Bichota

"Bichota"
Single by Karol G
from the album KG0516
LanguageSpanish
ReleasedOctober 23, 2020 (2020-10-23)
GenreReggaeton
Length2:58
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Ovy on the Drums
Karol G singles chronology
"Caramelo (Remix)"
(2020) 		"Bichota"
(2020) 		"Location"
(2021)
Music video
"BICHOTA" on YouTube

"Bichota" is a song by Colombian singer-songwriter Karol G. It was written by Karol G, Lenny Tavárez, J Quiles, Cristián Salazar and Ovy on the Drums, and produced by the latter.[1] The song was released on October 23, 2020, through Universal Music Latino, as the third single from her third studio album KG0516.[2]

Background

[edit]

In mid-October 2020, "Bichota" was teased several days prior to its release through an announcement via Karol G's social media platforms, first with the letter "B" and an emoji of "coming soon". A subsequent letter was released each day until the word "bichota" was spelled-out. The song was then officially announced on October 19, 2020, with a teaser for the music video.[3] The single's cover artwork, shot by photographer Alfredo Flores, was revealed the following day. The song was released on October 23, 2020.

The word "bichota" is a play-on-words, a feminine form of the Puerto Rican term bichote. Pronounced with a slight Spanish accent;[4] specifically in the context of Puerto Rican underground culture, a "bichote" is a big-shot, a top-ranking member of a gang, a mobster, or capo ("boss" in Spanish). The bichote is considered highly regarded, very important and influential, a reputation he has typically earned through repeated success on the black market, namely in the moving of large amounts of illegal drugs, jewelry or firearms, among other activities.

Given the history of the word, Karol G had asked her boyfriend, Puerto Rican musician Anuel AA, if there were ever bichotas, or female bigshots, and the answer was "no". Thus she decided to make it her own, giving the word a slightly new meaning. However, rather than the context of illicit activities, the "embodiment" of bichota energy, Karol G stated, is: "A moment of feeling sexy, flirtatious, daring, strong, empowered, and to a certain extent, translates into personal motivation and self-confidence. We are all super 'Bichotas' inside. It’s about believing and working so that the rest of the world can see it too."[5]

Critical reception

[edit]

Billboard stated how the song set the tone for the album, saying: "She came headstrong on the Billboard Hot 100-charting banger with a fierce attitude, fierce beats, and fierce lyrics."[6]

Commercial performance

[edit]

"Bichota" debuted at #97, on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart dated for December 5, 2020. The song reached its peak in its 10th week at #72, for the chart dated February 13, 2021. At the time, the song was the highest-charting Spanish-language song by a female soloist on the Billboard Hot 100, until the release of "Telepatía" (2021) by Kali Uchis.

However, on the US Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart dated for November 7, 2020 the song debuted at #7, and reached its peak at #3 on the chart dated for December 5, 2020. On the Billboard Argentina Hot 100 chart, the song reached #1.

The song received a double Latin diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on November 24, 2021, for sales equating to over 1.2 million units. In Mexico, the song was certified 21× diamond and 3× platinum by the Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (AMPROFON), for sales equivalent to 6.4 million units, becoming the highest-certified song by a solo act in the country, and second overall behind her other hit single, "Tusa" (2019) with Nicki Minaj.

Awards and nominations

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Awards and nominations for "Bichota"
Year Ceremony Category Result
2021 Heat Latin Music Awards Best Video Nominated
Latin Grammy Awards Best Reggaeton Performance Won
MTV Millennial Awards Hit of the Year Nominated
MTV Video Music Awards Best Latin Nominated
Premios Juventud El Traffic Jam Won
La Coreo Más Hot (Hottest Choreography) Won
Social Dance Challenge Won
Premios Nuestra Tierra Urban Song Won
2022 BMI Awards Award Winning Song Won
iHeartRadio Music Awards Latin Pop/Reggaeton Song of the Year Nominated
Premios Lo Nuestro Song of the Year Won
Urban Song of the Year Won
Premios Nuestra Tierra Urban Song Won

Music video

[edit]

The music video for "Bichota" was directed by Colin Tilley and was released on Karol G's YouTube channel on October 23, 2020.[7] As of 2024, the music video has accumulated over 1.3 billion views, becoming one of several by the singer to surpass one billion views, along with "Culpables" (2018), "Tusa" (2019), "El Makinon" (2021), "Provenza" (2022) and "TQG" (2023).

