ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Rosalía

26-year-old Rosalía just won her first Grammy for her critically-acclaimed album El mal querer. With a mixture of alternative pop, flamenco, and trap, the Spanish singer has transformed the music scene while keeping a unique style and aesthetic. Her rise to fame has been very quick, so let’s take a look at where she begun and where she is now!

We could first hear Rosalía’s debut “Catalina” in 2016, although she deleted the video and reuploaded it back in 2017. Shortly after, her first album Los Angeles was released, and it was a total hit! Even though it had a very traditional rhythm, everyone was so amazed at her voice that she got nominated at the Latin Grammy Awards that same year. Rosalía was starting to be known, but she wouldn’t achieve international fame until her second – and arguably best -- album, El mal querer.

El mal querer started off as her final project for her Bachelor's Degree. It was an experimental album in which each song was supposed to represent a chapter of the medieval novel La Flamenca. When her first single “Malamente” dropped in 2018, the world went mad! The combination of urban influences with her traditional style made the song a huge success (and once again, she got nominated for the Latin Grammy Awards, but this time in 5 categories!).

The album spoke about a toxic relationship and the suffering that came with it. All the songs carefully tell a love story full of symbolism and emotion, and both the popular and critical reception were captivated by it! Also, her music videos had an underground vibe that was like nothing seen before – her long nails, colourful coats, and her extra jewels became an iconic look… and so her success began!

It’s been two years since then, and Rosalía has had the chance to collaborate with artists such as J Balvin, Ozuna, and Travis Scott. Her music video for “Con Altura” had a great reception despite being very different from her previous work, and it even won at the MTV Video Music Awards!

She also released the EP F*cking Money Man with 2 songs on it, one of them sung in catalá instead of Spanish.

It’s clear that her music style has changed over time, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Her voice remains spectacular, and her innovative spirit has brought us a combination of very different genres. And, honestly, I think that’s really impressive.

Besides, her music videos keep getting more original every time and are definitely worth watching (even if it’s only for the cool aesthetic!).

And now, days after she released “Juro que”, a song closer to El mal querer than the previous ones… She finally got a Grammy, taking home the award for Best Latin Rock, Urban, or Alternative Album! We are very excited to see her voice celebrated and ready to listen to everything that she has in store!

Did you think that was all? Not a chance!

Rosalía has already revealed that she is doing a collab with Billie Eilish, so we can only assume that there will be other artists interested in working with her in the future. How awesome is that?

In the meantime, check her out in the press room at the Grammys!