"Luna" (English: "Moon") is a song by the Colombian singer-songwriter Feid and the American producer ATL Jacob from Feid's second extended play (EP), Ferxxocalipsis (2023). Salomón Villada (Feid) wrote the song, and Jacob, Hendrix Smoke, EVRGRN, 254Bodi and FritzOnDaTrak produced it. Universal Music Latino initially did not release it as a single, but later sent it to Italian radio on March 1, 2024. A reggaetonheartbreak song inspired by a night Villada spent in Madrid watching the moon through a window, the song has lyrics about a woman leaving a past relationship to go with a new person. Music critics praised the song for its collaboration and lyrical content, viewing it as an effort to expand American hip hop and Feid's international audiences.
"Luna" topped the national charts in eight countries, and was certified platinum in Portugal, Spain and the US. It was Villada and Jacob's first top-five entry on the Billboard Global Excl. US chart. Sebastián Sánchez directed the music video for the song, released on March 6, 2024, which shows a broken relationship in a time loop, wherein the man tries to fix things with his partner. The video was praised by the public and music critics. The song received several awards and nominations, winning an Our Country Award and a Heat Latin Music Award. Villada perfomed the song at several music festivals and at the 2024 Copa América opening ceremony. He included it on the set list of the Ferxxocalipsis World Tour (2024).
Background and release
A few months after releasing his fifth studio album, Feliz Cumpleaños Ferxxo, Te Pirateamos el Álbum, Salomón Villada dropped his first extended play, Sixdo, through Universal Music Latino as a surprise album on December 2, 2022.[1][2] It includes "Le Pido a Dios" with the American hip hop producer DJ Premier, which was nominated at the 24th Annual Latin Grammy Awards for Best Rap/Hip Hop Song.[3][4] On August 24, 2023, after releasing the single "Ferxxo 151", Villada announced his sixth studio album, Mor, No Le Temas a la Oscuridad, on Instagram, along with its track listing.[5] The album was released on September 29.[6] Continuing the precedent set by Sixdo, on November 29 of that year, he announced the surprise release of his second EP, Ferxxocalipsis.[3][6][7] On Instagram, he shared, "I want you to enjoy it as it is, during Ferxxo's favorite month!! I'm thankful to everyone that was a part of this. Colombia has so much to show and this is just another piece of that";[3] he also revealed its contents, with "Luna" as the sixth track.[8][9] Universal Latino released "Luna" as part of the album on December 1.[9] On March 1, 2024, they sent the track to Italian radio as a single.[10] On April 7, during a questions-and-answers session with his fans on Instagram, Villada explained that the song was inspired by a night when he was in Madrid "lying in bed, without a shirt, without bathing and watching the moon through the window",[a] and recorded on his cellphone before being re-recorded in the studio.[11][12]
"Luna", a reggaetonheartbreak production, relates an ended relationship, in which Villada said to his partner "my treasure", before singing the chorus.
"Luna" is three minutes and sixteen seconds long.[13] Villada wrote the song, while ATL Jacob, Hendrix Smoke, EVRGRN, 254Bodi and FritzOnDaTrack produced it, with Jacob being the only one credited for background vocals.[14] It was recorded, mixed and mastered by Wain at Art & Music Studios in Milan, through 24k Mastering.[14] "Luna" is a reggaetonheartbreak song with fused elements of Latin rhythms and American hip hop.[3][6][15][16] The lyrics are about a woman leaving a past relationship to go with a new person.[7][17] They begin with Villada remembering good moments of that ended relationship, such as the last time he saw his partner smile and the nights they used "not to sleep"; he calls her "my queen" and "my treasure" before repeating in the chorus: "I didn't know what day you forgot about me / And-and about me / And-and me about you".[b][17][18] Later in the song, he expresses his desire to forgive her, but he also claims that she "threw [him] to the canvas / [Zeroed] all [his] stamina".[c][17] He continues telling her he knows she also misses the cars and "making love" with him when they were "farros", before remembering her lies: " 'Baby, I miss you' / That we would last for years",[d] the most viral part of the song on the social media platform TikTok.[15][17] He ends the song wishing that he could forget her.[17]
Some critics noticed that "Luna" is the second song on which Villada has invited an American hip hop producer, following "Le Pido a Dios", calling it an effort to expand American hip hop and the artist's reach around the world.[3][16][19] The song was also praised for its success and lyrical content; HappyFM named it a "spectacular collaboration"[e] and the "icing on the cake"[f] for closing the musical year 2023, and José María Almoguera of Telecinco, highlighting its virality a few days after the EP's release and number of TikTok videos using the track, called "Luna" the new breakup anthem "without any doubt".[g][15][20] Being the most played song on Los 40's radio stations in all available countries for three non-consecutive weeks, Miguel Ángel Bargueño described the production as "elegant"[h], such that it was impossible not to "move our hips every time we hear it".[i][21]Publimetro and Billboard Argentina also described the track as "emotive"[j] and "mysterious"[k], respectively.[17][19]
