79 Fun Facts About J Balvin

In which Colombian city was J Balvin born?

Medellín. He keeps the city's violent cartel-era past out of his songs, saying Colombians lived through it and want to move on.

Which fellow Colombian star teamed up with J Balvin on the 2019 single "Qué Pena"?

Maluma. After years of fans waiting, the two finally shared a single: a mock apology to women whose faces they remember but whose names they can't.

Billboards of Puff Daddy and which other rapper inspired J Balvin in New York?

Jay-Z. Balvin said the billboards showed him how far hip-hop reached beyond music, into fashion and marketing, and he went home to Colombia set on becoming a rapper.

As a teenage exchange student, J Balvin was placed in a rural town in which US state?

Oklahoma. He landed in small-town Atoka, fell out with his host family and left for New York, where an aunt lived.

What job did J Balvin work while living with an aunt on Staten Island?

Dog walker. His music went nowhere in the United States, so he took the advice to go home and start from scratch, and broke through in Colombia instead.

What did J Balvin study at EAFIT University?

International business. He walked away to chase music, having already formed the rap group MDL Crew with friends.

With which American group did J Balvin record "Ritmo" for the film Bad Boys for Life?

Black Eyed Peas. The track rides a slowed-down sample of Corona's 1993 Eurodance hit "The Rhythm of the Night", which will.i.am set out to reimagine with a reggaeton beat.

Which reggaeton star enlisted J Balvin for the 2018 global hit "X"?

Nicky Jam. He had moved to Colombia to restart a stalled career and found a fan, then a close friend, in the up-and-coming Balvin.

Which family member managed J Balvin's early career, before his 2013 Universal deal?

His father. An economist whose own company had gone bankrupt during Balvin's teens, he took charge of his son's music career in its early years.

J Balvin reached new US listeners in 2015 on the official "Latino remix" of which Justin Bieber hit?

Sorry. The original already leaned on a reggaeton-style beat, so Balvin's Spanish verses slotted straight in, and it gave him his widest exposure yet to American pop fans.

Which Puerto Rican singer features on J Balvin's hit "6 AM"?

Farruko. The song became Balvin's first chart-topper on US Latin radio, his breakthrough in the United States.

J Balvin described "6 AM" as the Latin version of which Hollywood comedy?

The Hangover. Like the film's heroes, the song's two singers wake up piecing together a wild night, and Balvin pictured a car parked in the bedroom as they wrote it.

J Balvin joined the 2018 remix of "Mi Cama", a summer hit for which Colombian singer?

Karol G. The remix helped her land her first number one on any Billboard airplay chart when it topped Latin Rhythm Airplay that August.

Which song won J Balvin his first Latin Grammy, the 2015 award for Best Urban Song?

Ay Vamos. Its chorus about a couple who fight, make up and carry on showed the tender streak that set him apart from harder-edged reggaeton.

J Balvin cancelled a July 2015 performance at which event over Trump's comments on immigrants?

Miss USA. Pulling out cost him what would have been his first performance on mainstream US television, a choice he called a matter of social responsibility.

J Balvin's hit "Ginza" was named partly after a photo filter he used on which app?

Instagram. Ginza was a filter he kept using on his photos; the name is also Tokyo's upscale shopping district, a fit for a singer who calls fashion a passion.

Which future reggaeton star, then working as a songwriter, co-wrote J Balvin's hit "Ginza"?

Feid. At 23 he was known around the studios for his lyrics, and Balvin, who had followed his work, took his idea around the world years before Feid's own fame as a singer.

Which 2016 album was the first by J Balvin to top the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart?

Energía. Its lead single "Ginza" had spent 22 straight weeks atop the Latin songs chart before the album was even out.

Which American artist sings the hook in Spanish on J Balvin's 2016 single "Safari"?

Pharrell Williams. He also produced the track, and for Balvin it was a dream fulfilled: an American star stepping into Latin music instead of Balvin switching to English.

Which French singer and producer is credited alongside J Balvin on "Mi Gente"?

Willy William. Balvin liked to point out that a song he wrote in Spanish with a producer from Paris went to number one in countries around the world.

Which former One Direction singer teamed up with J Balvin on the 2018 bilingual single "Familiar"?

Liam Payne. Balvin delivers his lines in Spanish on the track, and the pair performed it together on Stephen Colbert's Late Show.

Which superstar's remix of "Mi Gente" gave J Balvin his first US top-ten single?

