I had no idea who Haila was before reviewing this album. I must admit that it is really hard to review music when you don’t know the author and in a style you don’t listen to at all. It was so unexpected to get an artist, whose songs are in a language completely foreign to me.
Haila’s full name is Haila Maria Mompié and she is a singer from Cuba. She specializes in son and timba, which are both genres specific to her country. As a listener who is completely new to it, I would describe her sound as Latino. My first impression of this album: this is music that plays at dance lessons. I was right about the samba influences and Spanish guitar. She is quite popular, as she has over 20,000 followers on Instagram.
Haila. Grandes Exitos or Haila’s Greatest Hits came out in 2007, but the songs are from the prime of her career during the late 80s and 90s. I recognized only one song from it, her most famous one: ‘Andar Andando’. It is extremely catchy with repeated vocal parts that make it so recognizable. You simply cannot stay still while you listen to it. Also in the eighth track ‘Como Voy A Decirte’ the melody sounds a little familiar. The piano gives me 80s vibes and reminds me of George Michael for some reason. ‘Solita’ is my favorite song from the album. I just felt it the most, I think everyone can relate to that. On the other hand, as a whole, the tracks didn’t provide much diversity in terms of sound. They are all quite similarly lively and fun, but maybe that is just the principal part of the genre.
I would recommend this album to people who are tired of pop music nowadays and want to try something new. I love to dance by myself in my room, but I get bored quickly with my ‘guilty pleasure’ artists. Music from Latin America might be a solution to your bland playlists too! Haila delivers one of the most energetic numbers I have ever heard, definitely not dull at any point.