Music video
Sebastián Sánchez directed the music video for "Luna", which was released through YouTube on March 6, 2024.[22][23][24] After the release, he thanked his fans, who requested the video excitedly, "for taking this song so far. We made this video thinking of you, we gave it all the love possible".[l][22] It begins with Villada running through a desert and performing the song around a car and with Jacob at his side.[23] Depicting a broken relationship, a woman is found at her house and hires three gang members to shoot her partner (played by Villada), who tried to fix the things with her carrying orange gerberas.[23] A time loop occurs and the same things almost happen again, but this time the man survives and loses memory of his girlfriend in the hospital.[18][22] The video received positive comments from the public, specifically for its plot.[23] According to Infobae's Lina Muñoz Medina, the plot "addresses the theme of love and hope under adverse circumstances, generating significant emotional resonance among viewers".[m][22]
Commercial performance
"Luna" topped national charts in Bolivia,[26] Colombia,[27] Costa Rica,[28] Ecuador,[29] Peru,[30] Puerto Rico[31] and Uruguay,[32] and reached the top 10 of singles charts in El Salvador (2),[33] Guatemala (2),[34] Honduras (2),[35] Nicaragua (2),[36] Chile (3),[37] Panama (3),[38]
Argentina (5)[39] and Dominican Republic (9).[40] In Spain, it topped the national chart and received a 5× Platinum certification from the Productores de Música de España (PROMUSICAE) for selling 300,000 equivalent units.[41] In Paraguay, the song topped the weekly and the monthly national charts simultaneously.[42][43]
In the United States, the song peaked at number two on the BillboardBubbling Under Hot 100 issued for June 7, 2024.[44] On May 4, 2024, it climbed one spot to the top of the Latin Airplay chart due to an increase of 15% to 10.73 million audience impressions in the country, being Jacob's first number one and Villada's seventh number one on the chart.[45] It also climbed one spot to number eight on the Hot Latin Songs chart in the same week, despite a decrease of 6% to 3.5 million streams.[45] The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the single quadruple Platinum, which denotes 240,000 units based on sales and track-equivalent on-demand streams according to Latin criteria.[46]
The song debuted at 184 at the Billboard Global Excl. US chart issued for December 16, 2023.[47] On January 20, 2024, it jumped 13 spots to number 10 on Global Excl. US, being a new entry at the top-ten on the chart with The Weeknd, Jennie and Lily-Rose Depp's "One of the Girls" due to an increase of 20% to 30 million streams outside the US compared to the previous week.[25] Two weeks later, the song had climbed to number four, with streams increasing 11% to 41.5 million, making it their first top-five entry on the chart.[48]
Live performances and versions
In 2024, Villada performed "Luna" live for the first time in his shows at the Lollapalooza Chile, Lollapalooza Argentina and Festival Estéreo Picnic.[49][50][51] It was included on the set list of Villada's headlining concert tour, Ferxxocalipsis World Tour (2024).[52] He performed the song at the 2024 Copa América opening ceremony on June 20 a few minutes before 20:00 ET at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, being the only song that Villada sang.[53][54] Set in a fluorescent green scene and wearing a black sports outfit, VIllada was surrounded by dancers with outfits and flags representative of their artistic theme, and some drummers.[54] After the song, the championship edition's pet, Capitán, entered the field with some dancers with United States flag-inspired outfits.[54][55] The show ended with the appearance of the Argentina and Canada flags and the Sergio Agüero entrance holding the championship's trophy.[54] Although the Colombian television channels have presented the show without problems, the show has been criticized for its technical issues with the signal outside and its short length.[56][57]
On January 16, 2024, Villada published via Instagram an acoustic version for "Luna" without pitch correction, accompained with Pablo Mejía playing the guitar and surrounded by mountains.[15][58] It received mixed comments by the public.[59] On June, Villada tagged Puerto Rican singer Don Omar in his Instagram post and stories suggesting a remix for the song with "the King Kong", but he did not receive any response.[60] On July 17, Omar appeared on an interview at the YouTube channel Chocolate Radio TV, in which he revealed he could not accept the invitation because he was unable to continue his own concert tour due to a cancerous tumor diagnosed in his left kidney.[61]
^In Spanish: "por llevar esta canción tan lejos. Este video lo hicimos pensando en ustedes, le dimos todo el amor posible".
^In Spanish: "aborda el tema del amor y la esperanza bajo circunstancias adversas, generando una resonancia emocional significativa entre los espectadores".