María de los Ángeles Becerra (born 12 February 2000) is an Argentine singer and songwriter. She has been dubbed as "a leading voice in Argentina's urban pop movement". Becerra has received eight nominations for

Latin Grammy Awards The Latin Grammy Awards (stylized as Latin GRAMMYs) are awards presented by the Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music, Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish language, S ...

, including the category

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 ...

. Becerra started to gain popularity as a

YouTuber A YouTuber is a content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006 ...

, uploading song covers,

vlog A vlog (), also known as a video blog or video log, is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one ta ...

s, and tutorials. In 2019, she started her musical career with the release of her debut

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

(EP), ''222''. The remix to the song "High" became Becerra's first top-ten single on the

Argentina Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Argentina Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in Argentina for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' and '' Billboard Argentina'' magazines. It ranks the most popular songs in Argentina and is compiled by util ...

. In 2020, she signed a record deal with

300 Entertainment Theory Entertainment LLC, doing business as 300 Entertainment, is an American record label founded by Lyor Cohen, Kevin Liles, Todd Moscowitz, and Roger Gold. The label's roster includes acts across multiple genres such as hip hop, rock, pop, ele ...

to release her first studio album, ''

Animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Biology, biological Kingdom (biology), kingdom Animalia (). With few exceptions, animals heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, ...

''. Becerra featured on the remix to "Además de Mí" in 2021, which became her first number-one single in Argentina, followed by "

Miénteme "Miénteme" (; ) is a song by Argentine singers Tini and María Becerra. It was released on April 29, 2021, through Hollywood Records and Sony Music Latin as the lead single from Tini's fourth studio album, ''Cupido'' (2023). The song was writ ...

" with Tini, and " ¿Qué Más, Pues?" with

J Balvin José Álvaro Osorio Balvín (born 7 May 1985), known professionally as J Balvin, is a Colombian singer. He is one of the best-selling Latin artists, with 35 million records sold worldwide. Balvin was born in Medellín. At age 17, he moved to th ...

. Becerra's second album, ''

La Nena de Argentina ''La Nena de Argentina'' (Spanish for ''The Girl from Argentina'') is the second studio album by Argentine singer María Becerra. It was released on 8 December 2022, through 300 Entertainment. Comprising thirteen tracks, the album is primarily a ...

'', was released in December 2022 and preceded by the singles "

Ojalá ''Inshallah'', usually called the , is an Arabic-language expression meaning or . It is mentioned in the Quran, which requires its use when mentioning future events. It signifies that nothing, neither action nor thought, happens without God's ...

" and "

Automático "Automático" (Spanish for "Automatic") is a song by Argentine singer-songwriter María Becerra. It was written by Becerra and produced by Nico Cotton. The song was released on 8 September 2022, as the second single from her second studio album, ...

". In 2024, she became the first Argentine female singer to perform at the

River Plate Stadium The Monumental Stadium (, ; named after its monumental structure), currently known as Mâs Monumental Stadium for sponsorship reasons,

. Her third album is scheduled to be released in 2025.

Early life and career beginnings

María de los Ángeles Becerra was born on 12 February 2000 in

Quilmes Quilmes () is a city on the coast of the Rio de la Plata, in the , on the southeast end of the Greater Buenos Aires, being some away from the urban centre area of Buenos Aires. The city was founded in 1666 and is the seat of the eponymous '' ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, to cardiologist Pedro Becerra and nurse Irene Aletti. She has two older siblings, Juan Manuel and Geraldine, and a younger sister, Aylín. Becerra is of partial Chilean and

Mapuche The Mapuche ( , ) also known as Araucanians are a group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging e ...

descent; her great-grandmother was Chilean. Attracted to music from a young age, Becerra began taking singing,

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

, dance, and body expression classes between the ages of six and seven at Valeria Lynch's academy. She alternated classes with

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

training. Her childhood was marked by bullying and violence she suffered in high school. At age 12, she started uploading covers of songs to

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

and

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

, along with comedy videos and acting parodies. On the latter platform, one of those videos reached a million views in a few hours, prompting Becerra to devote herself to that for several years. She later became a popular

internet celebrity An Internet celebrity, also referred to as an Internet personality, is an individual who has acquired or developed their fame and notability on the Internet. The growing popularity of social media provides a means for people to reach a large ...

with her comedy, music, and vlog postings.

