The Latin American Artists Behind The Encanto Soundtrack

The original soundtrack for "Encanto", the new Disney movie, has been available since last Monday, November 22. It features creations by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the multi-award-winning American composer (who is also a co-writer of the film), among which is "Colombia, Mi Encanto", performed by Colombian Carlos Vives with Isa Mosquera. Of the nine songs, only two were originally written in Spanish. And although they are very beautiful, the authorship does not belong to any Latin American artist. However, they are precious to exalt the beauty of our continent and spread the voices of our great singers.

The film, which is about the Madrigal family, a family with fantastic abilities living high in the mountains of Colombia, is directed by Jared Bush, director of "Zootopia," and Byron Howard, director of "Tangled" and premieres on November 25, 2021.

The music, Mi Encanto

Let's review this soundtrack (which is now available on all digital platforms) before moving on to recall some other examples of the collaboration between Disney and Latino voices. The tracks are released by Walt Disney Records. We are talking about an album that prioritizes Colombian identity, seeking a sound aesthetic that is based on the traditional and popular rhythms of the region: salsa, vallenato, reggaetón, cumbia. The musicians assure that they had to make an effort to know the forms of Colombian music because it is played differently than in the rest of the world. Also, they claim to have fallen in love with her, once learned.

In addition to Lin-Manuel Miranda's compositions, are added the orchestral arrangements of Germaine Franco, the Californian film composer, daughter of Mexicans, who have been the first Latina to be part of the musical branch of the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Hollywood. Among her recent works, "Coco" stands out, with a position as an assistant composer.

The album consists of nine songs (once twice, in Spanish and in English), all composed by Miranda. They all also have collaborations with Latin American voices and instruments, but not all are Colombian. For example, Stephanie Beatriz, who sings in several of the songs, is American but born in Argentina (you must know her as Rosa Díaz, from Brooklyn-99). Also, it has the collaborations of two great Colombian stars of the moment: Sebastián Yatra sings in the seventh song, "Dos Oruguitas", and Maluma sings in the eighth song of the album, "All of you".

The titles of the songs of Encanto are:

• "The Family Madrigal "
• "Waiting on a Miracle"
• "Surface Pressure"
• "We Don’t Talk About Bruno"
• "What Else Can I Do?"
• "Dos Oruguita"
• "All of you"
• "Colombia, Mi Encanto"

Read also: Latin Grammy: Camilo, Rubén Blades and "Patria y Vida" Shines

Who are the Latin American artists behind the songs from other Disney and Pixar films?

There are many cases of Latin American artists, very loved by us and with much recognition, who performed songs for Disney and Pixar. In some cases, they are only the Spanish versions, although the originals are not intended for Latin voices. In all cases, equally, we are talking about sounds from childhood that you will surely remember with a lot of love.

Luis Miguel

Probably, the Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of the films that most sting us to see like children, and it is that it has one of the darkest plots of the time. Made in 1996, its main theme for the Latin version is the endearing “Sueña”, performed by the Mexican born in Puerto Rico, Luis Miguel.

Ricky Martin

Hercules is another great film about the childhoods of novice children (released in 1997), but also of the children of today. And it is that these films do not go out of style, nor do they lose their validity. In the Latin American version, we have an incredible version of “No Importa la Distancia”, performed by Puerto Rican Ricky Martin. The song was released as a single, but the singer later released it on his album "Vuelve".

Ricardo Montaner

In 1992, Walt Disney Feature Animation produced Aladdin, which featured a song that, I bet, even today many of you remember and enjoy listening to: "Un Mundo Ideal", in its Latin American version, performed by Argentine Ricardo Montaner along with Spanish singer Michelle.

Marco Antonio Solis, Natalia Lafourcade, Elena Poniatowska, Carlos Rivera, Gael García Bernal

"Coco", the film, produced by Pixar and distributed by Disney in 2017, is based on the interpretation of the world of the dead characteristic of Mexican culture, and it is an unusual case: practically all its cast is made up of Latin voices, both in music as in the interpretation of characters. Perform up to Elena Poniatowska, one of the best living Mexican feathers! And the delicious interpretation of "Recuérdame", by the Mexican Natalia Lafourcade, undoubtedly deserves a mention.

Chayanne and Danna Paola

The Puerto Rican singer and the Mexican singer give their voices for “Veo en ti”, in the Latin American version of the film “Enredados,” the epic comedy produced and released by Disney in 2010.