FELIPE MAIA

Journalist, ethnomusicologist, d.j.

I’m a Brazilian journalist and ethnomusicologist (anthropology + music + sound) based in Europe. In the past ten years, I’ve worked with a number of media outlets and led several projects crossing popular music and digital culture on topics like Latin American sounds, electronic-sonic technologies and Global South dialogs.
I d.j. too.

felipemf [at] gmail [dot] com

Twitter // Instagram // SoundCloud // LinkedIn

[Remezcla] Watch Feid’s New Video For His Emotional Reggaeton Single “Tengo Fe”

This is a story assignment for Remezcla. It was first published in September 2021.


From popular names like Shakira, Maluma, and J. Balvin to newcomers like Lalo, Colombia has yielded notable contributions to Latin and global pop music. And yet, the creativity flowing from cities such as Cali and Bogotá seems to be far from drying out. Rising star Feid is one of the artists that keep this stream running with high-class quality. Ahead of his fourth album, the Medellín-boy is releasing the music video of its first single, “Tengo Fe,” an emotional reggaeton for those who are into crying inside yet perreando outside.

“‘Tengo Fe’ is a song about a woman I can’t forget since the first day we met,” Feid explains. “It’s a special song to me. It’s my favorite track of my next album.”

https://embed.vevo.com/?isrc=USUV72104042&partnerId=4d61b777-8023-4191-9ede-497ed6c24647&partnerAdCode=

A prolific lyricist, Feid has already charged upbeat choruses and catchy bridge lines for several Latin acts, such as Balvin himself, Nicky Jam, and Anitta. In “Tengo Fe,” he pours out the melancholy from a one-night stand and its lingering emotions. It’s a heartbreaking story translated into a California ’70s outlook: zoomed-in/zoomed-out shots, reddened daylight takes, and bluesy beach sequences.

The song is also a preview for the first time Medellin-based producer Sky Rompiendo joins Feid on making a whole album. “He’s an MVP, and working with him is magical. This song is a ballad,” says the singer. “It starts peacefully, and then the beat kicks in.”

Lashing hazy piano lines, dramatic violin chords, and warm muffled guitar riffs, the Colombian reggaeton whizkid holds together the ambiguous feeling set by Feid — a taste we may expect in his upcoming LP. “This album will be iconic: there are no feature artists, and there’s a bonus song at the end that my fans asked for on Instagram and TikTok,” says Feid. “People will remember this album. It’s a very special moment for my career.”

FELIPE MAIA

felipemf [at] gmail [dot] com