"Macarena" is a song by
Spanish pop duo
Los del Río, originally recorded for their 1993 album A mí me gusta. A
danceremix by the
electropop group
Fangoria was a success in Spain, and a
soundalike cover version by
Los del Mar became popular in Canada.[2] Another remix by
Miami-based producers the Bayside Boys, who added a section with English lyrics and expanded its popularity, initially peaked at
No. 45 on the US
Billboard Hot 100 in late 1995.[2]
The Bayside Boys mix enjoyed a significant revival the following year when it re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 and reached No. 1 for 14 weeks between August and November 1996. Its resurgence was aided by a
dance craze that became a cultural phenomenon throughout the latter half of 1996 and early 1997. The song got the group ranked the "No. 1 Greatest
One-Hit Wonder of All Time" by
VH1 in 2002. In 2012, it was ranked No. 7 on Billboard's All Time Top 100. It also ranked at No. 7 on Billboard's All Time Latin Songs list.[3][4] In 2023, Billboard ranked "Macarena" number 500 in their list of Best Pop Songs of All Time.[1]
Composition
"Macarena"'s composition features a variant on the
clave rhythm.[5][6] The song is written in the key of
A♭ major, moves at a tempo of 103
beats per minute, and follows the repeated chord progression A♭–G♭ throughout.[7]
Origin and history
As a result of their
lounge act, Los del Río were invited to tour South America in 1992[8] and, while visiting
Venezuela, they were invited to a private party held by the Venezuelan impresario
Gustavo Cisneros.[9] During the celebration, a local flamenco teacher, Diana Patricia Cubillán Herrera, performed a dance for the guests, and Los del Río were pleasantly surprised by Cubillán's dance skills. Spontaneously, Antonio Romero Monge, one half of the Los del Río duo, recited the song's chorus-to-be on the spot, as an accolade to Cubillán: "¡Diana, dale a tu cuerpo alegría y cosas buenas!'" ("Give your body some joy, Diana").[8] When Monge wrote the song, he changed the name to Macarena, in honor of his daughter Esperanza Macarena.[9]
Spanish-language remix
In 1993, RCA Records released Macarena as a single in Spain along with two
house remixes by Spanish group
Fangoria,[10] intended to popularize the song in nightclubs and discotheques.[11] These remixes changed the flamenco rhythm of the song to an electronic beat. According to
Alaska, member of Fangoria, the Bayside Boys remix that followed in 1996 took their version labelled "Macarena (River Remix)" as its base. The band denounced it as plagiarism on the
Court of Justice of the European Union but the case did not go through.[11]
In mid-1996, the song became a worldwide hit roughly one year after the Bayside Boys (composed of Mike Triay and Carlos de Yarza) produced a remix of the song that added
English lyrics.[12] Jammin Johnny Caride, a
radio personality at
Power 96 in
Miami, first learned of the "Macarena" when clubgoers at a club where he worked as a
DJ requested the song.[12] Caride brought the "Macarena" to his supervisors at Power 96 who asked him to create an English-language version of the song.[12]
Caride recruited his two partners at Bayside Records, Mike "In The Night" Triay and Carlos de Yarza, to remix the original song.[12] The new, English-language lyrics were written by Carlos de Yarza. The Bayside Boys, Triay and de Yarza, added a new dance beat with English-language lyrics sung originally by a studio singer, then later during a concert tour by Carla Vanessa.[12] Vanessa accepted a fixed-fee contract for her participation and live performances, and so does not receive any residual performer royalties.[13] The finished version was called "Macarena (Bayside Boys Remix)."[12] The Bayside Boys remix hit No. 1 on the BillboardHot 100 in August 1996 and remained at the top of the chart for fourteen weeks.[14] It also topped the US
Cash Box Top 100.
