The Singles Jukebox

Why restrict our Monday reggaetón intake to just one single?

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[6.17]

Katie Gill: The sonic landscape of this song is so interesting: vocals layering over vocals over drums over more vocals and so on and so forth. But the best part is the song doesn’t try to be more than it is. “Safari” is sexy, but not aggressively so. It’s sexy in a calm, slinky way, a wonderful contrast to the blatant sexiness of a lot of pop music. 
[7]

Thomas Inskeep: The subtle reggaetón groove is good (not every reggaetón record has tobe a banger), but I don’t care for the loops Pharrell lays on top of it. It’s hooky, but it’s also kinda dull.
[4]

Jonathan Bradley: Pharrell proves a capable reggaetón producer, melding his distinct sonic palette with a Caribbean style in much the same way he did with Sean Paul’s dancehall in 2002 for “Bubble.” The uneasy keyboard figure, in particular, calls back to a Neptunes sound that’s been absent from pop music for the best part of a decade. It suits well J Balvin’s careful, chilled flow, making space for his syllables as well as his not insubstantial charm. Guests Bia and Sky liven up proceedings lest the other two’s insouciance let things get too sleepy. 
[7]

Ryo Miyauchi: I’m not used to this much clutter in a J Balvin track. The production is done by the chorus man Pharrell, prince of crispness and steely minimalism. But after Infinity’s contributions for Balvin’s past hits, “Safari” is a few drum hits and animal noises too many. It fares well for guest Bia, though, whose sharp, elastic voice stands out of the pack. I’d rather hear the song entirely with her instead of Balvin struggling to let his voice crawl out of the mud.
[5]

Jonathan Bogart: One unfortunate side effects of turning US producers loose on Latin tracks is that they tend to amp up the “exotica” effects, and here Pharrell’s track is replete with sounds straight out of a 1950s jungle montage. At least the lyrics, comparing the bodies of women to territories explored on safari, are just as exoticizing and colonialist. That said, it sounds great.
[7]

Juana Giaimo: “Safari” works best as an experiment than as a single. Pharrell Williams could perfectly capture the smooth flow of J. Balvin’s new reggaetón trend, but instead of aiming for a big club hit, he chose subtler ways. But he isn’t the star here; it’s Bia and her powerful vocals, ready to be the queen of a party where the rest seem to be sleeping.   
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