Encanto Tropical’s salsa picks for November 2024 were recently posted on the charts page.
Topping the November 2024 selection is a track from Gilberto Santa Rosa’s latest album, Debut Y Segunda Tanta Vol 2, which is further proof of his prolific artistry as vocalist and musical director. There are several great tracks in the album, but my choice is “Como si fuera nuestra” composed by Jose Orlando Mosqueda and Luis Marin.
The second spot goes to Willie Panamá from the Bibomusic label with a powerful interpretation of “Afinque Pa Los Rumblers” composed by Juan Antonio Ruiz Aguilar. A singer and actor, Willie Panamá was born in Panama but has lived in both New York and Florida. This track is part of a larger project to highlight some of the best composers from Panama under the direction of arranger Raul Gillmore in album called Los Cantantes del Solar – Reunión de Gigantes.
In third comes Thorben Christian Schütt, known as 'El Vikingo de la Salsa', with his song “Ven a Gozar”. The German trombone player and songwriter has been releasing a new song on a monthly basis recently, and almost all have been included in Encanto Tropical’s top-10 list. There is serious talent going on here.
Ten 'best' salsa songs for November 2024 have been added to Encanto Tropical “Monthly Picks - Salsa 2024” on Spotify. They correlate to track numbers 101 to 110. (Songs from previous months are listed as 1 to 100). Click on the image below to listen and like for easy access!
Rounding up the top five are songs by Gia Fu (“Lotus”) and Manny Martinez (“Ol’ Skull/Vieja Escuela”). Both have very original touches. The Hong Kong native DJ and producer Gia Fu includes an unmistakeable Chinese musical element in her song, while Manny Martinez includes some rap and clever wordplay from his stellar album In the Zone. (Note: mentioned in the list is the 'DJ Angel remix' of the song by Gia Fu, but this is so far unavailable in the public domain).
Songs ranked 6 to 10 are noteworthy for different reasons, but they share in common great danceability and catchy appeal. Johnny Vega and La Orquesta Muralla’s “Mujer Puertoriqueña” is a punchy release from the Canadian label Hyperopia Records. Kim De Los Santos’ “De Pesos a Carisias”, a romantica, has great melody with a certain edge to it. La Maxima 79 reappears on this monthly list with another fine salsa brava“in Papa el Guaguanco” from their latest album X. The single “Llámala” by Carlos Garcia is a fine choppy tune co-sung with Charlie Aponte, former lead singer of El Gran Combo making it a wonderful duo. Colombian singer Maía finishes off the list with “La Vida” and her trademark voice rendering beautiful lyrics in an infectious catchy tune backed by great instrumentation.
Follow on Spotify to listen to all the songs which have been compiled for Encanto Tropical’s picks in 2024.
For other monthly charts in 2023-2024, see the Encanto Tropical - Charts page.
For Encanto Tropical's top salsa picks of 2024 see the 2024 Songlist blog post.
As a rule, songs are pulled from the Spotify playlist Contemporary Salsa: 2024 Releases jointly curated by DJs Rem and Angel Figueroa.
Disclaimer
The Encanto Tropical monthly picks are not meant to be authoritative lists. They are, by nature, subjective selections based on personal appeal, with exposure to recently released songs come from both promotional material as well as researching digital platforms. Choices are limited to songs released in the last four months. Omissions may be due to a lack of awareness simply because it is near impossible to know about all recently released songs. Feedback is therefore welcome; if you think a noteworthy song was missed, please let me know.
