While 2005 feels like it happened just yesterday, it’s already been nearly 15 years since these tracks first graced our FM radios. Even in 2019, we all know your party playlist ain’t mierda without a throwback track from Mariah Carey and some of the OG reggaetoneros like Daddy Yankee and Calle 13. Your 2005 playlist probably didn’t include “Beverly Hills” by Weezer or “Behind These Hazel Eyes” by Kelly Clarkson. Prepare yourself for a walk down memory lane.

These songs were our summer jams. We were just some young people trying to figure out who we were and where we were heading in this world. Most of these songs became part of our DNA with how much we played them. We were these songs. These songs were the soundtrack to a summer of young love, loss, adventure, and heartache. Sit down and take a listen.

1. “We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey

This is the song you belt after all your early 2000s breakups. Back then, we related to Mariah when the song gets “too deep (too deep) / I gotta change the station / So I turn the dial tryin’ to catch a break.” Except we’re not hearing Babyface “I Only Think of You” on the radio anymore. 

2. “La Tortura” by Shakira

Your abuela was threatened and offended by Shakira’s ‘hips [that] don’t lie”, but everyone else and their mother was obsessed with Shakira’s deep, sultry voice, and, yes, those hips. We also can’t get over the scenes of her chopping onions. 😂

3. “Rompe” by Daddy Yankee

Daddy Yankee was King of the 2000s, and while Billboard wasn’t even recording year-end top songs for the Latin genre, “Rompe” remained at number one for weeks on end. There was nothing Daddy Yankee could do that didn’t make you want to move that body all over the living room.

4. “1, 2 Step” by Ciara featuring Missy Elliot

Ladies and gentlemen, this song was the bop of the summer, no question. The music video is an actual time capsule, with scenes of bros spraying themselves with AXE, and it being sexy. We all started 1, 2 stepping everywhere we went.

5. “La Camisa Negra” by Juanes

Remember when this song was fresh? Juanes was topping all the Latin charts in 2005, and shockingly, his music video may be the original Boomerang. There’s no question: this song is just as relevant in 2005 as it is today. Sure, he’s playing with the trope of the witchy seductress, but our kind has all kinds of brujería in us.

6. “Pon de Replay” by Rihanna

Only second to Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together,” Rihanna’s debut single from her very first album captured everyone’s hearts. She spoke truth to power, and what everyone else in the club was thinking: “Mr. DJ, turn the music up!”

7. “Let Me Love You” by Mario

Who didn’t have a major crush on Mario, especially as he was smooth-talking all of us about what a loyal, loving boyfriend he would be. “Show you the way love’s supposed to be, you deserve betterrr,” he coos. Someone ought to play this when I get down to the last Taki crumbs, before I’m covered in spicy dust.

8. “Atrévete te te” by Calle 13

Calle 13 may have won 21 Latin Grammy awards since their first 2005 album, which included”Atrévete-te-te”, but the group could have won zero and would still have Boricua hearts. The group is also famous for advocating for Puerto Rican independence and commenting on the social issues in Latin America. With the rise of the Internet, Calle 13 asks, “Who cares if you like Green Day? Who cares if you like Cold Play?” The song is all about Puerto Rican pride and we felt that.

9. “Hollaback Girl” by Gwen Stefani

This absolutely B-A-N-A-N-A-S song was only the third single Stefani ever released and reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 that summer. There was no choice in whether that song would get stuck in your head. Everyone knew the song by mid-summer.

10. “Lose Control” by Missy Elliot featuring Ciara & Fat Man Scoop

The music video for this summer jam went on to win a two MTV VMA awards for “Best Dance Video” and “Best Hip Hop Video” and a Grammy for “Best Music Video.” It is a must-watch, especially for the close-up shots of Missy Elliot using a very advanced stylus pen on her Nokia touch screen. 

11. “Gold Digger” by Kanye West featuring Jamie Foxx

Remember when nobody knew who the Kardashians were, and we were all just enjoying Kanye West’s peak artistry? Kanye originally produced this song in Ludacris’ home for Shawnna’s debut album, but nobody knows why she passed on it. Kanye eventually went on to win a Grammy for “Best Rap Solo Performance.”

