I get it. For many, nothing beats classic Salsa music. Salsa music produced by the pioneers of the genre itself, artists signed to Fania Records. Celia Cruz, Ruben Blades, Hector Lavoe, Willie Colon, Johnny Pacheco, the list goes on and on. They were not just pioneers, they are Latin music legends. They were artists at the forefront of a movement that swept through Latin America and the world in the late 1960s and 1970s. They sang about important issues such as poverty and urban blight. The music was rhythmic, fun and sexy. To put it simply, they were the shit and their music is still the shit. On top of making awesome music their swagger was and still is unmatched. Any photo or album cover from that era will show you just how bad ass they were. They wore cool clothes plus their hair and jewelry was always on point. Yep, nothing could have replicated that era except for Salsa Romantica. Now for those of you who know what I’m talking about, you get it, right. The Salsa Romantica movement is essentially the same as traditional salsa. For those of you who don’t know, I’ll try to explain while trying not to bore the shit out of you.

Salsa Romantica is a sub-genre of Salsa music that emerged in the 1980s. What makes it different from old school Salsa or “Salsa Dura” as the self-righteous will call its structure and lyrical content. Salsa Romantica gets some influence from pop music. While the music still holds true to its Afro-Cuban and Puerto Rican roots, electronic sounds were introduced, which helped increase Salsa Romantica’s mainstream success. Lyrically, the music shifted as well. Salsa Romantica put emphasis on romantic themes. To put it simply, crooner music to get the ladies. Gone was the focus on social commentary. The goal was to get attractive women to sleep with you. I’m just kidding. But, I’m sure that was a plus that these artists took no issue with. Yes, Salsa Romantica is different. Yes, Salsa in this era lost its edge. And yes, it is super corny. However, I still love this music. To be honest, I don’t care about the superficial criticism. For some reason there has been a push towards revisionist history with Salsa music. There is this idea that Salsa music was a pure art form that never sacrificed substance for superficiality. That is simply not true. There have been a number of songs within the genre that have strayed lyrically and stylistically from what is considered classic Salsa. Mi Gente, by Hector Lavoe is a salsa classic. Lavoe is signing about his people and the thrill of being alive.

Legendary Puerto Rican Salsero Hector Lavoe
This photo, “hector-lavoe” is copyright (c) 2009 El rey de tus sueños and made available under by a Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) license

There is not much difference between that song and Marc Anthony’s Vivir Mi Vida in which he sings about almost the exact same thing and yet Marc’s song has been criticized as not being real salsa.

Marc Anthony Singing Live in Concert
This photo, “Marc Anthony y “valió la pena”” is copyright (c) 2009 Globovisión and made available under by a Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC 2.0) license

Both March and Hector have incorporated the same subject matter into their songs. Ruben Blades in his music, often discusses socially conscious themes, like materialism as he did in the song Plastico.

Legendary Salsero Ruben Blades singing live in concert
This photo, “Ruben Blades y seis del solar” is copyright (c) 2010 Julián Hugo Guajardo Esparzaand made available under by a Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) license

Luis Enrique did the same in his song Date un Chance which discusses the challenges of drug addiction. Ruben Blades is considered an all time great Latin and Salsa artist. Luis Enrique is not given nearly the same level of credit for addressing the same subject matter in songs as Blades does.

Lets not forgot that the Salsa Romantica singers such Frankie Ruiz, Luis Enrique, Eddie Santiago and Tito Rojas were cool. Their hair styles was just as perfect as their Salsa Dura counterparts. These artists wore nice clothes, flashy jewelry and swagger like you wouldn’t believe. With this attitude it’s no wonder these guys had women go crazy for them and men envious. Its time for people to realize that Salsa Romantica is an extension of Salsa that should be respected and acknowledged in its own right. What is so wrong with being different and unique? Salsa Romantica is as danceable and enjoyable as Salsa Duro. Enough with the Salsa Romantica hate. For a more in depth conversation please listen to my post on Soundcloud.