Beyoncé. She later worked the song into her 2018 Coachella headline show and brought Balvin on stage to perform it with her.

The 2017 "Mi Gente" remix's guest star gave her proceeds to which cause?

Caribbean hurricane relief charities. She announced the gift barely a week after Hurricane Maria tore through Puerto Rico, and her pledge named Mexico and other Caribbean islands as well.

Which rapper released a "Mi Gente" remix after its shout was heard to resemble his signature grito?

Pitbull. Fans congratulated him on a guest spot he never recorded, so he answered with his own remix and later registered the yell as a US trademark.

"Mi Gente" was the first song sung entirely in Spanish to lead which chart?

Spotify's Global Top 50. It reached number one in August 2017 with no English verse at all; the star-powered remix only arrived the following month.

Whose record did J Balvin break to become Spotify's most-streamed artist in 2018?

Drake. Balvin passed him in June 2018 with over 48 million monthly listeners, and called it proof that songs in Spanish could stand beside the best pop on the planet.

Which Brazilian singer features with Jeon on J Balvin's 2018 single "Machika"?

Anitta. Balvin cast the song's guests, a Brazilian star and an Aruban newcomer, to push reggaeton toward a global sound after "Mi Gente".

J Balvin's first Billboard Hot 100 number one came as a guest on which rapper's 2018 hit?

Cardi B. "I Like It" took Balvin's Spanish verses to the top of the US chart nine months after his own biggest single had stalled at number three.

J Balvin's first Hot 100 number one is built on a 1967 hit from which Latin dance craze?

Boogaloo. Pete Rodriguez's "I Like It Like That" had already been revived once, for a 1994 film of the same name, before the 2018 hit borrowed its hook.

The music video for "I Like It" was filmed in which Miami neighbourhood?

Little Havana. The clip turns the district into a street party that spills into a nightclub, with costumes that nod to salsa queen Celia Cruz.

"I Like It" earned J Balvin a nomination in which category at the 2019 Grammy Awards?

Record of the Year. Balvin and his fellow guest on the track said its success showed them how well they worked together, and the pair followed it with a joint album a year later.

Which British pop star sings in English opposite J Balvin on the 2020 single "Un Día (One Day)"?

Dua Lipa. She and Balvin trade lines as estranged lovers in two languages; the lockdown-era video shows neither of them, only Money Heist's Úrsula Corberó dancing through a heartbreak.

J Balvin described Vibras as one-third reggaeton, one-third R&B and one-third which genre?

Dancehall. He said the blend was built to travel: beats strong enough that listeners would love the songs without understanding a word of the Spanish.

Which reggaeton duo joins J Balvin on the Vibras track "Peligrosa"?

Wisin & Yandel. The album roams across genres, but Balvin said it still had plenty of reggaeton because that sound was what had opened the doors for him.

J Balvin's surprise 2019 joint album Oasis was recorded with which Puerto Rican artist?

Bad Bunny. He was a shy unknown posting songs online when a producer introduced them at a Balvin concert in Puerto Rico in 2016; three years later they released an album as equals.

Which pop star sings in English on "I Can't Get Enough", J Balvin's 2019 single with Benny Blanco?

Selena Gomez. In the video she, Balvin and co-producer Tainy dance on a giant bed in silk pyjamas while producer Benny Blanco bounces beside them dressed as a teddy bear.

Oasis was J Balvin's first top-ten album on which chart?

The Billboard 200. The eight-song set arrived overnight with no warning and entered at number nine, out-charting every album either of its two stars had made alone.

Which Spanish singer's 'Con Altura', with J Balvin, won Best Urban Song at the 2019 Latin Grammys?

Rosalía. She took the title from a YouTube clip of a Dominican radio host's catchphrase, and he ended up with a writing credit and a share of the award.

During whose set did J Balvin appear as a guest at the 2020 Super Bowl halftime show?

Jennifer Lopez. She danced above him while his "Mi Gente" was mashed into her own hits, and he used the stage to show off sneakers he had designed, ten months before they went on sale.

J Balvin's 2020 album Colores has nine tracks named for colours and one named for what?

A rainbow. "Arcoíris" is also one of only two tracks with a credited guest, since Balvin wanted to see how he connected with fans on his own.

Which Japanese artist created the artwork for J Balvin's album Colores?

Takashi Murakami. Balvin had long dreamed of owning one of his pieces, and said he wanted fans who bought the album to hold their own piece of the artist's work.

