Akon’s fourth studio album El Negreeto was released on Oct. 4, 2019.
The album is made up of 8 tracks all in Spanish. Considering that Akon’s genre of choice was R&B, this is an interesting creative decision.
Before I continue with this review, I would like to say that I do not know any Spanish and therefore, I do not plan on giving commentary on the lyrical content of the songs.
The first song is “Te Quiero Amar,” which is a collaboration with Pitbull. The song has a strong percussion beat and an upbeat mid-tempo melody, so it is quite a pleasant listen.
The second is “Bailame Lento,” the first of his solo tracks on the album. “Bailame Lento” mixes festive horns with laid-back synth beats. It also features an acoustic guitar at multiple points, which I quite enjoyed.
After that came “Como No,” which featured Becky G. Although I enjoyed Becky G’s voice in the song, I didn’t really enjoy much else from it. The song didn’t sound unpleasant, but at the same time, there was nothing else that I heard that was particularly interesting or my style.
The fourth song is “Boom Boom,” his collaboration with Brazilian singer Anitta. For a song titled “Boom Boom,” it is not particularly explosive. Instead it is one of the more laid-back songs on the album, with a fairly minimal chorus. It starts with Akon singing the title and is followed with a synth-driven beat drop. Although this isn’t one of my favorite tracks on the album, Akon and Anitta’s voices complement each other quite well.
After that is “Dile.” This is one of the calmer, almost atmospheric, songs on the album. I would say that this is one of my favorite songs on the album because of the calm feel the song has to it.
The next song is “Innocente,” which starts slow but picks up over time. Considering that many of the songs on the album stay at a similar pace throughout, this was a welcome change. The song is another slow one and has a prominent beat.
After “Innocente” is “Solo Tu.” This song did not stand out to me very much upon listening to the album. There was nothing that I particularly disliked, but at the same time, there was nothing that I particularly liked. It was just kind of there, as every element in the song had already been seen in an earlier song in the album.
“Baila Conmigo” is the final song of the album. I quite enjoyed the intro, which features a plucky acoustic guitar riff. The song is another chill one and makes a solid conclusion to the album.
Overall, the album was not bad. It is not something that I can see myself listening to again due to the fact that this is not a genre I go out of my way to listen to. However, I give Akon credit for experimenting with new styles and I’m sure that someone else will enjoy this album more than I have.
Although the songs are all in Spanish, it did not in anyway hinder my ability to listen to the album and get something out of it. I am personally of the belief that music can transcend language and can bring people together just based on the sound alone. Even if the song is in a different language, there is still thought and emotion expressed that can still provide a certain experience for a listener, although likely different from the one of someone who speaks that language.
However, everyone has different opinions. If the album being entirely in Spanish is a roadblock for you, Akon is going to be releasing more music soon that will quite likely be in English.
His next album, Akonda, is set to be released Oct. 18 and will feature tracks from the Afrobeat genre. After that will come Konnect, which will contain songs of the R&B and hip hop genres, which will be familiar to listeners to his older fare.
