Calle 13 (album)
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''Calle 13'' is the debut studio album by Puerto Rican
urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...
/
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
band Calle 13, released on November 29, 2005, by
White Lion Records White Lion Records is a reggaeton, Latin Music, Latín reggae and urbano record label established by Elías de León with the release of the album '' No Mercy'' by Daddy Yankee in 1995. The label would temporarily change its name to 'Boricua Guer ...
. The album was recorded in the wake of the group's online success with the song " Querido FBI". The album received positive reviews, with critics praising Residente's lyrical style and the musical diversity displayed on the record. The lead single "
Atrévete-te-te "Atrévete-te-te" () is a Grammy Awards, Grammy-nominated song by Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican urban contemporary, urban duo Calle 13 (band), Calle 13 from their eponymous debut album ''Calle 13 (album), Calle 13'', released in February 2006, by Whi ...
" peaked at number 15 on the ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''
Hot Latin Songs The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin music, Latin songs, published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart ranki ...
chart and is now considered to be one of the group's signature songs. At the 2006 Latin Grammy Awards, ''Calle 13'' won three
Latin Grammy The Latin Grammy Awards (stylized as Latin GRAMMYs) are awards presented by the Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from any ...
Awards including Best Urban Music Album,
Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1960 (except in 1967) "for a new artist who releases, during the Eligibility Year, the first recording which establishes the public identity of that ar ...
, and
Best Short Form Music Video The Grammy Award for Best Music Video is an accolade presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to performers, directors, and producers of quality short form music videos. ...
for their first single "Atrévete-te-te".


Background and recording

Calle 13 was formed when step-brothers
Residente René Pérez Joglar (; born February 23, 1978), known professionally as Residente (often stylized as Resīdɛntə), is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, songwriter and filmmaker. He is best known as one of the founders of the alternative rap ban ...
(real name René Pérez Joglar) and
Visitante Eduardo José Cabra Martínez (; born September 10, 1979, in Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico), better known by his stage name "Visitante Calle 13", "Visitante", or more recently, "Cabra", is a Puerto Rican producer, musician, composer, and multi- ...
(real name Eduardo José Cabra Martínez) began creating music together in 2004. Before forming the group, Residente obtained a master's degree in art from the
Savannah College of Art and Design Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) is a private art school with locations in Savannah, Georgia; Atlanta, Georgia; and Lacoste, France. It was founded in 1978 to provide degrees in programs not yet offered in the southeast of the United ...
while Visitante had studied music at the
University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Universidad de Puerto Rico;'' often shortened to UPR) is the main List of state and territorial universities in the United States, public university system in the Commonwealth (U.S. i ...
. Residente returned to Puerto Rico in 2003. The step-brothers hosted their music on a website, and began searching for a record label in order to release their music commercially. After sending
demo tape A demo (shortened from "demonstration") is a song or group of songs typically recorded for limited circulation or for reference use, rather than for general public release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas in a fixed for ...
s to
White Lion Records White Lion Records is a reggaeton, Latin Music, Latín reggae and urbano record label established by Elías de León with the release of the album '' No Mercy'' by Daddy Yankee in 1995. The label would temporarily change its name to 'Boricua Guer ...
, the duo was offered a record deal. Residente chose White Lion due to his admiration for
Tego Calderón Tegui Calderón Rosario (born February 1, 1972) is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer and actor. He began his musical career in 1996 (as Tego Tec) and was supported by the famous Puerto Rican rapper Eddie Dee, who invited him on his second studio a ...
, another artist on the label. White Lion president Elías de León explained that his cousin and A&R director Carlos "Karly" Rosario alerted him to the demo and stated, "These weird guys brought this demo. You've got to listen to it." Residente was working at his day job as a draftsman for an architectural firm when he received the call that Calle 13 had been signed. The group then recorded "Se Vale Tó-Tó" and released it as a single to the Puerto Rican radio station WVOZ (Mix 107), where it became a radio hit on the island. To promote the group locally, Residente directed and edited the video for "Se Vale Tó-Tó" with the help of his cousin, which was filmed on a relatively small budget of US$14,000. The duo gained recognition for their song " Querido FBI", which responded to the killing of
Filiberto Ojeda Ríos Filiberto Ojeda Ríos (April 26, 1933 September 23, 2005) was a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican independence activist who cofounded the Boricua Popular Army, also known as ''Los Macheteros,'' and its predecessor, the Fuerzas Armadas de Liberació ...
, a key figure for the
Puerto Rican independence movement Throughout the history of Puerto Rico, Puerto Ricans, its inhabitants have initiated several movements to gain independence for the Geography of Puerto Rico, island, first from the Spanish Empire until 1898 and since then from the United States. ...
. Shortly after, the duo collaborated with
Julio Voltio Julio Voltio (also known simply as Voltio; born as Julio Irving Ramos Filomeno on June 11, 1977) is a Puerto Rican former rapper. An early pioneer of reggaetón—a modern genre of Latin music originating primarily in Panamá and Puerto Rico, ...
on the single "
Chulin Culin Chunfly "Chulin Culin Chunfly" is the third single by Puerto Rican reggaeton performer Voltio, from his eponymous second studio album, ''Voltio''. It was released on November 14, 2005, by Sony BMG and White Lion. The album version features Residente of ...
", which reached number eight on the ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs chart, creating more buzz for the group. After the success of "Querido F.B.I." and "Chulin Culin Chunfly", the duo headed to the studio to record its debut album. When creating music for the record, Residente explained, "I didn't care about anything. I had no commitments, I was relaxed."13, On Being Loved And Hated In Latin America, work=''National Public Radio'', last=Garsd, first=Jasmine, date=April 5, 2014, accessdate=May 2, 2018
/ref> According to Residente, the lack of critical recognition and fame gave the rapper to express himself freely on the record. When composing songs for the album, Residente began by writing lyrics and Visitante then constructed his beats to complement the lyrical content.