In the video for which Colores single does J Balvin die in a car crash and return as a ghost?

Rojo. He is killed while on the phone at the wheel, on his way to see his daughter born, then watches over the family he left; the clip doubles as a warning about distracted driving.

Which award did J Balvin's album Colores win at the 2020 Latin Grammy Awards?

Best Urban Album. To win it, Colores had to beat Oasis, Balvin's own joint album from the year before, which was nominated in the same category.

Which EDM producer teamed up with J Balvin on the 2021 party single "In da Getto"?

Skrillex. He and Tainy built the track on a 1990s house anthem, David Morales's "In De Ghetto", and its party video features TikTok star Khaby Lame.

J Balvin's 2021 album Jose shares its title with what?

His own given first name. He called the album's concept simply "me", and its final stretch turns personal, including a letter to his then-unborn son Rio.

J Balvin recorded a Spanish-language cover for a 2021 all-star tribute album honouring which rock band?

Metallica. Instead of a straight cover, he rapped new Spanish verses about his own rise over the riff of "Wherever I May Roam", wearing one of the band's shirts in the video.

J Balvin has a tattoo of which band on his knee?

Nirvana. Balvin idolised Kurt Cobain as a guitar-playing teenager, long before he turned to reggaeton, and has called him one of his biggest inspirations when he started making music.

Which reggaeton star's flows and stage moves does J Balvin say he copied as a teenager?

Daddy Yankee. Balvin grew up on rock until the Puerto Rican's records changed his course, and years later he thanked him by name in the lyrics of his own single "Reggaetón".

Which hometown production duo is behind many of J Balvin's hits, including "Ginza"?

Sky and Mosty. Sky was still in his teens when he met Balvin in a basement studio with two speakers, and he has been the singer's right-hand man since the debut album.

Which Latin pop idol gets a shout-out in the lyrics of J Balvin's 2018 single "Reggaetón"?

Ricky Martin. The line nods to his 1999 crossover smash, yet Balvin chose another route: where Martin switched to English to grow, he vowed to go as far as he could in Spanish.

J Balvin's first all-English song, "Hey Ma", appeared on the soundtrack of which 2017 film?

The Fate of the Furious. Balvin said he had not planned to record in English and was in no hurry to do more, but would not turn down a chance like this one.

Which Puerto Rican rapper mocked J Balvin after his call to boycott the 2021 Latin Grammys?

Residente. He compared Balvin's music to a hot dog cart: almost everybody likes it, he said, but nobody should expect it to earn a Michelin star.

In 2019, J Balvin became the first Latin man to front a campaign for which fashion brand?

Guess. Its brand director said the pairing was obvious: the label already had a huge Latin fanbase, and Balvin could carry it to his own fans around the world.

In 2020, J Balvin became the first Latino artist to release a shoe with which sneaker label?

Air Jordan. He first showed the shoe on stage at the Super Bowl halftime show; when it went on sale ten months later it sold out at once, within a minute by his own count.

Which high-profile music manager took on J Balvin as a client in 2019?

Scooter Braun. Signing with the manager of Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande placed a singer who performs almost entirely in Spanish beside two of English-language pop's biggest names.

J Balvin survived a plane crash in August 2016 while leaving which country?

The Bahamas. His small private plane ended up in bushes as it left the islands; nobody was hurt, and he posted a picture of the wreck with thanks for "the miracle".

Valentina Ferrer, mother of J Balvin's son, won which country's beauty pageant in 2014?

Argentina. The two met on the set of his "Sigo Extrañándote" video, in which she played his wife; they went on to have a son, Rio, before separating in 2026.

The Jose track "7 de Mayo", in which J Balvin raps his life story, takes its title from what?

His birthday. The song retraces his rise from the streets of his home city to stardom, with spoken samples of his mother; he had never told his own story in a song before.

J Balvin says which practice "saved his life" when his panic attacks were at their worst?

Meditation. He rises at five each morning to practise it, though he says his depression only eased once he dropped the idea that psychiatrists were for crazy people.

In 2019, J Balvin became the first Latin-music headliner in the history of which American festival?

Lollapalooza. Organisers billed him above Lil Wayne and Kacey Musgraves and gave him one of the Chicago festival's main stages to close.

Which organisation honoured J Balvin in 2017 after "Ginza" spent 22 weeks atop Billboard's Hot Latin Songs chart?

