J Balvin
TEOGRAPH*J Balvin’s music video for “Perra” in collaboration with Tokischa was removed from YouTube over the weekend, Billboard has learned.
The track that fuses Balvin’s edgy reggaeton beats with Tokischa’s dembow premiered on Sept. 10 and forms part of Balvin’s José album, which earned him his fourth No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart. “Perra” debuted at No. 48 on Hot Latin Songs. With a chorus that says: “I am a female dog in heat/ I'm looking for a dog to hit it/ Hey, you're a hot dog in heat/ And you are looking for a dog to hit it,” the raunchy street-slang lyrics describe two people who desire each other.
The music video, directed by Raymi Paulus, Tokischa’s manager, shows the Colombian artist entering “el bajo mundo,” where he meets up with the Dominican newcomer. The visual shows Balvin tugging at two Black women on leashes, a group of Black people that were made up to look like dogs, and Tokischa posing on all fours inside a doghouse.
On Sunday, the music video was removed from Balvin’s YouTube channel. Neither Balvin nor Tokischa have released an official statement.
The removal of the music video also came less than a week after Colombia’s vice president and chancellor Marta Lucía Ramírez said the visual was “sexist, racist, machista, and misogynistic."
“In his video, the artist uses images of women and people of Afro-descendants -- population groups with special constitutional protection -- whom he presents with dog ears,” she wrote in an open letter published on Oct. 11. "In addition, while walking, the singer carries two Afro-descendant women tied with neck chains and crawling on the floor like animals or slaves. As if this were not enough, the lyrics of the song have direct and openly sexist, racist, machista, and misogynistic expressions that violate the rights of women, comparing them to an animal that must be dominated and mistreated."
In the letter, she publicly encouraged Balvin and the music industry to sign a petition that “includes various commitments for the promotion of women's rights in music and prevention of violence against them.”
Although the audio track for “Perra” is still live on YouTube, Billboard cannot confirm if the official music video was taken down by the artist or the video-sharing platform.
Billboard reached out to YouTube for comment but did not hear back at press time.
London four piece Keo are on course to land their first UK Number 1 album with Put A Smile On For Me. After building a loyal audience over the past two years, the London band now lead this week’s Official Albums Chart update. Their debut record explores love, guilt, and self destruction.
Nothing But Thieves are close behind at Number 2 with their fifth album, Stray Dogs. The Southend band are hoping for a second straight Number 1 after Dead Club City reached the top in 2023. Taylor Swift is at Number 3 with The Life Of A Showgirl, helped by the expanded The Encore edition. Olivia Rodrigo’s You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In sits at Number 4, while Soft Cell’s Danceteria opens at Number 5. It is the synth pop duo’s final album together following Dave Ball’s death last year.
Europe could reach Number 9 with Come This Madness, giving the Swedish rock band its first UK Top 10 album in four decades. A 30th anniversary reissue of Alice In Chains’ MTV Unplugged is at Number 13 in the midweek update, with Orbital’s Glastonbury 1994 set at Number 14. Julia Jacklin is heading for her first Top 40 album as The Gem reaches Number 18, while Suede’s Coming Up returns at Number 23 after its 30th anniversary physical release.
Also on track for Top 40 places are Nessa Barrett’s Tough Love at Number 29, the companion soundtrack to LINKIN PARK: UNSHATTER at Number 30, and Dublin band Gurriers’ Nobody’s Coming To Save You at Number 31. Blondshell, Kneecap, Tina Turner, and Leon Bridges also appear in the lower half of the midweek chart.
The official positions will be announced when the final Albums Chart is published on Friday.
