“Mi Gente” by J Balvin and Willy William

Every year there’s one song that becomes the default song of the summer. It’s typically the song that’s played incessantly over the radio for months until it becomes an ear worm that won’t leave you alone. “Mi Gente” is a song recorded by Colombian singer J Balvin and French singer and producer Willy William that became one of 2017’s biggest summer hits and the song of the summer to most. In the United States, the original version of the song peaked at number two on the Hot Latin Songs chart, and at number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The first remix for the song featured guest vocals from Beyoncé, and reached number one on the Hot Latin Songs chart, ending the 35-week reign led by “Despacito”, and number three on the Hot 10. The song has since received six more remixes and a music video that has amassed nearly two billion views on Youtube, making it on of the highest viewed videos on the platform.

The song is actually a remix itself of a song Willy Williams had put out two months prior, “Voodoo Song”. Upbeat and extremely danceable, the track has this distorted horn melody that is the heart of it’s earworm effect. This little horn melody is repeated throughout the song, and is extremely hummable and will stick with you for hours. The beat is very rhythmic which makes it the perfect song to bust a move to on the dance floor. J Balvin has a great flow and his vocals fit the music very well. The phrase “Mi gente” translates to “my people” and the song is all about how the rhythms, melodies, and music bring people together on the dance floor.

The music video is extremely lively and colorful, a perfect visual of the song. Featuring Balvin in black chucks dancing all over the city, we see so many beautiful colors and lights that all bring this video to life. The video focuses on how this song has brought so many people together through the power of dance and music. Everyone is having the time of their lives and it makes for a very enjoyable video. When combined with the motion of the dancers, you get a dynamic visual representation of this song and what its lyrics mean. This is the perfect kind of summertime video, and it’s not surprising to see it reach nearly two billion views on YouTube.