Composition


Music and lyrics

The album was mostly known for its new sound in
reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...
, where most of the tracks were composed of different rhythms and lyrics, without use of the
dem bow "Dem Bow" is a song performed by Jamaican reggae artist Shabba Ranks, produced by Bobby Digital. This song uses the "Ku-Klung-Klung"/"Poco Man Jam" riddim (based on the title of the 1990 Gregory Peck and Red Dragon song) created by Jamaican ...
beat. The album is a blend of reggaeton and
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
, all with a humorous and sarcastic feel to it in subject matter. Anthony Colombo of ''Billboard'' noted that the album contains influences "that range from formal conservatory training to street music, animation, and
Dadaism Dada () or Dadaism was an anti-establishment art movement that developed in 1915 in the context of the Great War and the earlier anti-art movement. Early centers for dadaism included Zürich and Berlin. Within a few years, the movement had s ...
". The album additionally contains elements of
salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (food), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: Arts and ent ...
,
funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
, and
electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...
. The record features live percussion throughout, and some songs contain
cumbia Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, Europeans, and Africans during colonial times. Cumbia is said to have com ...
-influenced instrumentation. With ''Calle 13'', the group started to be labeled as reggaeton, a genre that the duo wished to distance itself from. Visitante commented on the situation: "The truth is that the first record had only four reggaetons. Those were the cuts used for promotional purposes, and so that’s the brand that was put on us. But from the beginning, to me, reggaeton never offered anything musically. My brother liked it, yes, but we always tried to execute it in an organic way, with real instruments and mixing it with other genres." On the album, Residente wished to address a diverse array of subjects as opposed to simply discussing politics, which he felt would be "a bore". Residente's
self-deprecating Self-deprecation is the act of reprimanding oneself by belittling, undervaluing, disparaging oneself, or being excessively modest. It can be used as a way to make complaints, express modesty, invoke optimal reactions or add humour. It may also be ...
, crass, and sarcastic lyrical style garnered comparisons to American rapper
Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, he is credited with popula ...
. Nuria Net, managing editor at Fusion, described Residente's lyrical style by explaining, "Calle 13 rapped about the female body, the nalgas, the curves, the bodily fluids ... It was so much more graphic, and poetic, but even raunchier than reggaeton and urban music 10 years ago."