Guinness World Records. It certified the run as the longest stay at number one by a single artist, and Balvin picked up the certificate in person while in New York for men's fashion week.

Whose Latin Grammy nominations record did J Balvin break in 2020?

Calle 13. Their ten nominations had been the most in a single year; Balvin passed them a year after helping to lead a protest that the awards were ignoring reggaeton.

J Balvin added a verse to a 2020 remix of which viral hit?

Roses. Saint Jhn's 2016 song found a second life when a remix by the producer Imanbek caught fire on TikTok, and Balvin's verse was added on top of that hit version.

Which American rapper joins J Balvin and DJ Snake on the 2019 hit "Loco Contigo"?

Tyga. His verse was shelved six months later for the official remix, which turned the bilingual track all-Spanish with five Latin stars in his place.

Which fast-food chain sold a limited-edition J Balvin Meal across the United States?

McDonald's. After its Travis Scott Meal proved a hit, the chain turned Balvin's regular order, a Big Mac, fries with ketchup and an Oreo McFlurry, into its next celebrity meal.

J Balvin released a 2021 song to celebrate the 25th anniversary of which franchise?

Pokémon. He joined Katy Perry and Post Malone on the anniversary album Pokémon 25, and his video sends him through a New York full of Pikachu and other creatures.

With which English singer did J Balvin release the 2022 songs "Sigue" and "Forever My Love"?

Ed Sheeran. The two met by chance in a New York gym, got talking over coffee, and ended up in a studio where Sheeran learned to sing his parts in Spanish.

What is the title of J Balvin's 2024 studio album?

Rayo. He named it after his first car, the red runabout that carried him and his friends around Colombia while he was trying to get his career started.

Which anime did Crunchyroll announce J Balvin would voice a role in during 2025?

Solo Leveling. Crunchyroll first teased only an 'important role', then revealed him as Kargalgan, a giant orc dungeon boss, in both the English and Spanish dubs of season two.

J Balvin made his film acting debut in Little Lorraine, a crime drama set in which country?

Canada. The story follows a Nova Scotia fishing village that became a cocaine-smuggling hub in the 1980s, and it premiered at the Toronto film festival in 2025.

J Balvin voiced Tresillo, a reggaeton-loving character, in which animated film?

Trolls World Tour. The sequel sorts its trolls into rival music tribes, and Balvin's Tresillo leads the reggaeton one into a dance-off against a K-pop group.

With the 2021 single 'Una Nota', J Balvin passed which singer for the most number ones on Billboard's Latin Airplay chart?

Enrique Iglesias. Balvin had drawn level with him in September 2021, only for Iglesias to pull ahead again three weeks later, before two more Balvin chart-toppers in quick succession settled it.

Which Dominican dembow singer joined J Balvin and Major Lazer on the 2019 single 'Que Calor'?

El Alfa. The track sets the Dominican's dembow rhythm against a flute sample from 'Curura', a cumbia classic by Colombia's Totó la Momposina, nodding to both guests' home countries.

Which R&B star joined J Balvin and DJ Khaled on 'Dientes', a 2023 single built on his own 2004 club hit?

Usher. The song borrows from 'Yeah!', and its video joins the throwback: he restages the Vibe magazine cover he posed for in 2004, the year the original came out.

Which Puerto Rican salsa legend was among J Balvin's earliest musical influences?

Héctor Lavoe. As a teenager Balvin paired the Seventies salsa of Lavoe, the Fania star nicknamed 'the singer of singers', with a steady diet of American hard rock.

J Balvin headlined a virtual Halloween concert, the Afterlife Party, inside which video game?

Fortnite. The game's Fortnitemares event staged his four-act show in ghoulish virtual sets, and he later returned to it as a playable Icon Series character.

Which Hollywood star made a surprise appearance during J Balvin's alien-themed Coachella set in 2024?

Will Smith. He came out reprising his Men in Black agent, a cameo Balvin called one of the best things that had ever happened to him.

J Balvin and Tainy recorded the theme song for a movie about which cartoon character?

SpongeBob SquarePants. Their song 'Agua', Spanish for water, samples the cartoon's theme tune and led the soundtrack of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run.

Which pop singer drew on J Balvin's reggaeton for her 2018 debut solo album?

Camila Cabello. She left her underperforming first solo single off the album and dropped its working title, 'The Hurting, the Healing, the Loving', releasing the record simply as Camila.