With three productions under her belt, Mariel Mariel has managed to carve herself a spot in the Mexican music scene with melodic, catchy pop songs, some of which range from bossa nova and bolero to nu disco. Ever an unpredictable force, she just released the crazy tropical single “Foto Pa’ Ti” off her upcoming Homonymous LP.
A surprising departure from her earlier material, “Foto Pa’ Ti” comes off incredibly strong and confident in every way possible. The production-–undertaken by heavyweights Andrés Landon and Juan Manuel Torreblanca—is raw and minimal, making Mariel Mariel’s lethal whisper stand out. It starts off with a quiet clap on loop that she quickly overshadows by softly spitting rhymes about taking risks on life and love. The track builds up slowly to a pounding jungle beat and it just keeps getting rowdier from there.
Unlike her most recent track, “Tirame Un Beso“—a UK-garage-flavored dance anthem—“Foto Pa’ Ti” slowly gets in your face with its take-no-prisoners approach and unabashed sensuality. Judging by the way the rhythms, the rapping, and the beats are structured, you can tell Mariel Mariel found some inspiration among the female players in the Latin American hip-hop scene, not to mention the recent wave of tropicalia sweeping the continent. And yet, she owns every beat and every word like it’s nobody’s business.