Songs

"La Aguacatona" contains musical allusions to
George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned jazz, popular music, popular and classical music. Among his best-known works are the songs "Swan ...
's " Summertime". The songs "
Atrévete-te-te "Atrévete-te-te" () is a Grammy Awards, Grammy-nominated song by Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican urban contemporary, urban duo Calle 13 (band), Calle 13 from their eponymous debut album ''Calle 13 (album), Calle 13'', released in February 2006, by Whi ...
", "Suave", and "Se Vale Tó-Tó" are considered to have a party atmosphere. "Se Vale Tó-Tó" contains sexual euphemisms, including the recurring phrase "anything goes in this sausage sandwich". The song's title is a play on words, substituting "to-to", a variation on the Puerto Rican slang term for a
vagina In mammals and other animals, the vagina (: vaginas or vaginae) is the elastic, muscular sex organ, reproductive organ of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vulval vestibule to the cervix (neck of the uterus). The #Vag ...
(''"toto"''), for "todo" (all). An approximate translation of ''"se vale todo"'' is "all is allowed here" or, more accurately, "anything goes"; the song's chorus is a reference to grinding while dancing. The first interlude, "Intel-lú-Ayala", humorously discusses "residents" and "visitors" to Puerto Rico, using the stage names of the two band members to deride colonialism from Spain and the United States on the island.Temas, 2007. p. 38 "La Jirafa" contains
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
ian-influenced percussion and combined with the theme music from the 2001 French romantic comedy ''
Amélie ''Amélie'' (, , ) is a 2001 French-language romantic comedy film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Written by Jeunet with Guillaume Laurant, the film is a whimsical depiction of contemporary Parisian life, set in Montmartre. It tells the story ...
''. Residente described "La Jirafa" as "a pretty song, a love song for a woman, but it’s about Puerto Rico too." Writing in his book ''Reggaeton'', Raquel Z. Rivera describes "
Atrévete-te-te "Atrévete-te-te" () is a Grammy Awards, Grammy-nominated song by Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican urban contemporary, urban duo Calle 13 (band), Calle 13 from their eponymous debut album ''Calle 13 (album), Calle 13'', released in February 2006, by Whi ...
" as "a call for liberation directed to anyone who listens, but above all to the Puerto Rican middle class, the so-called miss intellectual whose heady 'show' of racial and class superiority does not allow her to enjoy her body and dance down the hill with the rest of the reggaeton nation."Rivera, 2009. p. 337 The song "Pi-Di-Di-Di" mocks rapper P. Diddy, who had come to Puerto Rico earlier to scout out new musicians, and Residente felt that he was exploiting the island.Rivera, 2009. p. 334 "Sin Coro" pokes fun at "conscious" rappers who claim to be anti-commercial and then "going to the mall to buy a pair of Nikes".Fusté, 2006. p. 146


Reception


Commercial performance

Although the album was not a huge success on the ''Billboard'' 200, only peaking at number 189, it was a major success on the ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''
Top Latin Albums Top Latin Albums (formerly Latin 50) is a record chart published by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine and is labeled as the most important music chart for Spanish language, full-length albums in the United States, American music market. ...
chart, peaking in the top 10 at number six. It was also a huge success on the ''Billboard''
Top Heatseekers The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
chart, peaking at number three. The single "
Atrévete-te-te "Atrévete-te-te" () is a Grammy Awards, Grammy-nominated song by Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican urban contemporary, urban duo Calle 13 (band), Calle 13 from their eponymous debut album ''Calle 13 (album), Calle 13'', released in February 2006, by Whi ...
" peaked at number 15 on the ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''
Hot Latin Songs The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin music, Latin songs, published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart ranki ...
chart and at number six on the US Latin Tropical Airplay chart. By the end of 2006, the album had sold more than 150,000 copies in the United States alone. Worldwide, the album sold 350,000 copies.


