Grammy-Nominated Songwriter Edgar Barrera on Representing Latin Music at 2024 Show: ‘I Already Feel Like a Winner’
variety.comThania Garcia Edgar Barrera is a Grammys rarity: The Mexican-American, Texas-born producer and songwriter is the only (and first) Latin act up for songwriter of the year at the 2024 awards.
Less happily, he is also the only Latin act to appear in a Grammy category that isn’t Latin music-specific. Be that as it may, those feats speak to his towering achievements: He has become the go-to songwriter for top-charting acts looking to expand their musical range (he’s responsible for pairing Bad Bunny with the Tejano band Grupo Frontera) and shares songwriting credits with Madonna, Ariana Grande, Maluma, Karol G, Shakira and Peso Pluma, among numerous others.
Here, Barrera shares the philosophy behind his songwriting style and reflects on his blockbuster year. A common thread in the songs you’ve worked on features artists testing sounds that they aren’t known for.
What is that like? I have a lot of fun taking an artist out of their comfort zone. It makes my job interesting. [“De Vuelta Pa’ La Vuelta”] with Marc Anthony is a salsa record and it wouldn’t have worked as anything else, but Daddy Yankee fit right in as a feature.
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