After changing into a family title in his native Cuba—as one of many greatest exponents of Reparto music proper now—Bebeshito formally arrived in Miami final October along with his all-or-nothing mentality.
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A mentality so robust it had him performing for 20,000 individuals on the Pitbull Stadium situated in Miami’s Florida Worldwide College (FIU) three months later—and shortly, conquering the coveted Kaseya Heart.
“After I was making ready to come back to the USA, my thoughts was set on doing a live performance on the Kaseya Heart, however I used to be instructed that it was laborious for Cuban [artists] to do a present at that venue,” he tells Billboard of giving his first live performance on the FIU campus on Dec. 28, 2024 as an alternative. “Nevertheless, I used to be very clear that I needed to do one thing huge as a result of I had quite a bit going for me: I used to be the No. 1 artist in Cuba.”
The artist born Oniel Ernesto Columbie Campos remembers certainly one of his earlier performances when he was within the seventh grade: “My pals and I had a rock band within the countryside with invented devices,” he laughs. From 2020 to 2022, Bebeshito briefly fashioned a part of a duo with artist Wolkis, and was a part of many collaborations: “I used to be in lots of songs that had been fashionable, however I wasn’t fashionable,” he admits.
Till, he discovered two methods that finest labored for him: going solo and doing reparto covers. [Reparto is a musical genre that derives from the “repartos/barrios” or housing projects in Cuba that fuses urban music with traditional Cuban rhythms and is powered by the clave instrument.]
His first breakout hit was “Una Pila de Partes” (2022), his model of Aitana’s 2021 hit “Berlín.”
“In Cuba, it’s frequent to cowl well-known songs and make them into reparto,” he explains. “I used to be a fan of Aitana. I actually like her harmonies and her manner of singing. I did about 4 or 5 Aitana covers firstly, and so they all the time labored. That’s what finally made me identified within the nation.”
He says that he initially needed to achieve fame by doing solely covers, however a fan made him understand he needed to create his personal music if he needed a fruitful and longevity profession.
In October 2022, he inked a document cope with Planet Information, helmed by music government Roberto Ferrante, who’s additionally credited for producing a few of Bebeshito’s greatest hits right now underneath his new “repaton” sound.
Since 2024, Bebeshito has positioned varied entries on the Billboard charts: “El Punto” with Charly & Johayron and El Taiger peaked at No. 7 on Latin Digital Tune Gross sales final October; “Marca Mandarina,” “Tacto Que Llegó El Reparto,” and “Mano” all entered Sizzling Tropical Songs in April; whereas “Tacto” additionally peaked at No. 25 on the Tropical Airplay chart in Could.
“I really feel like that is my finest music,” he says of the rhythmic “Tacto.” “It has all the pieces: feeling, pleasure, and the guaracha, as we Cubans say. Many individuals relate to it as a result of it’s a style made in Cuba. Reparto is lived [on the island] and sung within the streets. This music is like saying, ‘be careful, the Cubano is right here.’”
On August 9, Bebeshito will lastly dwell his dream of performing on the Kaseya Heart, and making reparto historical past alongside the way in which. He’s been making ready for nearly a month with rehearsals and dance practices “to do one thing I’ve by no means performed earlier than,” he notes. “The objective isn’t to promote out, it’s to placed on the present of my life. If it sells out, nice, I gained’t should show something anymore.”
Beneath, study extra about July’s Billboard Latin Artist on the Rise:
Title: Oniel Ernesto Columbie Campos
Age: 28
Really helpful Tune: “Tacto Que Llegó El Reparto”
Greatest Accomplishment: Since his arrival to the states final October—and following his first trek throughout Europe—Bebeshito has toured Tampa, Las Vegas, and Houston, to call a number of U.S. cities, however nothing in comparison with his present in Miami’s Pitbull Stadium.
“I had my doubts, however we bought 21,000 tickets,” he says. “I used to be all the time positive I used to be going to fill it, however I used to be scared as a result of I’d by no means carry out at a stadium. In Cuba, I stuffed the streets with 10,000 to fifteen,000 individuals, but it surely doesn’t examine. It was all or nothing!”
What’s Subsequent: “I’m engaged on quite a lot of issues: new songs, I’m making ready a second European tour for subsequent 12 months, and I hope I can sing in Cuba once more. I miss the Cuban public as a result of they had been the individuals who made me.”
For now, he’s additionally dedicated to fueling to the success reparto music is having. “Individuals from different nations don’t perceive our music very effectively, but it surely’s a matter of adapting,” he expresses. “I feel if we, our colleagues within the style, unite extra, one thing unimaginable can occur. In case you look again 5 years, there’s been an enormous evolution in each facet. I see quite a lot of future for reparto music.”