walking upstream…
Manuel Turizo
Manuel Turizo Zapata grew up in the Caribbean-coast city of Monteria, Colombia, and began writing songs as a teenager alongside his older brother Julian, who produced his early records. His 2017 breakout 'Una Lady Como Tu' paired a deep, unhurried baritone with a bright, tropical spin on reggaeton, and by the 2020s he had become one of Latin pop's biggest crossover stars, topping charts worldwide with the bachata-flavored 'La Bachata.' His music threads romantic melody through reggaeton, bachata, and coastal Colombian rhythms.
the sound in question
2022
La BachataManuel Turizo
walk the tributaries ↓
Bruno Mars2010s · Pop / Funk / R&B / Soul
Turizo has repeatedly cited Bruno Mars as one of his biggest influences and a key entry point into Anglo pop craftsmanship; the polished, melody-first songwriting and smooth, romantic delivery he brings to his ballads owe a debt to Mars's throwback pop-soul sensibility.
listen: upstream & heresource: Mixtape Madness — MM Exclusive Interview ↗
2010
Just the Way You AreBruno Mars
2018
SolaManuel Turizo
listen forSet Mars's tender, doo-wop-flecked 'Just the Way You Are' beside Turizo's 'Sola' — both build a whole song around an easy, affectionate vocal melody and a clean, uncluttered arrangement that keeps the singer's romantic address front and center.
Carlos Vives1990s · Vallenato / Latin pop / Tropi-pop
The first concert Turizo ever attended was Carlos Vives, at around seven years old — 'I remember very clearly,' he told Billboard. Vives's model of carrying Colombia's Caribbean-coast sound to a global pop audience runs through Turizo's work: asked for his own first musical influence, Turizo answered simply 'Vallenato,' and the bright, acoustic-tinged tropical spin he puts on reggaeton descends from the vallenato-pop crossover Vives pioneered.
listen: upstream & heresource: Billboard — 20 Questions With Manuel Turizo (Carlos Vives was his first concert, aged seven) ↗
1993
La Gota FriaCarlos Vives
2017
Una Lady Como TuManuel Turizo
listen forPut Vives's accordion-driven 'La Gota Fria' next to Turizo's 'Una Lady Como Tu' — both take a lilting Colombian-coast groove and a warm, unhurried melody and dress it for pop radio, Turizo trading the accordion for a plucked, sun-warmed acoustic hook.
Don Omar2000s · Reggaeton / Latin hip hop / Urban pop
Asked to name his biggest influences, Turizo reached for two Latin acts — 'I love Sin Bandera, Don Omar' — a romantic pop duo and one of reggaeton's foundational voices, which is exactly the seam his own music runs along. The core template Turizo works in, a romantic melodic vocal riding the dembow pulse, traces back to the early-2000s reggaeton Don Omar helped define and take global.
listen: upstream & heresource: Mixtape Madness — MM Exclusive Interview ↗
2010
Danza KuduroDon Omar
2018
Vaina LocaManuel Turizo
listen forCue Don Omar's booming, dancefloor-ready 'Danza Kuduro' against Turizo's 'Vaina Loca' — both ride an insistent, party-forward reggaeton groove topped by a big singalong hook, the kind of crossover momentum Don Omar built a decade earlier.