Rosalía (Post-Flamenco Art-Pop From Spain)

During the controversy earlier this year, she posted a playlist of flamenco songs that comprise the lyrics and melodies on the Los Ángeles album.

Aqui va esta playlist como regalo de reyes, donde podréis encontrar de donde aprendí los cantes que aparecen en Los Ángeles, con las letras y melodías que componen el disco. Que la disfrutéis!!🎁✨☺https://t.co/OPAVqBTewG

— R O S A L Í A (@rosaliavt) January 4, 2018

"Malamente" won a UK Video Music Award for best pop video.

this is not my fav album of a payo ex/appropriating flamenco this year. the relationship between gitano culture and spanish culture is more interesting to me than this music, which leans hard on these signifiers. the magnet article has the sort of weaselly equivocation I've seen before on this topic

also:

The theoretical appropriation of Rosalia works and works well at the narrative level when the intent is directed towards the gypsy culture: the ethnic group has been socially and legally persecuted for five centuries, and although today there is no formal discrimination, the gypsies still live apart in many ways. cities and in permanent social exclusion. It is probably the only Spanish historical case to which the American racial narrative fits.

hmmm

the relationship between gitano culture and spanish culture is more interesting to me than this music, which leans hard on these signifiers

What did you think of Mala Rodriguez's last single/video? (She actually is gitana.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKJE4-9qRIk

this is a good album

I like her singing and prefer the intensity & energy of that track to the cooler detachment of rosalia. as per matt dc, the way the claps work with the glossier sound are what's most striking to me about rosalia, & I wld imagine other ppl will lift that trick

i love this album but man i'm so excited for her to drop her new shit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAVZ5tXL6lU

as if to further illustrate this ^ - new video for "bagdad" features a bit of "lo presiento" at the beginning

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2WOIGyGzUQ

This review (from The Nation, of all places) was very interesting to me because I usually don't pay attention to lyrics, but the author makes it clear how crucial they are to this album:

https://www.thenation.com/article/rosalia-flamencos-new-album-el-mal-querer-review/

Missed this thread; discovered her (2) albums via end-of-year lists. Absolutely love them... her voice!

Way into both of these albums as well.

https://www.stereogum.com/2027027/rosalia-oneohtrix-point-never/news/

Entertaining and slightly nerdy analysis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgHXFTgaVT0

I'm updating the thread for no other reason than I still enjoy checking her different performances so much. Maybe I'm crazy but I still feel like she has this spectrum of moods that each of her songs works with and that make me scream art.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLWfMPPh1F8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRph0jV4mO4
Someone tell how I left out this song from my top25, oh yes, it's partly because of the others.

Also she said she'd love to collab with Dua Lipa and that'd be ultimate sexiness, so fingers crossed.

“Di Mi Nombre” is still my favorite of hers.

This is cool, first time I've seen a vid of her performing. I'm so into El Mal Querer

she's going to be on the james blake album out tomorrow

And since you mentioned it. We hear her first, as we should. I'm not familiar with James Blake, but he makes me think of Anthony. Nice duo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LkoaO8-z6I

Delicious actually. And incredible delicate performance. Her parts (my amateur translation):

Agujerito del cielo - Little hole in the sky
Cuelando el brillo de Dios - letting in the brilliance of God
Un rayo cayó en tus ojo' - a beam struck your eye
Y me partió el corazón - and split my heart
Agujerito del cielo - Little hole in the sky
Díctame por dónde ir - instruct me where to go
Para yo no equivocarme - so that I do not get it wrong
Y así ver mi porvenir - and thus see my future

Ya tengo to' lo que quiero - I already have al' that I desire
Ya no puedo pedir má' - I cannot ask for mo'
Cuando te tengo a mi la'o - When I have you by my sid'
Lo pasa'o se queda atrá' - The pas' is left behin'
Si te apartan de mi vera - If they separate me from your side
Y te tuviera que encontrar - And if I had to find you
Hasta allá te encontraría - I would find you up there
Como el río va a la mar - As the river goes to the sea

new collab with J Balvin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7bfOZek9t4

I definitely prefer "Brillo," their collab from the J Balvin album, but it's always fascinating to hear Rosalia in the context of club music.

Grabbed a ticket for her SF show. Sold out in in less than a few hours last week.

Just a short North America tour this time-- West Coast plus NYC and 1 Canada show

Need to listen to "Brillo" again, think I recall liking it. x-post

I don't think there's anything "fascinating" about it. Rosalía's own music is fascinating. This is generic bullshit - literally any female voice could have been punched into that track. Ugh.

(I hate J Balvin's music in general, though.)

Yeah, same reaction here.

anyway, here she performs Con Altura live (along with "El Presiento)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6e9lCXT1xLs

she's a huge pop star--she's gonna do pop tracks. obviously her own stuff is gonna be more interesting than her collabs, but i do think she adds some stuff that generic singer x would not, like how she subtly subverts the synth melody in the pre-chorus.

ugh i mentioned this upthread but i am very very thirsty for "el presiento", "aute couture / esto esto enciendo", "santeria" and all these other unreleased songs she's teased live

the new song is fun, not her best ever obviously but if it turns out to be a hit i'm all for it

well, my thirst ^ is about to be partially quenched... "aute cuture" is out tomorrow

estáis ready????? AUTE CUTURE 💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼💅🏼 30/5 pic.twitter.com/jFEKzdR4Cl

— R O S A L Í A (@rosaliavt) May 28, 2019

Estoy ready!

