía published a short documentary video to hersocial media accounts where she talked about her new album. She said: "Everything I have I am leaving it here; I'm in the red, I'm risking a lot. This project is what I've always wanted to do, I've been thinking for a long time about making an album like the one I'm going to release. Theflamenco inspiration is still there but, at the same time, it is something else." Three days after the international release of the song "Brillo", composed by herself and in collaboration with Colombian rapperJ Balvin, the singer announced in her social networks that she was going to release a new single in the coming days. Finally, on 29 May 2018 she unveiled the release date of this new single, as well as its title.[citation needed]
"Malamente" was written in the island ofEl Hierro and talks about atoxic relationship and how the woman knew that something wrong was going to happen in her life.[9] The song forms the introductory part of its parent album'snarrative arc, which is inspired by the13th-centuryOccitan novelFlamenca. The novel revolves around themes ofgender violence andtragic romance; how a man falls in love with a woman and, because ofjealousy, he locks her up in a tower. In the song, Rosalía narrates that even though everyone is warning her that their relationship is doomed, she will continue with it to the point of getting married.[citation needed]
The American magazinePitchfork called the singer's voice "a soft liquid velvet" and wrote that "'Malamente' consumes the listener withdrums and softsynthesizers that drag you to their world completely".[1]The Guardian commented on the following about theCatalan singer: "Rosalía is the most exciting thing that is going to happen to music this 2018". The single was nominated in five categories at the2018 Latin Grammys. "Malamente" won two of these awards forBest Alternative Song andBest Urban Fusion/Performance.[10]
In September 2020,Billboard named "Malamente" the 32nd bestLatin song of all time and stated that "Rosalía'scontemporary,hip hop/electronic take on traditional flamenco was different from anything heard before. Released in tandem with a stunning, provocative video full of imagery andSpanish symbolism, 'Malamente' broke ranks, visually and musically, amalgamating Rosalía'sflamenco vocals withloops,beats, andraps, turning every preconception about her country's iconicmusical tradition on its head".[5] Also,Pitchfork named "Malamente" the 23rd best song of the2010s.[citation needed]
«Malamente» became Rosalía's first ever chart appearance in her nativeSpain. In its first week the song debuted at number 74 on thePROMUSICAE chart, issued June 6, 2018.[11] Jumping up 70 spots to number four in its second week of performance, it became her highest-climbing single, first top ten and top five single.[12] The next weeks on the chart the single would start to decrease in popularity, slowly going down in the chart. Following the release ofEl mal querer the single would see a commercial boost that made the song jump 22 positions moving from 24 to its peak at number 2 in its 24th charting week on the issue dating November 11, 2018.[13] After peaking at number two, «Malamente» stayed two more weeks, blocked byRosalía's own «Di mi nombre», the first debut artist since the chart is published to occupy the chart's first two spots.[14] The song had a 75-week run.[15] Rosalía's longest appearance on the chart after «Despechá». And was certified as 5× platinum for shipments of 300.000 equivalent units.[16]
The music video, produced by the audiovisual companyCanada, was played more than a million times two days after its release and accumulated two million views for 3 June onYouTube, as well as a million streams onSpotify. The song debuted in the fourth position on thePROMUSICAE musical chart. "Malamente" was certified aGold Record in Spain in the first week of July, as well as a platinum record in August 2018. Finally, in October of that same year it was certified double platinum. In November, the song reached the second position in the Spanish Song Charts thanks to the album release.[citation needed]
The track was included in many soundtracks of TV shows and movies and has been featured in their respective soundtracks. These include the first season ofElite, the second season ofThe OA,Euphoria andGood Girls as well as in the soundtrack of the 2019 movieHellboy.[17][18][19]
"Malamente" was performed in a great quantity of festivals and award shows during its promotion period. Its first performance happened atSónar music festival, held at theFira de Montjuïc on 15 June 2018. Rosalía later performed at Festival Cultura Inquieta inGetafe, nearMadrid, at the Flamenco Biennial inSeville, and inSantiago de Compostela. She also served as the opening act forRozalén atStarlite Festival, inMarbella and forJuanes at theHollywood Bowl, inLos Angeles.[20] In September, Rosalía presented "Malamente" for the first time inMiami to celebrate her fiveLatin Grammy nominations.
Televised performances of "Malamente" include an appearance onBBC programLater... with Jools Holland, where she sang "Malamente" and "Pienso en tu mirá". On 31 October 2018 she offered a free concert sponsored byRed Bull at thePlaza de Colón, in Madrid in front of 11,000 people. It was livestreamed through YouTube. Two days later she performed "Malamente" atLOS40 Music Awards and, on 4 November, at the2018 MTV Europe Music Awards gala, inBilbao.[21] On 11 November, she performed "Malamente" at Casa Patas, Madrid, an iconic place for flamenco artists and lovers. On 15 November, she performed the song at the2018 Latin Grammys ceremony inLas Vegas.
"Malamente" was included in the setlist of herMal Querer Tour (2019) and in theMotomami World Tour (2022).
The music video for the song was released simultaneously with the single on digital platforms. It was directed and produced by the companyCanada, marking the third time that they worked with the Spanish singer after videos for "De plata" and "Aunque es de noche", and filmed simultaneously with the "Pienso en tu Mirá" video.
Marked by its poetic symbolism, the video is considered a "visual poem" interpreted as omens for the failure of a love relationship. The imagery includes a man in a typicalHoly Weekcapirote riding a skateboard with nails, which spawned a certain controversy for its religious implications, or Rosalía riding a motorbike that isbullfought by a man in a white studio set. Other alternated scenes show Rosalía dancing inside the back of a truck or being hit by a car. The music video was filmed betweenBarcelona,Badalona,Barberà del Vallès andl'Hospitalet de Llobregat and depicts Rosalia in the industrial zone of the city, recreating the constant truck traffic and industries that there are in her hometownSant Esteve Sesrovires.
"Malamente" was nominated for three UK Video Music Awards out of which won two: Best Pop Video and Best Direction. The video also received nominations forBest Music Video at the Latin Grammy Awards andVideo of the Year at thePremio Lo Nuestro 2019.[22][23]
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[32] | Platinum | 40,000‡ |
| France (SNEP)[33] | Gold | 100,000‡ |
| Mexico (AMPROFON)[34] | 2× Platinum+Gold | 150,000‡ |
| Spain (PROMUSICAE)[35] | 5× Platinum | 200,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[36] | Gold | 500,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Country | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Various | 30 May 2018 | Columbia | |
| Spain | 17 June 2018 | Contemporary hit radio | |
| Italy | 12 October 2018 |
"Malamente" (which translates to "Badly") [...] fuses flamenco with pop, reggaeton and R&B.
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| Other songs |
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