Career

In 2019, Becerra abandoned her career as a

and ventured into her musical career. She self-released her debut

(EP), ''222'', in the same year. On the EP, she experimented with urban pop and achieved her first entry on ''

Billboard Argentina ''Billboard Argentina'' is an Argentine entertainment media brand owned by Sociedad de Editores ABC1. It publishes pieces involving interviews, analysis of industry trends, shows and releases reviews, news, video, opinion, events, style, and the ...

with the track "Dime Cómo Hago". The release of her single "High" in November 2019 marked "a turning point in her musical career," according to Argentine magazine '' Clarín''. In 2020, Becerra became the first Latin artist to be signed to the indie record label

. She later released the remix to "High", featuring Argentine singer Tini and Spanish singer

Lola Índigo Miriam Doblas Muñoz (born 1 April 1992), known professionally as Lola Índigo, is a Spanish singer and dancer. She rose to fame in 2017, when she participated in series nine of the Spanish reality television talent competition ''Operación Tri ...

, along with a "minimalist and colorful" music video. It peaked at number two in Argentina, becoming Becerra's highest-charting song at the time. Becerra was dubbed by ''

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 ...

'' as "a leading voice in Argentina’s urban pop movement". Becerra featured on several remixes, including "En Tu Cuerpo" with

Lyanno Edgardo Rafael Cuevas Feliciano (San Juan; Puerto Rico, April 22, 1995) better known by his stage name as Lyanno, is a Puerto Rican singer and songwriter. Music career He studied sound engineering at the Liceo de Arte y Tecnología of San Ju ...

Rauw Alejandro Raúl Alejandro Ocasio Ruiz (born January 10, 1993), known professionally as Rauw Alejandro, is a Puerto Rican singer. His accolades include two Latin Grammy Awards, two Billboard Latin Music Awards, ''Billboard'' Latin Music Awards and an IHea ...

, and

Lenny Tavárez Julio Manuel González Tavárez (born May 19, 1987), better known by his stage name Lenny Tavárez, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. He was part of the duo Dyland & Lenny. He began a solo career in 2013 and late ...

, "AYNEA" with FMK and

Beret A beret ( , ; ; ; ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre. Mass production of berets began in the 19th century in Southern France and the north of History of Spain (1808 ...

, and "Además de Mí" with Rusherking,

Khea Ivo Alfredo Thomas Serue (born 13 April 2000), known by his stage name Khea, is an Argentine rapper and singer. He is a member of the Argentine Latin trap scene along with artists such as Cazzu and Duki (rapper), Duki. Early years Ivo Alfred ...

, Duki,

Lit Killah Mauro Román Monzón (born October 4, 1999), known professionally as Lit Killah (often stylized as LIT killah), is an Argentine rapper, singer, songwriter, and Online streamer, streamer. He is known for his participation in freestyle rap battles ...

, and

Tiago PZK Tiago Uriel Pacheco Lezcano (born August 3, 2001), better known by his stage name Tiago PZK, is an Argentine rapper and singer, mostly related with R&B, reggaeton and rap. His hit-singles are "Sola", "Además de Mí", " Entre Nosotros", "Salimo ...

; the latter song became Becerra's first number-one single on the Argentina Hot 100. In 2021, Becerra released her second EP, ''Animal, Pt. 1'', which included the

Cazzu Julieta Emilia Cazzuchelli (born 16 December 1993), known professionally as Cazzu, is an Argentina, Argentine rapper and singer. Born and raised in Fraile Pintado, Jujuy Province, Jujuy, she gained popularity with her singles "Loca", "Toda", "Pa ...

-assisted "Animal" and the solo "Acaramelao"; both singles became hits in Argentina, where they peaked at number five and seven, respectively. On the EP, Becerra explored with

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- ...

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 ...

, trap, R&B and hints 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 ...

, and expressed about themes including

women empowerment Women's empowerment (or female empowerment) may be defined in several method, including accepting women's viewpoints, making an effort to seek them and raising the status of women through education, awareness, literacy, equal status in society, ...

, love and lust. It was the first part of her debut album ''

'', produced by Big One, Subelo Neo, and Tatool. In the same year, she collaborated with Tini on "

", and with Colombian singer

on " ¿Qué Más, Pues?"; both songs topped the Argentina Hot 100 chart, while the latter entered on the

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 in the United States. Becerra received a nomination for

at the

22nd Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 22nd Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held on Thursday, November 18, 2021, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas to honor the best musical releases within Latin music released from June 1, 2020, to May 31, 2021. The nominations were announce ...

. Becerra appeared on the remix to Tiago PZK and Lit Killah " Entre Nosotros", alongside

Nicki Nicole Nicole Denise Cucco (born August 25, 2000), known professionally as Nicki Nicole (), is an Argentine rapper and singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Rosario, Santa Fe, she gained popularity with her singles "Wapo Traketero", "Colocao", "Mamichu ...

, released at the beginnings of 2022, which also topped the Argentina Hot 100. They performed the song at the Latin American Music Awards of 2022. She also performed "¿Qué Más, Pues?" with J Balvin at the

64th Annual Grammy Awards The 64th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on April 3, 2022. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from September 1, 2020, to September 30, ...

on 3 April. She later announced the name of her second studio album, ''

''. Preceded by the singles "

" and "

", the album was released on 8 December 2022. It contains songs with several musical genres including

bachata Bachata may refer to: * Bachata (music), a musical genre which originated in the Dominican Republic ** Traditional bachata, a subgenre of bachata music ** Bachata (dance), a dance form * Bachatón, a hybrid bachata/reggaeton music style * "Bach ...