Critical reception
Dan Glaister from The Guardian said that "Macarena" the track was imitating the successes of previous summer pop sensations such as "
Y Viva Espana", "
Agadoo" and "
Saturday Night".[15]James Hamilton from Music Week's RM Dance Update described the song as an "infectious cheerful girls giggled and guys chanted '
Me No Pop I'-ish original hit version of a jaunty hip wiggling dance craze huge for ages around Europe and now (breaking out of Florida) the US, in frisky flamenco clapped jiggling 103.2bpm Bayside Boys Mix".[16] Peter Castro from People Magazine wrote, "The
Achy Breaky Heart flatlined years ago and the
Electric Slide is short-circuiting, so what's a dance-crazed world to do? The Macarena, obviously."[17] Dave Fawbert from ShortList commented that "Macarena" is "a song that exists independently of cool, time, criticism – it's just there."[18]
Popularity
The reworked "Macarena (Bayside Boys
remix)" spent 14 weeks at No. 1 on the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, becoming one of the longest runs atop the Hot 100 chart in history.[14] The single spent its final week at No. 1 on its 46th week on the chart, recorded as the latest No. 1 single in Hot 100 history. Billboard ranked it as the No. 1 song for 1996.[19] In the United Kingdom the song was released on 10 June 1996 and peaked at No. 2 on 17 August 1996,[20] kept off the No. 1 spot by the huge popularity of the
Spice Girls song "
Wannabe."[21] In Australia, it was the most successful song of 1996.
"Macarena" remained popular through 1996, but by the beginning of 1997, its popularity had begun to diminish. The song stayed in the Hot 100 chart for 60 weeks, the longest reign among No. 1 songs, only surpassed fifteen years later by
Adele's "
Rolling in the Deep". The Bayside Boys remix includes a sample from the
Yazoo (also known in the United States as Yaz) track "
Situation"—the laughter of Yazoo vocalist
Alison Moyet. The chorus uses female vocal samples previously used by
the Farm in their song "Higher and Higher (Remix)" from their album, Spartacus. The Bayside Boys toured the U.S. and the world and featured singer Carla Vanessa.
In the United States, the song, and its corresponding Macarena dance, became popular around the time of the
1996 Democratic National Convention in August of that year.
C-SPAN filmed attendees dancing to the song in an afternoon session, a clip of which became popular on YouTube years later.[22] Vice President
Al Gore, having a reputation for stiffness, made a joke about doing the Macarena dance during his speech. He said, "I would like to demonstrate for you the Al Gore version of the Macarena," then remained motionless for a few seconds, and eventually asked, "Would you like to see it again?"[23][24]
By 1997, the song had sold 11 million copies. While having only a 25% take in royalties from the song, Romero and Ruiz became immensely wealthy. According to
BBC News, during the year 2003 alone—a full decade after the song's initial release—Romero and Ruiz made US$250,000 in royalties.[a]Julio Iglesias is quoted as congratulating the duo personally: "My success singing in English from Miami is nothing compared to yours; coming out of Dos Hermanas with little international exposure elsewhere and selling these many records in Spanish takes two huge sets of cojones."[25]
In
VH1's 2002
documentary100 Greatest One-hit Wonders, "Macarena" was ranked as No. 1. "Macarena" was also ranked No. 1 on a different VH1 documentary, 40 Awesomely Bad No. 1 Songs.
On America's Best Dance Crew, it was danced to on the Whack Track Challenge, given to the Ringmasters.
In July 2020, digital publication The Pudding carried out a study on the most iconic songs from the 1990s and songs that are most known by
Millennials and the people of
Generation Z. "Macarena" was the eighth song with the highest recognisability rate.[26]
In a December 1, 1996 Peanuts comic strip,
Snoopy is about to join
Woodstock and an unnamed identical bird at a frozen-over birdbath for a hockey game, but they start off by doing the Macarena dance first before playing, much to his embarrassment.[27]
Music video
The music video for the reworked Bayside Boys-remix of "Macarena" was directed by Vincent Calvet.[28] It starred
Mia Frye, who was also the choreographer, and features ten different women singing and dancing with Los del Río against a white background. In contrast to the scantily-clad women, Los del Río is dressed in suits.
