Anitta - Kisses

Anitta
Kisses
2019
Spotify

The thing about a lot of Latin Music is that it has trouble truly distinguishing itself. Look at modern urbana, can you really tell the difference between Bad Bunny and J. Balvin? Yet the two have millions and millions of streams on songs that are nearly unintelligible. When they are the brightest stars in the genre it means others, that perhaps are doing it better, don't get heard. It seems like that may be the case with Anitta. She is one of the largest stars in Brazil. Her music is almost constantly played on pop radio there, but almost all of her 2.6 billion Spotify views are centered in her home country. To date she has not made the crossover into worldwide super stardom. This album Kisses is clearly out to change that with big name features like Snoop Dogg, Swae Lee and Prince Royce. Opposed to straight Urbana or  Reggaeton this record has a distinct Brazilian feel to it. It could be the Portuguese but it feels more like the overall vibe she is able to cultivate. What I really like about this album is how real it feels. Often with modern pop you get something sanitized, and pre packaged for the next commercial ad campaign. Even though some of those songs are here like the collaboration with Swae Lee which feels like another stumble in his quest for solo stardom. Whenever she employs a feature it's Anitta who shines because she isn't making songs for them, she making tracks for her and hers.

"Get to Know Me" is sung completely in English, and it ends up sounding super generic like something BeBe Rexha or Camilla Cabello would put out. She also isn't as good at infusing emotion into her English singing as she is in Portuguese or Spanish. This album truly feels like a reflection of Latin American pop rather than an attempt to shoehorn it into American standards. That's why it works and why Anitta has got something special.

7.6 out of 10