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 ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

, trap, reggaeton, and

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

. In 2023, Becerra signed with

Warner Music Latina Warner Music Latina Inc. (formerly WEA Latina) is a record label part of Warner Music Group that focuses on Latin music. The record label was established in 1987. List of artists currently on Warner Music Latina *Alaya * Alex Ubago * Andrés Ca ...

and

Warner Chappell Music Warner Chappell Music, Inc. is an American music publishing company and a subsidiary of the Warner Music Group. Warner Chappell Music's catalog consists of over 1.4 million compositions and 150,000 composers, with offices in over 40 countries. ...

. She also signed with Wasserman Music for representation worldwide except Latin America. The singer performed "Adiós" at the 2023 edition of the ''Billboard'' Latin Women in Music annual event, in which she received the Visionary Award. She also received five nominations at the

24th Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 24th Annual Latin Grammy Awards took place on November 16, 2023, at the FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre in Seville, Spain. The awards honored recordings released between June 1, 2022, and May 31, 2023. It marked the first time that th ...

. , she holds the record for the most entries by a woman on the Argentina Hot 100 with 43. She became the first Argentine female singer to sold out the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. On the Argentine talk show ''

Susana Giménez María Susana Giménez Aubert (born 29 January 1944), known as Susana Giménez (), is an Argentine TV host, actress, model and businesswoman. In 2012, she was considered the biggest celebrity in Argentine television by the media firm that pub ...

'', Becerra announced that her upcoming third studio album was "finished and ready to release", and was scheduled to be released at the beginnings of 2025. On 17 October 2024, Becerra was invited to ''

The Kelly Clarkson Show ''The Kelly Clarkson Show'' is an American daytime television variety talk show hosted by Kelly Clarkson. It is produced and distributed by NBCUniversal Syndication Studios and features Clarkson interviewing celebrities and segments about "ev ...

'' where she performed her single " Imán (Two of Us)".

Influences

According to Becerra, her major personal influence was her mother. As for her artistic influences, Becerra's work is mostly influenced by

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer, songwriter, musician, and businesswoman. With over 30 million records sold worldwide, she was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix ...

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Regarded as a pop icon and an influential figure in popular music, Grande is known for her four-octave vocal range, which extends into the whistle re ...

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...

and

Natti Natasha Natalia Alexandra Gutiérrez Batista (born December 10, 1986), better known by her stage name Natti Natasha (stylized all caps), is a List of people from the Dominican Republic, Dominican singer, songwriter and composer. She was signed to Don Om ...

, while she has stated that she always admired

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

and

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Cephus (; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper. Noted for her unfiltered public image and lyrics, Cardi B is one of the most successful female rappers. From 2015 to early 2017, she ga ...

Personal life

Becerra identifies as bisexual. In a 2021 interview for

MTV News MTV News was the news production division of MTV. The service was available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network and an online news team. In 2016, MTV refreshed the MTV News brand to compete with the likes of BuzzFeed and ...

, she stated: She dated fellow singer Rusherking from 2019 to 2021. In mid-2022, Becerra began a relationship with rapper J Rei, and in July 2023, she proposed an engagement to him in Greece. In a 2022 interview, Becerra said that she had been a

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...

for about a year and a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

since she was 17. In September 2024, Becerra announced that she had an

ectopic pregnancy Ectopic pregnancy is a complication of pregnancy in which the embryo attaches outside the uterus. Signs and symptoms classically include abdominal pain and vaginal bleeding, but fewer than 50 percent of affected women have both of these sympto ...

Filmography

Discography

* ''

'' (2021) * ''

'' (2022)

Tours

Headlining

* Animal Tour (2021–2023) * La Nena de Argentina Tour (2023–2024)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Becerra, Maria 2000 births Living people 21st-century Argentine women singers 21st-century Argentine LGBTQ people Argentine bisexual women Argentine feminists Argentine LGBTQ rights activists Argentine LGBTQ singers Argentine LGBTQ songwriters Argentine people of Chilean descent Argentine people of Italian descent Argentine people of Mapuche descent Argentine reggaeton musicians Argentine trap musicians Argentine YouTubers Argentine women rappers Argentine women singer-songwriters Bisexual feminists Bisexual women musicians Bisexual singer-songwriters Feminist musicians Latin trap musicians LGBTQ people in Latin music LGBTQ YouTubers People from Quilmes Women in Latin music Warner Music Latina artists LGBTQ women singers 300 Entertainment artists