Ivy Queen is one of 19 artists who has tapped into La Liga Femenina, the first-ever, all-female album in the Latin urban space that’s produced by hitmakers Boy Wonder CF and Charlee Way.
Leading the pack, the Puerto Rican artist describes the album as an ambitious project — one that took Boy Wonder and Charlee almost one year to create.
“Having to bring together a group of women, even though it might seem easy from the outside, is very difficult from the inside,” Ivy tells Billboard exclusively. “I’ve tried to do something like this before, and it didn’t turn out the way I expected, but finally we’re in a different situation and full of empathy.”
La Liga Femenina (The Female League) is a compilation album that features songs from 19 urban powerhouses from different parts of the world, including Spain’s Mala Rodríguez, Mexico’s Bellakath, Puerto Rico/Cuba’s Mariah Anegeliq, Dominican Republic’s J Noa, Chile’s Loyaltty and Colombia’s Soley. Sonically, the album navigates from hard-hitting perreo to sultry Afrobeats to thumping electronic music.
“That’s the vibe,” Ivy continues. “It’s a cocktail, and what better time to launch it than in such an important month [Women’s History Month] for us? It’s to show that women can do a project with various artists just as well as men. Every woman who joined this ambitious project is well represented, and each one is in her own element.”
On the set, Ivy’s song is an edgy, futuristic-like reggaetón called “Cría y Calle,” where she shows off her success.
“It’s literally a fronteo,” she notes. “The lyrics are very much in defense of us women, specifically the whole team of girls on this album. It’s reggaeton mixed with newer, more polished sounds, although I don’t like to lose the essence of the school I graduated from. But the reggaeton is great. It’s a drill-type song. When you see the video, I’m teaching the girls the points of defense.”
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Born Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez in Añasco, Puerto Rico, Ivy Queen has rightfully earned her crown as the Queen of Reggaetón. Since kicking off her music career in the 1990s, she’s landed 11 solo entries on Billboard’s Latin Rhythm Albums chart, including eight top 10s and two No. 1s. On Latin Rhythm Airplay, she has 20 entries. Her most iconic song to date, “Quiero Bailar,” peaked at No. 16 on the Tropical Airplay chart and debuted on Hot Latin Songs and Latin Airplay in 2005.
“When you reach the point where I am, what you want is peace, tranquility, and to connect with what you want to do,” she expressed. “I’m not interested in competing with anyone. I’ve already done an impeccable job representing women with dignity … you have to create your own lane and maintain it with class. That’s something I always preach because it’s what I’ve always lived by.”
La Liga Femenina drops Friday, March 6. You can pre-save the album here.
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