Meanwhile, she’s also done a song for the Game of Thrones album:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2OxVKUf8a4

Rosalía ft. A.Chal • Me Traicionaste

https://variety.com/2019/music/news/rosalia-spanish-flamenco-singer-superstar-1203227213/

"con altura" is awesome you guys are crazy

yeah i agree, but still not as good as Brillo

I was too harsh on “Con Altura” on the Rolling Afro-Latin Music thread - I actually like it fine, but it’s not nearly as good as the El Mal Querer singles (or indeed “Brillo”).

only rosalía song i've heard other than "con altura" is "malamente" and i think they're on a similar level (i.e. both quite enjoyable)

"aute cuture" teaser is intriguing

Dyl, you should listen to El mal querer, stat!

hah i think i will :)

i also don't agree that "con altura" could just be any other female vocalist in duet w/ j balvin ... there's a certain presence, confidence, and command of the moment that carries a direct throughline from i.e. "malamente." the song is not as good if it's becky g or karol g or whoever. i think the video makes this clear as well... it's very much a more conventional pop video but it has her stamp all over it.

brillo is super dope too tho

banger

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLFUhty8EF4

hell yeah

she is p much a genius

Took me a few plays, but I like this track a lot -- a banger for real! (I'm straight-up dancing here in my "open plan" office environment)

so is she shifting away from her flamenco influence

yeah that song is summer for me right now

I can't wait for her next album.

I can’t wait for her to tour again; I missed her recent show here in L.A.

Not as keen on this new song - her voice is transcendent and this track feels like its squandering her talent.

If her next album indeed does step away from flamenco, I hope she figures out a way to still showcase her vocal brilliance.

BTW, saw her live in SF and Barcelona, she's a must see act. Incredible performer.

I think the track is a good showcase for her voice; it's just in a different format than before....

Madre mia rosalia bajale

I like “Aute Cuture” a lot. Fully expecting the third single to be called “Costa Azul/Côte d’Azur” or something.

More a fan of Los Angeles and the more overtly Flamenco than where she's headed, but keeping an open mind.

Long way from covering "I See A Darkness"!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fg7GJghu4Zo

The funny thing to me is that it IS pop

well it definitely is a pop album, she is a pop artist. but to me it's less of a pop album than el mal querer (or functions less as so) and probably not even as experimental, and then obviously 'motomami' has it beat on both counts pretty easily. so it sorta falls in this half-measure space to me... she has set an extremely high bar for her albums to clear, to her credit

was there a second performance i'm not aware of? you're talking about the one where he was wearing a shirt and tie? is there a coded message hidden in your post that i'm not picking up on? are you okay and do you need help?

― slob wizard (J0rdan S.)

Her aura made his dumb song sound more substantial. Send Rokku gin.

i'm not following the logic there but i wish you the best of luck on your journey

I didn't watch the show live: I watched his bit after hers.

you guys made me watch the harry styles performance. like watching a gap ad on g.

choreography reminded me a bit of this infinitely superior vivien vee performance

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8bW4airi8c

now that's performance art.

I watched it— I’ve def softened on my “Lux” skepticism but my contempt for this song remains strident. I can’t believe anybody hears this track and doesn’t feel embarrassed for everyone involved and themselves for listening

Lol

i kinda felt that way when the video dropped but i think the song works a lot better w/in the context of the album and i think that performance is just flat out great, tho -- tbf -- the best part is a remix of the track done fully outside of rosalia's camp

Just postponed Florida shows due to "family emergency"

https://people.com/rosalia-postpones-florida-concerts-due-to-family-emergency-11991333

https://www.hola.com/us/celebrities/20260605905790/rosalia-returns-barcelona-after-postponing-tour-dates/

As of now, Thursday June 11 Boston show is still on, but Rosalia was last seen back in a Barcelona airport with her sister after returning there from Florida for the family emergency. Hope all is well or will be.

Women dressed up in Catholic garb ala Rosalia latest album are sitting at a bar near the arena in Boston watching a world cup futbol game before the concert tonight. Guys walking around in Scottish kilts may or may not be going to concert tonight, but are in Boston for Saturday World Cup game against Haiti

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/rosalia/2026/the-o2-arena-london-england-5b4c5f04.html

Setlist for opening of US tour in Boston was very similar to earlier London set. 14 songs of Lux , 6 from Motomami and various others. Some was powerful, some songs schmaltzy ( cover of Frankie Valli “Can’t Keep My Eyes off of You “) , some melodramatic . She had an orchestra down on the floor who also utilized large Peruvian box drums. She did a number of the opening songs with ballet dance steps that later merged into modern ones accompanied by her dancers and various sets that she climbed up and down on. She had lots of Catholic references including the orchestra being lit up in a cross shape , and there was a giant swinging “censer” - a large version of those metal things that priests swing that send out smoke. She sounded very emotional in mentioning in a vague way her family emergency that resulted in a delay to this tour. Oh, there was nothing operatic about her briefly twerking during a Motomami song while standing near the orchestra.

Oh , she also got excited when she said someone in the audience was holding up a sign in Catalan about a scientist naming a molecule after her ; and that Ocean Vuong, a novelist, was there at the Boston show.

I wish I had seen Motomami tour, but this was still good and fun.

Toronto and NY shows up next

best live show, best live performer

(still liked the Motomami show more, prob bc of the surprise factor, also bc it had El Mal Querer tracks on the setlist, of which the Lux tour has none unfortunately)

Some of the dancing style is obviously different on this tour too, in addition to the different setlist of course.