READ: Fans Are Freaking Out Over Mariah Carey Graciously Honoring Lil Nas X For Beating Her Billboard Record

¡Mi gente! Your faves could never. Latin music domination continues around the world with the top spots of global streaming platforms being stacked with Latinx artists. What a time to be alive. Remember when we all had to pretend Drake was Dominican to get some kind of representation out here? But when you think about the sheer number of people on the planet that speak Spanish, it totally makes sense that Latinx artists would have such a massive reach. 

And let’s be real, while fluency helps, you really don’t have to be proficient to enjoy reggaeton. The energetic, pulsating beats can compel anyone to move. Do you really think everyone in the United States knew the English translation of Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito” in order to enjoy it? Music transcends language and so does Colombian trap artist J Balvin apparently. Do you think anyone even noticed that the lyrics in “Harlem Shake” are largely in Spanish? Nope. 

J Balvin is here to stay.

For six consecutive weeks, J Balvin has chopped the global charts on YouTube. That’s a total of 1.26 billion views on the platform. 

“Artista más visto en YouTube Global,” Balvin wrote in an Instagram caption.

This comes as no surprise to Balvin fans. In 2018, Balvin ousted drake as the most-streamed artist worldwide on Spotify. The singer surpassed 48 million monthly listeners last summer thanks to his single “X” with Nicky Jam which streamed over 327 million times. Balvin is in great company on the global charts with Daddy Yankee, Bad Bunny, and Ozuna all in the top 10. The trio’s single “China” with Anuel AA and Karol G is currently number 1 on the YouTube global charts and number 2 in the United States chart. However, we’re pleased to note that “Señorita” by Camilla Cabello and Shawn Mendes is topping the charts in the states. 

Balvin shouts out his Latinx fans. 

“Artista más escuchado en el mundo en @spotify posición #1 que celebro con todos mis latinos y los soñadores. Gracias Gracias Gracias,” Balvin wrote in the caption. 

Our boy is famous basically everywhere?

The top countries streaming Balvin’s music are Mexico with 240 million views, Argentina with 121 million views, and Colombia with 121 million views. The United States is in fourth place with 112 million views, followed by Spain, Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Brazil, and Venezuela. But fear not, Balvin has fans in at least 100 different countries according to YouTube. 

We stan a humble king of the masses!

Like, literally could you imagine how this level of adoration and attention would completely warp your mind? I would be a monster. I would build a house out of fan mail and then set it ablaze just to laugh at my stupid fans. I’d have so many, who cares! Meanwhile, the artist, who typically regales his followers with personal messages on Instagram every morning at 5 a.m., knows how to connect with his fans. Balvin even served ordinary people from a coffee cart in New York City the other day. 

“Buenos días , buenos días , buenos días !!!!! ARCOÍRIS TOUR empieza 30 de Agosto en Puerto Rico !! Choliseo,” he wrote on Instagram. 

 We stan a humble king of the masses!

This isn’t the first Latin wave (and it won’t be the last).

In the 1990s, the late and great Selena catapulted Tejano and Cumbia music into the mainstream American consciousness. This ushered in the era of the “Latin Explosion” where legends were born. Ricky Martin, Thalía, Marc Anthony, Enrique Iglesias, and Jennifer Lopez made their marks. Hell, even Frank Sinatra personally invited Luis Miguel to record a duet of “Come Fly With Me” on his 1994 album Duets II. 

In the 2000s, there was the “Latin Pop Boom” that saw the likes of Shakira, Paulina Rubio, and Christina Aguilera topping the charts. You may even remember non-Latinx artists trying to ride the wave with Beyoncé collaborating with Shakira on the duet, “Beautiful Liar,” and releasing a Spanish language version of the single “Irreplaceable.” It almost feels odd to call these decades different waves or eras when it is pretty clear Latinxs have been consistently rocking the charts since Gloria Estefan in the 1980s. Since then, in the United States, we have been blessed with many more Latinx acts including the likes of Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Camila Cabello, Becky G, and Cardi B. And of course, there are all the amazing imports from Latinx countries around the world. If we want to continue this Latinx chart domination, I only have one piece of advice: stream “China” by J. Balvin on YouTube and Spotify!