René (song)

"René" is a single by Puerto Rican rapper Residente released on February 27, 2020, through Sony Music Latin, which will be included in his upcoming second studio album.[1] It features vocals by Residente's mother Puerto Rican actress Flor Joglar de García and Panamanian singer Rubén Blades.[2] A music video for the song was released the same day. The song lyrics are about Residente's personal life and history.[3]

"René"
Single by Residente
ReleasedFebruary 27, 2020 (2020-02-27)
Length7:38
LabelSony Music Latin
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)René Pérez Joglar
Residente singles chronology
"Cántalo"
(2019)		 "René"
(2020)		 "Antes Que El Mundo Se Acabe"
(2020)
"René (Edición Cuarentena)" single cover
Music video
"René" on YouTube

A version called "René (Edición Cuarentena)" (Quarantine Edition) was released on May 8,[4] and its music video was published previously on April 14.

"René" peaked at number 2 in the Argentina Hot 100 chart and at number 23 in Spain and number 34 in Billboard's Hot Latin Songs.

Background

Residente started writing "René" in a hotel in Mexico two years before its publication (around 2018) while he was about to give a concert. He stated "I was at the hotel on the 25th floor, and I wanted to jump off the balcony", then he called his mother, who was able to calm him down; the next day he started writing "René".[1] Nevertheless, he stated that he was not yet prepared to release the song.[5]

A music video was released along with the single on February 27, 2020, in which he is the director himself. He said it was difficult to be concentrated for rapping, so after drinking some beers he could forget the production crew, "That's the take that is there", he stated.[1]

Another music video was released on April 14 called "René (Edición Cuarentena)". The single was released on May 8.[2]

Lyrics

The song lyrics is about Residente's personal life, childhood, and decisive points in his life. Residente interprets different events of his life: the murder of "Christopher", one of his childhood best friends, his divorce process with Argentinian model Soledad Fandiño, the insult he made to Governor of Puerto Rico Luis Fortuño in Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica 2009, his childhood memories about his hometown Trujillo Alto and his family, among other topics.[3] Residente stated that writing "René" helped him to overcome his previous depressive state.[1]

Music video

The music video was directed by Residente himself and was filmed in the first week of February in his childhood town Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.[1] The clip begins with images of several places in the town. Then Residente starts singing in a baseball field, following the camera and watching it directly while interchanging images referring to the lyrics. At the end of the video, Residente carries his son Milo, then photographs of his childhood are shown and the video finishes with aerial shots of Trujillo Alto. The clip has received more than 100 million views on YouTube, as of May 23, 2020.

An additional clip recorded as a video call was released on April 14, which shows Residente, his mother Flor Joglar, Rubén Blades, and several musicians interpreting the song.[6] It has received more than 10 million views on YouTube, as of May 23, 2020.

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[2]

Vocals

Musicians

  • Leo Genovese – piano
  • Daniel Díaz – conga
  • Edgar Abraham – arrangements

Production

  • Residente – production
  • Ted Jensen – mastering
  • Beatriz Artola – mixing
  • Carlos Velazquez – recording
  • Phil Joly – recording
  • Oriana Hidalgo – A&R coordinatoion
  • Rafa Arcaute – A&R direction

Charts and certifications

Charts
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Argentina (Argentina Hot 100)[7] 2
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[8] 23
US Hot Latin Songs (Billboard)[9] 34

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Mexico (AMPROFON)[10] Platinum 60,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Ratner-Arias, Sigal. "Residente expone su lado más vulnerable con 'René'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  2. "Credits / René / Residente". Tidal. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  3. Chile, CNN (March 4, 2020). "5 claves para entender "René", la desgarradora canción autobiográfica donde Residente revela su depresión". CNN Chile (in Spanish). Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  4. "René (Edición Cuarentena) / Residente". Tidal. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  5. Serrano, Carlos (March 4, 2020). ""Todo lo que aguanté por años me explotó en una noche": Residente habla con BBC Mundo de la dura situación que lo llevó a escribir su canción "René"". BBC News Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  6. "Residente presenta "René" (edición cuarentena)". Sony Music España (in Spanish). April 17, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  7. "Residente – Chart History (Argentina Hot 100)" Billboard Argentina Hot 100 Singles for Residente. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  8. "Spanishcharts.com – Residente – René" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  9. "Residente Chart History (Hot Latin Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  10. "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved July 3, 2020. Type Residente in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and René in the box under TÍTULO
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