A second music video was released exclusively on her Facebook page on November 12, 2020. As of January 2023, it has over 337 million views.[8]

Charts

[edit]

Weekly charts

[edit]
Weekly chart performance for "Bichota"
Chart (2020–2021) Peak
position
Argentina (Argentina Hot 100)[9] 1
Global 200 (Billboard)[10] 7
Bolivia (Monitor Latino)[11] 3
Chile (Monitor Latino)[12] 11
Colombia (National-Report)[13] 2
Dominican Republic (Monitor Latino)[14] 1
Paraguay (SGP)[15] 20
Peru (Monitor Latino)[16] 1
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[17] 4
US Billboard Hot 100[18] 72
US Hot Latin Songs (Billboard)[19] 3
US Latin Airplay (Billboard)[20] 1
US Latin Rhythm Airplay (Billboard)[21] 1
Venezuela (Monitor Latino)[22] 3

Year-end charts

[edit]
Year-end chart performance for "Bichota"
Chart (2021) Position
Global 200 (Billboard)[23] 62
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[24] 53
US Hot Latin Songs (Billboard)[25] 8

Certifications

[edit]
Certifications for "Bichota"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[26] Platinum 20,000*
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[27] 2× Platinum 80,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[28] Gold 40,000‡
Colombia[29][30] Gold  
Ecuador[30] Gold  
Mexico (AMPROFON)[31] 21× Diamond+3× Platinum 6,480,000‡
Peru[30] Platinum  
Portugal (AFP)[32] Gold 5,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[33] 3× Platinum 120,000‡
United States (RIAA)[34] 2× Diamond (Latin) 1,200,000‡
Streaming
Central America (CFC)[35] Diamond 35,000,000†

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

Release history

[edit]
Release history for "Bichota"
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various October 23, 2020
  • Digital download
  • streaming
[36]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "ACE Repertory". www.ascap.com. ASCAP. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  2. ^ Martoccio, Angie (March 18, 2021). "Karol G Announces New Album 'KG0516'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  3. ^ G, Karol [@karolg] (October 19, 2020). "BICHOTA 🔥🔥🔥 10/23 00:00:00". Retrieved January 12, 2023 – via Instagram.
  4. ^ Savova, Marta (April 22, 2023). "Bichota Meaning: The Evolution of a Word in Latin Music and Its Cultural Impact". Tema 21. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
  5. ^ "What's A 'Bichota'? Here Are The English Lyrics To Karol G's Daring New Hit". Billboard. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  6. ^ "Karol G Says She Was 'Born Again' With New Album 'KG0516': Here Are Five Essential Tracks". Billboard. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  7. ^ "KAROL G - BICHOTA - YouTube". www.youtube.com.
  8. ^ "¡Qué 'Bichota'! Karol G pisando fuerte con nuevo video exclusivo en Facebook". EL HERALDO (in Spanish). Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  9. ^ "Karol G – Chart History (Argentina Hot 100)" Billboard Argentina Hot 100 Singles for Karol G. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  10. ^ "Karol G Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  11. ^ "Bolivia General". charts monitorLATINO (in Spanish). Monitor Latino. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  12. ^ "Chile General". charts monitorLATINO (in Spanish). Monitor Latino. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  13. ^ "Top 100 Colombia – Semana 5 del 2021 – Del 29/01/2021 al 04/02/2021" (in Spanish). National-Report. Archived from the original on February 5, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
  14. ^ "Dominican Republic General". charts monitorLATINO (in Spanish). Monitor Latino. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  15. ^ "Top 100 de canciones de SGP, Abril 2021". Top 100 de canciones SGP (in Spanish). SGP. Retrieved May 4, 2021.
  16. ^ "Peru General". charts monitorLATINO (in Spanish). Monitor Latino. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  17. ^ "BICHOTA - KAROL G EPDM". El Portal de Música. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  18. ^ "Karol G Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
  19. ^ "Karol G Chart History (Hot Latin Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  20. ^ "Karol G Chart History (Latin Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
  21. ^ "Karol G Chart History (Latin Rhythm Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
  22. ^ "Venezuela General". charts monitorLATINO (in Spanish). Monitor Latino. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  23. ^ "Billboard Global 200 – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  24. ^ "Top 100 Songs Annual 2021". Productores de Música de España. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
  25. ^ "Hot Latin Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
  26. ^ "Universal con Karol G en Buenos Aires: Dos sold outs y galardones de Platino y Diamante" (PDF). Prensario Música (in Spanish). No. 586. June 2022. p. 32. Retrieved June 16, 2022.
  27. ^ "Brazilian single certifications – Karol G – Bichota" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved August 30, 2024.
  28. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Karol G – Bichota". Music Canada. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  29. ^ "Karol G es certificada con Disco de Oro en Colombia por "Bichota"". El Espectador (in Spanish). December 17, 2020. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
  30. ^ a b c "Karol G, una 'Bichota' con disco de oro". El Universo (in Spanish). December 16, 2020. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
  31. ^ "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved May 25, 2022. Type Karol G in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and Bichota in the box under the TÍTULO column heading.
  32. ^ "Portuguese single certifications – Karol G – Bichota" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  33. ^ "Spanish single certifications – Karol G – Bichota". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  34. ^ "American single certifications – Karol G – Bichota". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  35. ^ "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Certificación Fonográfica Centroamericana. Retrieved May 7, 2022.
  36. ^ "BICHOTA - Single de KAROL G" (in European Spanish).
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