Exclusive: J Balvin Talks ‘José’ Album, Reuniting With Bad Bunny + Skrillex Collab
2021 is shaping up to be the year of J Balvin. The Colombian superstar released multiple hits this year with artists like Skrillex, Maria Becerra, Bad Bunny, and Karol G. Now that the world has gotten to know him as Balvin, he wants to introduce another side to himself through a new campaign with Miller Lite. ¡Es José Time! takes after his first name, which also happens to be the title of his next album. In an exclusive interview about the campaign, J Balvin broke down his greatest and latest hits and talked about his new album José.
J Balvin, Willy William, and Beyoncé had the world moving with “Mi Gente.”
José Álvaro Osario Balvin, who is better known as J Balvin, achieved a global breakthrough with this 2018 smash “Mi Gente” with Willy William. The song went stratospheric when pop queen Beyoncé jumped on the remix with them.
“I just saw [Beyoncé] like four weeks ago,” J Balvin tells mitú. “We were talking about that, how amazing that moment was. I know in the future there will be more new statements absolutely.”
J Balvin also performed at the Super Bowl halftime show with Shakira and J.Lo.
Another big moment that put the name J Balvin on the map was when he appeared at the 2020 Super Bowl halftime show. Colombian icon Shakira and Nuyorican pop star Jennifer Lopez invited him as a special guest. He appeared alongside his frequent collaborator Bad Bunny.
“It’s one of the most amazing moments in my career because that was another statement,” J Balvin says. “They were having Latinos in the Super Bowl. It was mind-blowing. I couldn’t even believe it. I’m still like, ‘Wow, we did Super Bowl.'”
J Balvin is introducing José through his Miller Lite campaign.
Now that the world knows who J Balvin is, he wants to introduce the man behind the name with Miller Lite’s ¡Es José Time! campaign. Starting today, he is releasing limited edition beer cans that feature the signature art of his past albums. Fans can enter at esjosetime.com for a chance to win the limited edition cans and J Balvin merch. With Miller Lite, he is also giving back to his community through the campaign. They’re donating $50,000 to the non-profit Accion Opportunity Fund.
“Some people already know J Balvin, but they don’t know José,” he says. “I wanted to introduce myself more and show my human side. It’s great that the campaign doesn’t say: It’s J Balvin time. It’s José time!”
José is also the name of J Balvin’s upcoming album.
José will also be coming through J Balvin’s music because that’s the name of his next album. The hotly-anticipated LP that’s due out later this year shows versatility to Balvin as an artist.
“It’s basically everything I like as an artist that I would love to hear from somebody else,” J Balvin says. “But I was like, ‘Ok, I want to do it myself.’ It’s like a playlist, but I’m the one who is singing.”
J Balvin’s got a global hit on his hands with Maria Becerra.
The biggest hit to come from J Balvin’s José album so far is “¿Qué Más Pues?” He teamed up with rising Argentine singer Maria Becerra. Their alluring collaboration reached the top 10 of Spotify’s Global 200 chart.
“I love always to find new talent,” J Balvin says. “I found [Maria] through a friend of mine who told me, ‘This girl amazing and you should check it out.’ When I heard her music, I created an idea for her and I sent it to her and it became an incredible song. It’s beautiful that we are supporting new talent. We’re supporting music culture and we keep elevating.”
J Balvin is taking reggaeton into the future with Skrillex.
A high-profile collaboration on José is J Balvin’s collaboration with DJ Skrillex. The two teamed up for “In Da Getto,” which blends reggaeton and EDM music. Balvin wants to keep pushing reggaeton music into the future.
“Sonny [Skrillex] is a great guy,” J Balvin says. “I love him because of the way he is. The human side. He’s just an amazing and humble person. Besides that, he’s the greatest. It’s mind-blowing to work with him. I think our sound has to evolve every time and that’s what I wanted to do, a mix of house music with reggaeton, and that’s what we got.”
J Balvin is supporting the new talent from his country in the “Poblado” remix.
Like Becerra, Balvin recently amplified the careers of Colombian acts Crissin, Totoy El Frio, and Natan & Shander. He jumped on the remix of their proudly Colombian banger “Poblado” with Karol G and Nicky Jam. The remix music video has surpassed 106 million views on YouTube.
“The song is beautiful because it was made in Colombia from a lot of new, up-and-coming artists,” J Balvin says. “That’s the new blood, the new generation of artists from Colombia. The song was virally global. They asked me if I wanted to be in the remix and I said yes. Karol G and Nicky Jam jumped on it and that song just blew up amazingly.”
We might get a J Balvin and Bad Bunny Oasis 2 album soon.
Next up, J Balvin can be seen headlining major music festivals like Outside Lands and Governor’s Ball. Balvin got the #LatinoGang excited when he regrouped with his Oasis collaborator Bad Bunny. The two superstars teamed up with Nio Garcia for the global smash “AM” remix.
“Me and Bad Bunny are a duo,” J Balvin says. “We had an album together Oasis and probably we’ll do another one. Every time we’re together, we make huge hits. It’s beautiful to see my boy Bad Bunny doing great. And we’re still here and ‘AM’ remix came out so amazing.”
