< De Colombia p'al mundo: How Feid became Medelln's reggaeton 'ambassador'

July 28, 2024

AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:

At next month's Latin Grammys, Colombian artist Feid will be up for five awards. His pop breakthrough comes between a sold-out international tour, a new album and a collaboration with global superstar Bad Bunny, all after nearly a decade in the industry. Here's NPR's Isabella Gomez Sarmiento.

ISABELLA GOMEZ SARMIENTO, BYLINE: Feid became the first artist in history to sell out El Coliseo de Puerto Rico in an hour or less this summer.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: But on an island that's birthed artists like Daddy Yankee and Bad Bunny, where reggaeton is an entire culture not just a genre of music, it was a Colombian artist that broke this record.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CHORRITO PA LAS ANIMAS")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Feid, whose music is largely built around his identity, often referencing his hometown of Medellin and its particular slang, won the Puerto Rican crowd over on a stage that's hosted some of the biggest reggaeton acts in the world.

JUAN ARROYO: The big sign of credibility is, can you sell out an 18,000-people stadium?

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: That's Puerto Rican music journalist Juan Arroyo, who reviewed Feid's show for Rolling Stone. And for the record, he did sell out the stadium - twice. That triumph didn't come out of the blue. It's been years in the making. In the 2010s, Feid started writing and producing for other artists...

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GINZA")

J BALVIN: (Singing in Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: ...Working with stars like J Balvin, Nicky Jam and Christina Aguilera behind the scenes.

FEID: A lot of people know me as a songwriter, but it wasn't, like, my motivation. It's not like I was a songwriter, and then now I'm an artist. It was like, I was an artist and I had to be a songwriter.

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Feid began releasing his own music in 2014, but it took several years and albums to really find his footing as a solo artist. He hunkered down on making sentimental songs for the club and developed a signature look - neon green clothes, wrap-around Oakley sunglasses and a bleach blonde mullet.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LUCES DE TECNO")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Last month, Feid racked up five Latin Grammy nominations. Then he dropped his sixth studio album, "Mor, No Le Temas A La Oscuridad," which translates to "Love, Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark." It's been his biggest record to date, reaching No. 4 on Billboard's Top Latin Albums chart. He says the title is an ode to the perseverance that led to his success.

FEID: Most of the people just started hearing about me, like, two years back or one year back or maybe this year. So for me, like, I was always shining in all that darkness.

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Sonically, the album is his most expansive yet. It goes back to one of reggaeton's building blocks, dance hall, featuring legendary Sean Paul singing in Spanish.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "NINA BONITA")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

SEAN PAUL: (Singing) Baby girl, (singing in Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: There's Afrobeats with Nigerian star Rema.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BUBALU")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

REMA: (Singing in Spanish).

FEID: He's singing in Spanish, (speaking Spanish), singing with slang, (speaking Spanish), with everything.

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: And there's even a rock song with the band Cupido.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PRIVILEGIOS")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Feid says though his roots lay in reggaeton, he's excited to push the boundaries and geography of the genre. He became the only non-Puerto Rican artist with a feature on Bad Bunny's record-breaking new album, "Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va A Pasar Manana." The song is an ode to one of Medellin's hottest clubs, Perro Negro.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PERRO NEGRO")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

FEID: I always felt like (speaking Spanish) in a certain way because I was not afraid to say that I'm from Colombia, (speaking Spanish).

GOMEZ SARMIENTO: He says he's proud to keep repping his roots and taking his Colombian hits worldwide. Isabella Gomez Sarmiento, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "RITMO DE MEDALLO")

FEID: (Singing in Spanish).

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