Sofía Reyes Reveals the Journey of Her Mal De Amores Album and Its Epic Collabs
Sofía Reyes' powerful new album Mal de Amores dropped earlier this month, and the fact it's already hit the top 10 of Spotify's Top Albums Debut Global chart is proof it's here to stay.
The 17-track album is captivating from start to finish, and dotted with some of the most epic collabs, including tracks featuring Maria Becerra, Rita Ora, Jason Derulo, Becky G and many more. The album was nearly six years in the making, and now that it's finally here, we had to know how it came to be. We got the opportunity to chat with María herself about Mal de Amores, what the songs mean to her, and the other talented artists who helped make it possible.
Sweety High: How do you feel that the songs on Mal de Amores sum you up as an artist in the present moment? What does the title "Mal de Amores" mean to you, and why did that song feel like the perfect title track for this album?
Sofía Reyes: Well, it's been a journey for almost six years. I feel like I've evolved so much as a person. Obviously, me telling the stories of my journeys of love and my relationships have been very liberating. I always feel like when you write things or you sing things, you learn as you put them out, if that even makes sense. It's been a journey where I feel like I've grown so much and understood different sides of love. I discovered that through heartbreak, I was also learning to love. That's why I decided to call this album Mal De Amores. It taught me so much. It's very healing.
Honestly, it happened after the "Mal de Amores" song. We wrote "Mal De Amores," I love the song so much, and we decided that it's a great name for the full album. I realized the meaning and it felt really strong and it felt right.
SH: How did your collabs with Maria Becerra and Becky G on this album come about? What was it like to work with them each on those tracks?
SR: Well, with "Mal De Amores," I thought about Becky G right away. I wanted to work with her for a while. I sent her the song. I didn't think twice. She loved it and everything happened really fast. I could tell she really loved it. She kept sending me videos, and all her team would come to me like, "We love 'Mal De Amores'! Becky loves it!" It just felt right. I love Becky so much. She inspires me so much for real.
For Maria Becerra, I didn't know her personally. My team sent "Marte" to her. She loved it and like literally three days after we were at the studio in Miami writing the new section, which is the section that she sings, and the outro. That's where we actually met, and she is so loving, and so talented. I'm really, really proud of what she's achieving right now in life. She deserves the best and it's an honor for me too. Also, I get to share a song with her. Hopefully we get to do more music together.
SH: Can you tell us a little bit about the producers you worked with on this album? What do you think they uniquely added to the album?
MB: "The album started with "1, 2, 3." Jon Leone is the producer of the song. Ricky Montaner also produced with him a couple of things. It was just the four of us: Jon, Ricky, Nicole [Zignago], and myself. And then I started working with Chaz Mishan for years. With Shari Short and Omar [Tavarez], and a bunch of great artists, I did "R.I.P." with Chaz. We wanted to find something that felt like the following-up of "1, 2, 3," and so we wrote "RIP," and "Corbata" as well with Jhay Cortez. After that, I met Thom Bridges. I met him a long time ago, like five years ago or so. Before the pandemic, he moved to L.A. and his studio, is in my studio, too, so we just started working so much, especially during the pandemic. We wouldn't see anybody, but come to the studio every single day. So, we started creating, and we became really good friends. And then I found out that we have the same creative taste, and we are both very hungry to explore and have fun and try new stuff and learn. And so, we ended up doing the rest of the album together. In "Casualidad," I also worked with Jon Leone and Daramola— amazing people, too. I also had a session with Ali Stone. She was part of the production and songwriting for "Pregunta Loca." Also, I did "Mujer" with Chaz and Shari. And I did "Mal De Amores," I with Andres Torres and Mauricio Rengifo.
They definitely added their essence to the album. You can tell that "Mujer" and "Corbata" are very Chaz. And then you go to Jon Leone in "1, 2, 3" and "Casualidad," and there's something that's very Jon Leone. Also, Thom co-produced "Casualidad" and the rest of the songs are produced mainly by Thom. They have his mark, you can really hear it. He comes from Amsterdam, from a very specific background. They have a very beautiful aesthetic, and you can hear it in every song that Thom produced.
('Mal de Amores' via Warner Music Latina)
Can't stop listening to the album? Click HERE to read our interview with Sofía's collaborator Maria Becerra on 2020's "Confiésalo."