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How La India Revolutionized Salsa Music & ‘Never Looked Back’
La India, set to receive the Pioneer Award at Billboard Latin Women in Music 2024, revolutionized salsa music in the 1990s.
Although it’s one of her greatest hits, La India was hesitant about recording “Ese Hombre,” the 1994 song that ultimately became a certified anthem for Latin women across generations. Finding inspiration from one of her favorite artists ( Rocío Jurado, who sang the song in the ’70s) and a nudge from renowned hitmaker Sergio George(who produced her breakthrough 1994 album Dicen Que Soy, home to “Ese Hombre,” and assured her the song would be a hit), La India belted the lyrics, about a man who is “a false, vain clown who is also mean and spiteful,” over her signature blend of salsa with an R&B and hip-hop sensibility. “My grandma nurtured me with music,” says La India, who grew up in the South Bronx area in New York listening to myriad genres, including hip-hop, salsa, pop and rock.
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