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
"Macarena Christmas"
Critical reception
Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote, "Just when you thought this was just a version of their worldwide smash with a couple of jingle bells added, this seasonal single erupts into a cheerful medley of
Joy to the World,
Jingle Bells and
Silent Night. For all those who are looking for an uncomplicated Christmas."[119]
The song was covered by Canadian musical duo
Los del Mar with vocals by Wil Veloz. It was first released in 1995. In their native Canada, this version was popular on
MuchMusic and top 40 radio in 1995. It was reissued in 1996 in a new version with vocals from Pedro Castaño, which was also featured on their album Viva Evita (retitled Macarena: The Hit Album overseas). In Australia, this new version reached No. 2 on the
ARIA Singles Chart, below the Bayside Boys' reworking of the original.
Critical reception
British magazine Music Week rated the song three out of five, writing, "Hot on the heels of
RCA's release of the original version by
Los Del Rio comes a second, lower-key version of the Spanish dance tune. Whoever wins the battle, the song is destined to become 1996's
Lambada, loved and loathed in equal measure."[133]
Music video
A music video was produced for the Los del Mar version. It shows Pedro Castano and his pet cat in an apartment getting ideas for the song's dance while watching people on television. By the next verse, more people dance outside to the song wherein Castano joins in and sings. Later on, a
mob boss and his sidekicks pull up in a car and ask if they can join the dance. Excluding the outro segment, the video cuts around 40 seconds from the regular song.
On 13 November 2019, American rapper
Tyga released a
remix, rap version of the song, called "Ayy Macarena".[149]J Balvin also sings the hook of the original song at the beginning of this version. This version has a more club-oriented sound. This version's official remix features
Ozuna.
In addition to this, a music video premiered on Tyga's official
YouTube channel on 17 December 2019, heavily inspired by the film The Mask. Los Del Rio also make a cameo appearance, performing the original chorus at the beginning of the video and making sparse appearances throughout.[149]
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Other remixes, covers and parodies
MC Rage parody
MC Rage released the single "Fuck Macarena" in November 1996. It is a
hardcore techno parody of Los del Río's "Macarena" and mocks the original version's lyrics, as do the dancers in the music video. MC Rage sings vulgar mocking lyrics as an outburst against the huge success of "Macarena". It peaked at No. 7 on the
Dutch Top 40 on 27 December 1996, and at No. 8 on the Dutch
Mega Top 100 on 25 January 1997.[183][184] The song has a music video featuring
gabber ravers dancing
hakken.
Reggae and
dancehall artist Jay-5 released the album "The Dancehall Macarena" on
VP Records in 2015, featuring the song, 'Dancehall Macarena,'[187] an upbeat fusion of dancehall moves, inspired by the infectious ’90s classic.[188]
The single, 'Dancehall Macarena' is the first official
Jamaican dancehall
line dance.[189] and gained over 1.6 million views on
YouTube.[190]
The success of "Dancehall Macarena" inspired a popular
reggaeton version in 2016, "Dancehall Macarena Remix," by
Colombian reggaeton artist, Japanese featuring Jay-5.
Gente de Zona version
In 2016, Cuban duo
Gente de Zona teamed up with Los del Río released a new joint version of the song, with new lyrics.[191]
Physics parody regarding the holographic principle
^Antonio Burgos claims that the song generated 1.5 billion
Spanish pesetas or US $8.9 million, at the exchange rate from the time the peseta was replaced by the
euro (167 pesetas was equal to $1
United States dollar).
^"
ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 202003 into search. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
^Arvunescu, Victor (30 March 2020).
"Top Airplay 100 - Ritmo iar pe primul loc!" [Top Airplay 100 – Ritmo is number one again] (in Romanian). Un site de muzică. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
^"
ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 202006 into search. Retrieved 11 February 2020.