It’s no shock that Spotify has topped Isabel LaRosa—a Cuban-American singer-songwriter—as certainly one of its Pop Rising Artists to Watch in 2024. With over two million streams per day throughout her catalog, the younger artist has been on a meteoric rise since dropping her first single within the fall of 2021. Last Friday marked the discharge of the music video for her hotly anticipated single, “Favorite,” by way of Slumbo Labs/RCA Records.
Even earlier than its official launch, “Favorite” had already amassed over 80,000 creations and garnered over 400 million views from user-generated content material on social media. Throughout her sold-out God’s Watching tour with labelmate Ari Abdul, and with teasing snippets on social media, LaRosa’s followers worldwide have been clamoring for the discharge of “Favorite.” The single showcases her signature darkish twist on a reggaeton beat, mixing English and Spanish lyrics in a compelling combine.
The music explores the depths of need and the craving to be the middle of somebody’s affection. The lyrics unfold as a heartfelt plea from LaRosa to her love curiosity, repeatedly asking to be their “favorite.” This repetition amplifies the depth of her longing and underscores the importance of holding a cherished place within the different particular person’s life. The refrain, “Darling, can I be your favorite?”, stands out as a direct and weak enchantment for recognition and a particular place of their coronary heart.
The music additionally delves into themes of identification and flexibility inside relationships. When LaRosa sings, “My name is whatever you make it,” she hints at a readiness to remodel herself to fulfill her love curiosity’s wishes. This line serves as a metaphor for the compromises and modifications people are prepared to make to please somebody they’re drawn to. It provokes reflection on the extent to which one ought to alter oneself for the sake of affection and highlights the dynamics of energy and management in romantic connections.
Speaking of the inspiration behind her new music video, LaRosa tells Rolling Stone India that the plot “was drawn from multiple places.”
“In terms of the plot, I wanted to capture the feeling of longing for something that probably isn’t good for you, but you are still pursuing it anyways,” she stated, including, “I wanted to show that moment when you see someone and your world stops. I visually took a lot of inspiration from shows like Euphoria and True Detective. An off-camera moment that was memorable was the fact that all the extras decided to smoke real cigarettes instead of fake ones, so the entire room was in a haze. I probably still smell like a cigarette.”
The 19-year-old singer expressed that her “core fans” know she’s been desirous to do a video like this for therefore lengthy. “I hope that they feel just as fulfilled as I do with it as both the song and the music video show a side of being a teenager and growing up that everyone experiences, so I hope they feel a connection to it because it’s relatable to their life.”
LaRosa’s success could be attributed to her refreshing vulnerability, a top quality that connects deeply with younger music fans. To date, she has almost one billion streams throughout audio platforms, together with virtually 300 million video streams and an astonishing 5 billion short-form video streams.
Last 12 months, LaRosa was handpicked as certainly one of solely six artists for TikTookay’s inaugural Elevate program, which presents assist inside the app and past, serving to rising abilities form their careers past viral moments. The singer additionally carried out at TikTookay within the Mix, a sold-out occasion at Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona, streamed stay on TikTookay to virtually 10 million viewers. Including re-broadcasts, TikTookay within the Mix shattered data with almost 34 million viewers worldwide.
You can watch the “Favorite” music video right here: