Maluma earns a career first No. 1 on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Airplay chart thanks to “Cada Quien,” his collaboration with Grupo Firme, as the song jumps from the runner-up slot on the Feb. 5-dated survey.
“Cada Quien” evicts Calibre 50’s “Si Te Pudiera Mentir” from its two-week reign thanks to a 16% gain in audience impressions, to 7.7 million, earned in the U.S. in the week ending Jan. 30, according to MRC Data. (“Si Te Pudiera” dips to No. 2 with a 7% decline in audience).
“This are very nice news because I’ve always been a fan of regional Mexican music, of ranchera and mariachi,” Maluma tells Billboard. “Being on a Mexican chart in the U.S., well that’s a big deal. I always dreamt of that. When I travel to Mexico, it’s like being at home, I feel part of it, and I am very grateful to Grupo Firme for making this possible.”
Maluma rewrites his personal best, as the pair’s collaborative single is his first leader but not his first visit to the regional Mexican tally. He scored his first top 10 through another team-up: “100 Años,” with Carlos Rivera, peaked at No. 6 on the May 29-dated ranking.
Grupo Firme, meanwhile, secures its fourth chart champ, following “Ya Supérame (En Vivo Desde Culiacán, Sinaloa),” the three-week ruler that marked a milestone for the Tijuana-based group when the title debuted at No. 92 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart (Oct. 30-dated list), becoming just the third regional Mexican act to score an entry on the 100-deep list.
Back to Maluma, he becomes the sixth act to top the list who traditionally charts with music other than of the regional Mexican genre, following Natalia Lafourcade’s three-week reign through her featured role in Los Angeles Azules’ “Nunca Es Suficiente” in 2019. The other four — notably, all Latin pop acts — are Enrique Iglesias, Pilar Montenegro, Franco de Vita and David Bisbal.
Here’s a recap of all the non-regional Mexican acts who have secured a No. 1 on Regional Mexican Airplay since the chart launched in 1994. N
1997, Enrique Iglesias, “Enamorado Por Primera Vez,” (5 weeks at No. 1)
2002, Pilar Montenegro, “Quítame a Ese Hombre” (nine weeks)
2008, Franco de Vita with K-Paz, “Un Buen Perdedor” (2 weeks)
2017, Christian Nodal with David Bisbal, “Probablemente,” (four weeks).
2019, Los Angeles Azules featuring Natala Lafourcade, “Nunca Es Suficiente” (3 weeks)
2022, Grupo Firme & Maluma, “Cada Quién”
Elsewhere, “Cada Quien” pushes up the all-Latin genre Latin Airplay chart with a 10-5 climb. Over on Hot Latin Songs, the song holds at No. 20 for a fourth week with 2.4 million U.S. streams, earned in the week ending Jan. 27, after its No. 7 peak (the highest ranking for Grupo Firme).
