Vallenato, a folkloric genre with roots in the department of Cesar, in northern Colombia, has seen many artists take its essence beyond their homeland. Building on its typical instruments, such as the accordion, snare drum, and guacharaca—and adding modern musical arrangements that have given it a contemporary sound—artists such as Carlos Vives and Silvestre Dangond have been ambassadors of the genre nationally and internationally. international level. Behind them comes a new wave of artists tasked with continuing to preserve the legacy and expand its boundaries.
As festival de la Leyenda Vallenata 2024 takes place in Colombia, we highlight six artists from the new wave of the genre that you need to know. Some of them will appear at the concerts that will take place as part of the festival from May 2 to 4 (See more here).
On the men's side, Elder Dayán Díaz, Diego Daza, Rafa Pérez and Mono Zabaleta are some of the new names making noise in their native Colombia and hopefully their echoes resonate strongly outside the country.
On the female side, few enter the world of vallenato and even fewer singers stand out in this mostly male-dominated genre. Therefore, it is gratifying to see artists like Ana del Castillo and Karen Lizarazo make a place for themselves at the table and start an upward trajectory in this folk genre.
“It was very difficult to get a place because sometimes they didn't see a woman playing the accordion, singing the valenato or playing the huajaraca. But over time they respected it and I think that after me there are many very talented women who sweep the vallenato,” says Ana del Castillo. Billboard Español.
Below, we present six new vallenato exponents you need to hear and know, in alphabetical order by name:
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Ana del Castillo
Image credit: Andrea Ramirez PR Agency
With hits like “Ai ai ai”, 'Ya es Mío' and 'Sabroso', Ana del Castillo has established herself as an outstanding female exponent of vallenato. In an interview with Billboard Español, Del Castillo admits that although her genre is vallenato and inspired by greats like Diomedes Díaz and Patricia Teherán, she is also open to collaborations in other musical genres. An example of this is her recent foray into popular music with Paola Jara “En Teoría.”
In addition, he reveals that a new 13-song album will be released on July 27th Con Fuerza, at the Parque de la Leyenda Vallenata, with a surprise — “something that sounds different from vallenato,” in her words — inspired by her taste in music by Ana Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal. “The last CD was El Favor de Dios, it was a bit of a struggle, a lot of struggle, really. But this CD is more complete, more organized, more focused and mature for people who like good vallenato,” he adds.
The singer-songwriter will tour the United States starting May 30, with stops in cities including Dallas, Miami and New York.
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Diego Daza
Image credit: Deimer Gámez
Few artists manage to make an impact on their first production and that was the case with Diego Daza. Originally from Valledupar and raised in La Guajira, he first distinguished himself as a prolific composer, with many well-known artists and groups performing his songs, such as Silvestre Dangond, Peter Manjarrés, Felipe Peláez, El Binomio de Oro and Martín Elías, who recorded the popular simple 'Al Fin Llegaste Tú'.
His debut as a singer-songwriter with the album Esto Que Dice, released in 2017 with accordionist Carlos Rueda, quickly gained a following. Songs like “Me Llevó a la Luna”, “La Soltería”, “El Despecho”, and “La Química” are among his most popular songs. With the release of his third album, A To' Timbalcontaining songs such as “La Foto”, “Cupido” and “El DM”, Daza has established his status in the industry, managing to fill the Parque de la Leyenda Vallenata in 2023 as an example of this.
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Elder Dayán Díaz
Image Credit: José Vergara “Frankejazz”
Coming from an illustrious vallenato dynasty, being one of the sons of the legendary Diomedes Díaz, singer and songwriter Elder Dayan Díaz is carving his own path in music. With a unique style that combines the tradition of the genre with modern elements, he has managed to position himself as one of the main exponents of today's vallenato. Elder Dayan has seven albums under his belt, including Decontrol Total (2018) and El Disco Que Me Gusta (2019) with accordionist and composer Rolando Ochoa, featuring “Lovers”, one of his most popular songs; In addition, his latest Para Ustedes (2023) with Lucas Dangond, with songs like “Reina Guajira” and “Modo Avión”, the latest winner of the Nuestra Tierra 2023 award for best vallenato song.
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Karen Lizarazo
Image credit: Giorgio del Vecchio
Karen Lizarazo has been immersed in the world of music since childhood, but it wasn't until 2022 that she released her first studio album. Sin Miedo al Éxito. Born in Aguachica, Cesar, “La Patrona del Vallenato” as she is known, brings her personal touch to the genre with a charismatic stage presence and themes ranging from love to female empowerment, standing out as one of the main female speakers. of valenato. Songs like “Amor de Papel”, “Ganas Locas” (featuring a remix with Eddie Herrera), and “Tarde lo Conocí,” a moving tribute to the late Musa del Vallenato Patricia Teherán — as well as her latest single “El Cora Me Duele” — are favorites among their loyal fan club known as “Karenistas.” Lizarazo has been signed since 2019 with Universal Music.
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Mono Zabaleta
Image source: Courtesy photo
José Vicente Rosado Zabaleta, popularly known as Mono Zabaleta, is one of the most prominent voices in Vallenato today. Coming from a family with a solid musical tradition in the genre (which includes Beto Zabaleta), he has built up an extensive discography over the years, most notably collaborating with accordionist Daniel Maestre on his most recent productions.
Zabaleta has several hits, but perhaps one of the most memorable is “El Sequestro” (“The Kidnapping,”) a song that went viral after famous soccer player Luis Díaz's father, Luis Manuel Díaz, uploaded a TikTok video dances to the song after surviving a kidnapping. Other of his best known songs are “Amor de Locos”, “Mi Plan” and “Unbearable”, the latter was included on his album Mono released in January 2024.
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Rafa Perez
Image source: Esteban Escobar
Rafa Pérez started with the group Vallenato Joven in 2001 and was a member of the groups Los Chiches del Vallenato, Los Diablitos and Kvrass before starting as a soloist in 2021. Standing out as a great performer of the new wave of vallenato, his seven discography includes Rafa Pérez Canta Vallenato: Homenaje a los Compositores Vol. 1 (2018) and Vol. 2 (2021), in which he pays tribute to different icons of the genre such as José Alfonso “Chiche” Maestre and Omar Geles. His album album/03Ccp3ALKMlTtmQkJRhplc” target=”_blank”>Mi Mejor Versión It was recorded live from Parque de la Leyenda Vallenata in 2023, where he invited on stage figures such as Gustavo Gutiérrez (author of “Sin medir distancia”), accordionist Alfredo Gutiérrez and conductor Iván Villazón.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/lists/vallenato-artists-to-listen-ana-del-castillo/