Critical response

The album received positive reviews from critics, who praised Residente's unique lyricism and the group's musical diversity. Jason Birchmeier of
Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
praised the album for its unique spin on reggaeton, noting that Residente's lyrics display a "healthy sense of humor and an almost clownish approach to sarcasm...a world apart from the kingly bravado of most reggaeton vocalists, and the obligatory glimmers of misogyny and violence that accompany such streetwise swaggering." He described Visitante's beats as "inventive", enjoying the record's deviation from reggaeton's "industry-standard trademark of Luny Tunes and that production team's assembly line of bandwagon-jumping imitators." Nate Chinen of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' called Residente a "lean and literate rapper" and the album "an intelligent effort, and not just by reggaetón standards." Jasmine Garsd of
National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
praised Residente's lyrics, describing him as "foul-mouthed and self-deprecating, but undeniably talented" and "as funny as
e is E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plu ...
gross".


Awards

At the 2006 Latin Grammy Awards, ''Calle 13'' won three
Latin Grammy The Latin Grammy Awards (stylized as Latin GRAMMYs) are awards presented by the Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from any ...
Awards including Best Urban Music Album,
Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1960 (except in 1967) "for a new artist who releases, during the Eligibility Year, the first recording which establishes the public identity of that ar ...
, and
Best Short Form Music Video The Grammy Award for Best Music Video is an accolade presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to performers, directors, and producers of quality short form music videos. ...
for their first single "Atrévete-te-te".Search for "Calle 13"
at the winners of the 2006 Latin Grammy. Retrieved on 12 January 2013.


Track listing

All music by "Perez, Rene; Cabra, Eduardo", except where otherwise noted # "Cabe-c-o" – 3:34 # "Suave" (Smooth) – 3:34 # "La Aguacatona" (featuring
Voltio Julio Voltio (also known simply as Voltio; born as Julio Irving Ramos Filomeno on June 11, 1977) is a Puerto Rican former rapper. An early pioneer of reggaetón—a modern genre of Latin music originating primarily in Panamá and Puerto Rico, ...
and PG-13) – 4:01 # "Se Vale To-To" (''Everything Allowed'') – 3:51 # "Intel-lú-Ayala" — 0:29 # "Tengo Hambre" (''I'm Hungry'') – 4:05 # "La Hormiga Brava" (The Brave Ant) (featuring PG-13) – 3:46 # "La Jirafa" (The Giraffe) – 3:16 # "Intel-lú la comermierda" – 0:24 # "
Atrévete-te-te "Atrévete-te-te" () is a Grammy Awards, Grammy-nominated song by Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican urban contemporary, urban duo Calle 13 (band), Calle 13 from their eponymous debut album ''Calle 13 (album), Calle 13'', released in February 2006, by Whi ...
" (Dare you-you-you) – 4:01 # "Pi-Di-Di-Di" – 3:31 # "Vamo Animal" (Let's Go Animal) (featuring Severo Canta Claro) (Severo Canta Claro Independiente/Perez, Rene/Cabra, Eduardo) – 3:27 # "Eléctrico" (Electric) – 3:21 # "Sin Coro" (Without a Chorus) (featuring Tuna Bardos) – 3:49 # "La Tripleta" (The hat-trick) (featuring PG-13) – 3:21 # "La Madre de los Enanos" (The Mother of the Dwarfs) – 4:02 # "Suave (Blass Mix)" (Smooth (Blas Mix) – 3:40


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Calle 13 (Album) 2005 debut albums Calle 13 (band) albums Latin Grammy Award for Best Urban Music Album