"There is no one who makes decisions for me -- never,” says Rosalía. The 25-year-old singer-songwriter is based in Barcelona, but right now she’s speaking from Miami. Just a few days earlier, she performed at Art Basel, and already she’s back in the studio, writing and recording with Pharrell Williams. “If something brought me here,” she continues, “it was hard work -- and always having control of the creative process.”
In the past year, Rosalía has emerged as one of the most compelling new voices in Latin music, proving on her hypnotic late-2018 album, El Mal Querer, that a strikingly original flamenco singer could captivate the world far beyond Spain. Showcasing her blend of vocal virtuosity and traditional flamenco flourishes with R&B and trap beats, the LP reached No. 10 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart last November, earning Rosalía five Latin Grammy nominations (second only to J Balvin) and two wins for lead single “Malamente.”
She also has become a surprise star at a moment when most of Latin’s breakthrough artists gravitate toward the urban sounds of reggaetón. But to Rosalía, singing flamenco doesn't make her an outsider. “Guajira, colombiana, milonga, rumba -- all these styles are flamenco,” she says. “They’re part of the musical tradition in my country, and they are in Latin America too.”