Летний танцевальный хит 39-летнего пуэрториканца Луиса Фонси (Luis Fonsi) и Дэдди Янки (Daddy Yankee) через полгода после релиза побил рекорды по прослушиванию и скачиванию во всех стриминговых сервисах, оставив позади даже вездесущего Джастина Бибера с песней Sorry. Суммарно песню проиграли 4,6 миллиарда раз.
Despacito, что можно перевести как «медленновато», нельзя назвать сложной композицией. Это чувственный реггетон, мелодия крепко врезается в память, слова, как водится, повествуют о любви и флирте — в общем, это летний хит, услышав который любой почувствует, как то, на чем мы сидим, начинает невольно двигаться в ритм.
К слову, в Малайзии власти запретили проигрывание композиции на государственных телеканалах и радиостанциях, так как поступали жалобы граждан о «непристойном» тексте песни.Певец и автор Despacito Луис Фонси находится в состоянии легкой эйфории, потому что, по его словам, он никак не ждал такой популярности. «Сумасшествие какое-то, — поведал Фонси. — Не хочу использовать слово “случайность”, потому что я все-таки старался написать хит, однако такого точно не ожидал. Я просто хотел, чтобы люди танцевали».
Despacito breaks global streaming record
Luis Fonsi's Despacito has become the most-streamed song of all time, just six months after it was released.
The hit single has been played 4.6 billion times across all streaming services, overtaking Justin Bieber's Sorry, which previously held the title.
"What's happened with this song is just insane," said Fonsi, who hails from Puerto Rico and sings in Spanish.
"I don't want to use the word accident because I was trying to write a hit, but I didn't plan for it to cross over.
"I just wanted to make people dance."
The 39-year-old said the global success of his song - which has reached number one in 35 countries, including the UK - gave him hope in the current political climate.
"I come from Puerto Rico and I live in Miami. We're living in an interesting time right now when people want to divide us. They want to build walls.
"And for a song to bring people and cultures together, that's what makes me proud."Despacito is a sun-bleached slice of sensual reggaeton. The title translates as "slowly", referring to the speed of Fonsi's seduction technique.
It hit number one around Latin America when it was released in January, but only caught fire in the English-speaking world after Justin Bieber heard the song in a nightclub and asked to add a verse.
His version of the song - known as Despacito (Remix) - has become a phenomenon on streaming services, most notably Spotify and Apple Music. It is already the fourth most-played video of all time on YouTube, where it is rapidly closing in on the top three, all of which are years old.
The head of Universal Music Group, Sir Lucian Grainge, said the success of Despacito showed how streaming was democratising the music market.
"Streaming has allowed a song with a different beat, from a different culture, in a different language, to become this juggernaut of success and pleasure," he told the BBC.
"The industry has predominantly been English-speaking artists for the last 50 years [but] streaming will continue to open up music from Latin America artists globally.
"Anything and everywhere is up for grabs."
