Mi Reflejo (transl.My Reflection) is the second studio album and first Spanish-language album by American singer Christina Aguilera. It was released on September 12, 2000, as a joint effort between RCA Records and BMG U.S. Latin. After the commercial success of her first album, Christina Aguilera (1999), Aguilera recorded her follow-up project during 2000. It includes five Spanish-language versions of tracks from her previous album, in addition to four original compositions and two cover songs. The tracks were adapted and composed by Rudy Pérez who also produced the album.
"My message, as in all my music, stands for being fearless to explore who you are. It's never too late to open a new door. Although it's scary to dive into territory that isn't your first language, it still doesn't erase who I am and how I want to express myself in all aspects of what intrigues and inspires me."
— Aguilera about embracing her Ecuadorian roots with Mi Reflejo[1]
In 1999, Christina Aguilera released her debut self-titled album which sold over 14 million copies and earned her the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2000.[2][3] Following its release, Aguilera expressed in recording an album to acknowledge her Latina heritage (Aguilera is of Ecuadorian descent on her father's side).[4] By October 1999, Billboard editor John Lannert reported that she had begun recording an album in Spanish with Cuban American musician Rudy Pérez producing it.[5] According to her manager Steve Kurtz, Aguilera expressed interest in recording a Spanish-language album even before she recorded her first album.[6] This resulted in "Genie in a Bottle" being released in Spanish as a single titled "Genio Atrapado" which peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart.[7][8] According to Ramiro Burr of the San Antonio Express-News, the record would contain several of her songs adapted in Spanish and feature original songs in that language.[9]
Recording for the album primarily took place at Pérez's home studio in Miami Beach, Florida.[10] Additional recording took place at the Royaltone Studios and Cocoa-Butt in California, House of Sound Recording Studios in Florida, The War Room in New Jersey and LA East in Utah.[11] As Aguilera was touring with American group TLC as the opening act at the time, Aguilera only visited his home studio "only a few days at a time".[12] Aguilera was also simultaneously touring to promote her album and recording a Christmas album My Kind of Christmas, released later in 2000. Mi Reflejo was intended to be titled Latin Lover Girl;[13] Recording began for the album began in middle of April 2000 and concluded production three months later.[14][15] Pérez stated that Aguilera did not know any Spanish while recording; he remedied the problem by phonetically writing out lyrics and included a system that allowed Aguilera to pronounce the "r's" in the songs.[16] The album's title, Mi Reflejo, was announced on August 8, 2000, and is taken from the Spanish version of the song "Reflection", which Aguilera recorded for the soundtrack to Mulan.[17] Her record label, RCA, remarked that the title also "reflected" her Latina heritage.[17]
Musical style and compositions
Mi Reflejo was co-produced by Cuban American musician Rudy Pérez who adapted five of Christina Aguilera's songs from her debut album while also penning three original songs.
Musically, "Mi Reflejo" is a Latin pop album,[11] that is according to Burr, "equally balanced between bouncy dance tunes and melodramatic ballads".[18] The album is composed of 11 tracks; five of which are songs from Aguilera's debut album adapted in Spanish, while six are new.[19]
"Falsas Esperanzas" is an uptempo track with tropical elements and includes a piano solo by Cuban pianist Paquito Hechavarría.[23] In the song, Aguilera chants about "not being led on, and being treated right".[24] On the ballad,[25] "El Beso del Final", the singer asks if "did we just kiss goodnight, or did we just say goodbye?".[24] The album's second ballad,[25] "Pero Me Acuerdo", is about "someone who finally gets their life together after a bad break up, finally feels right about themselves. But then, 'I Remember You' and it all melts, the world falls apart, and the confidence goes out the window".[24] "Si No Te Hubiera Conocido" is a duet ballad with Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi.[23] According to Aguilera, she wanted Fonsi to perform a duet with her because she felt that she could relate to him as they "grew up listening to the same things".[17] "Cuando No es Contigo" is an uptempo salsa song which was arranged and produced by American musician Sergio George.[23][24]
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, Mi Reflejo received an average score of 56, based on seven reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[26] Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic described the album as a mirror image of her debut album Christina Aguilera. He felt that it was a "little too familiar" although he praised recordings as "well-produced"; however, he concluded that the album "doesn't add anything new to her music, since it's just the old music in new clothing."[11] An editor for Billboard wrote that Aguilera has yielded a mostly mainstream pop album with Latin inflections.[32] Eliseo Cardona of CDNow gave the album a mixed review. While he enjoyed Aguilera's vocal performance, which he described as " precisely, gracefully, forcefully ", he criticized the literal Spanish translation of the lyrics from English, which he said made a "good laugh and a better yawn". He commended "Cuando No es Contigo" as making Aguilera a "credible, expressive salsera" and her cover of "Contigo en la Distancia" as the album's finest moment.[21]
