J. Balvin

Establishing himself as one of Latin music's biggest stars, Colombian J Balvin crossed over to a mainstream audience in 2017 when Beyoncé featured on his hit “Mi Gente.” Born José Álvaro Osorio Balvín (May 7, 1985) in the central town of Medellín, Balvin grew up in a comfortable, middle-class family, but when his father's business failed and the family moved into a tougher, poorer neighborhood, he struggled to fit in and make new friends. He ended up heading to America when he was 17 and, inspired by New York hip-hop stars like Puff Daddy and 50 Cent, he returned home to finish his studies and kickstart a music career. His mix of woozy, trap beats, carnival color, and calypso rhythms and flourishes was crafted with the help of his friend DJ David Riviera Mazo, and from the local clubs and rap battle scene he began to lead a new generation of reggaeton artists. He landed his first Number 1 single in Colombia with “En lo Oscuro” in 2011 and went on to have a string of big party hits that helped reshape pop music across the continent, including “6 AM” (2013), which notched up nearly 1 billion views on video-sharing platforms and “Ay Vamos” (2014), which won Balvin his first Latin Grammy Award. He also featured on the remix of Robin Thicke's “Blurred Lines” and Ariana Grande's “The Way,” toured with Enrique Iglesias, and topped the Billboard Latin Charts with fourth album Energía (2016) before “Mi Gente,” his collaboration with French producer Willy William, became popular on US radio in 2017. The infectious, upbeat singalong came to Beyoncé's attention when her five-year-old daughter Blue Ivy started singing it to her and when she and Balvin re-mixed “Mi Gente,” the song shot to Number 3 in the US charts. Balvin returned in 2018 with his fifth studio album Vibras, which he described as being an equal mix of dancehall, reggaeton, and R&B sounds and featured guest appearances from Brazilian pop queen Anitta, Mexican indie songwriter Carla Morrison, and DJ duo Wisin & Yandel. Also in 2018, he featured with Bad Bunny on Cardi B's smash hit “I Like It,” which topped the US Billboard Hot 100. He later collaborated with Bad Bunny on the album Oasis (2019). In 2020, he performed on the Super Bowl halftime show alongside headliners Jennifer Lopez and Shakira before releasing his sixth studio album, Colores. Preceded by the singles “Ma' G,” “Tu Veneno,” and “Otra Noche Sin Tí” with Khalid, his fifth solo album José saw the light in 2021 and went straight to the top of Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart. Following the Ed Sheeran collaborative singles "Sigue" and "Forever My Love," J Balvin dropped his sixth studio full-length Rayo (2024), which enlisted Latin urban heavy-hitters Chencho Corleone, Luar la L, Feid, Saiko, and Carín León for another vibrant collection of reggaeton, Afrobeats, and dance music.