David Browne of Entertainment Weekly, who gave the album a C rating, wrote the review in a parody memo from Aguilera's point of view. He mocked at Aguilera's attempt at making a Spanish-language album simply because of her Ecuadorian heritage, criticized her "unnecessary" high note", ballads that "old Latin ladies'll like", and the photos used in the album's booklet.[27] Mike Magnuson of HOB.com wrote a critical review of the album admonishing the photos in the record for attempting to make Aguilera look Latino which he insisted was a bad influence for the younger audience. Though he mentions that "you can count on her agreeable voice" and lauded the use of Latin percussion and horns, he asserted that the record was "purely a marketing scam gone too far."[33] Parry Gettelman from Orlando Sentinel stated that "Mi Reflejo lacks emotional depth, and her decision to record in Spanish seems more a bid to conquer new chart territory than anything else".[23]
Sonicnet called its production "superslick" and compared Aguilera's vocals to that of Mariah Carey, completing that the album "almost guarantees that the diminutive diva will expand her colonial powers south of the border. In other words, she's planning to do a reverse Ricky Martin on us".[29] Ernesto Lechner of the Los Angeles Times rated the album two out of four stars comparing her vocals in her debut album and in Mi Reflejo, describing her performance in the latter as "ridiculous". He complained about Aguilera's cover of "Contigo en la Distancia" which he described as a "bloated confection".[28] Kurt B. Reighley from Wall of Sound wrote that the album is "an impressive addition to young Christina's limited canon".[31]
Mi Reflejo was released on September 12, 2000, as a joint venture between RCA and BMG US Latin.[34] A special edition of the album was released on To promote Mi Reflejo, Aguilera extended her tour, Christina Aguilera in Concert, into 2001 for eight more dates, visiting Mexico, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Panama and Japan.[35][36] Aguilera also gave a performance at the 2001 Grammy Awards, performing "Pero Me Acuerdo de Ti" and "Falsas Esperanzas".[37]
Singles
The lead single of album was "Ven Conmigo (Solamente Tú)", the Spanish version of "Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You)", which was released on August 8, 2000, to Latin radio stations.[17] The song reached number-one on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs and number two on the Billboard Latin Pop Airplay charts.[8][38] It also peaked at number eight in Spain.[39] The second single, "Pero Me Acuerdo de Ti" was released in December 2000.[40] The song reached number eight on the Hot Latin Songs and number five on Latin Pop Songs charts.[8][38] In Spain, it reached number three on the chart.[41] Its music video was directed by Kevin G. Bray.[42] The third single "Falsas Esperanzas" was released on July 3, 2001.[43] The song reached number fifteen in Spain.[44] Its music video, taken from her DVD My Reflection, was directed by Lawrence Jordan.[45] "Por Siempre Tú" were previously released as singles along with their original versions.[5][46] "Por Siempre Tú" was released as a promotional single for the album in 2000 and peaked at number six on the Hot Latin Songs chart.[8][47]
Legacy and achievements
In September 2018, Mi Reflejo was ranked number ten on the Billboard's Top 20 Latin Albums of All Time,[48] and in 2020 the same media brand included it on its list of the longest-leading albums of all time on the Top Latin Albums chart (at number twelve).[49] The album spent 19 weeks at number one on Billboard's Top Latin Albums ranking at number 13 with the most weeks at number one.[50]Mi Reflejo was best fifth best-selling Latin album of 2000 and became the second best-selling Latin album of the year later after Paulina by Paulina Rubio.[51][52] The album was also the best-selling Latin pop album of 2000.[51]
In a 2020 statement for Billboard, Aguilera noted that she "was excited to bring a new life to [the] songs and reinvent [them]".[1] She added that she "was allowed to create and express new ad libs and vocal runs that [she] wasn't given the freedom to do on her original record".[1]New York Daily News writer Muri Assuncão noted that after the release of the album, Aguilera went on to use "her Latin charm and sultry persona — not to mention her jaw-dropping four-octave vocal range — to become one of pop music's most beloved icons".[53] In the 2021 article for POPline, it was noted that Mi Reflejo introduced Aguilera to the general public as a "fearless" and "versatile" artist, and also "played a pivotal role in the expansion of Spanish-language music within today's American pop scene."[54]
Internationally, the album peaked at number two on the Argentine albums chart and was certified platinum by the Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (CAPIF).[71][72]Mi Reflejo also reached number two in Uruguay, as reported by Cámara Uruguaya del Disco (CUD) in late 2000.[73] It peaked at number fifty-four in Switzerland and certified platinum in Mexico by the Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (AMPROFON).[74][75] It reached number five on the official Mexican Albums Chart.[76] In Spain, the album peaked at number twelve on the Spanish Albums Chart and was certified Platinum in the country for shipping 100,000 copies.[77][78][79] It sold three hundred thousand copies in Costa Rica as of 2004,[80] and it was a commercial success in Colombia, Peru and Venezuela as well.[81] The album has sold 2.2 million copies worldwide as of 2006.[82]
^Valdes-Rodriguez, Alisa (December 26, 1999). "The Loud and Quiet Explosions". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 23, 2015. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
^Pietroluongo, Silvio (June 24, 2000). "Hot 100 Spotlight". Billboard. Vol. 112, no. 26. Prometheus Global Media. p. 125. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
^Por Siempre Tú (Promo single CD). Christina Aguilera. United States: BMG. 2000. 3129-2RLDJ.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Salaverri, Fernando (2005). Sólo éxitos. Año a año. 1959–2002 (in Spanish). Madrid, Spain: Iberautor Promociones Culturales. pp. 805, 835, 961. ISBN978-84-8048-639-2.
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