Here is the story behind the Colombian national team’s bilingual Copa América song “Parceros United”

Colombians living in the United States have a new anthem for the Copa America. Two weeks after the song “Parceros United” was released as Colombia kicked off its first match in Houston, Texas, the catchy bilingual cumbia is making the rounds on the Internet, with videos of the song blaring in bars, restaurants and TV parties from Arizona to Los Angeles. official English-language account of the Copa America even shared a TikTok about Colombia’s style of playing with “Parceros United” as the voice. The song was performed by Butch Vega, Santibel, La Fragua and Partners Uniteda group of artists collaborating across borders for the first time to create an ode to football, their homeland and the experiences of those who immigrated and now live somewhere in between. Remezcla spoke to the minds behind the online community Parceros United, Santibel and Butch Vega, about the creation of the unofficial bilingual anthem.

The timing couldn’t be better, as the Copa America has returned to the USA after eight years that bring with it the excitement of football and a rare opportunity for immigrant fans to experience their national teams in person. For those who can’t make it to the stadium, the energy and passion of almost daily football feels, well, like home. adjacentincluding hour-long tailgates with live bands and dancing, as well as restaurants and bars filling up for watch parties, with over a million viewers turn on every time you play.

Football has always been a unifying force, allowing people who live far away to feel closer to home, even if only temporarily. And music is such an integral part of the traditions surrounding football. It is not only Shakira sings the official song of the Copa America – it is the club songs, the chants, the anthems, the canticos in the stadiums. Thousands of fans sing traditional songs in chorus in stadiums thousands of kilometers from home.

Friends Ronald Peña and Dani Sandovalwho run the popular online community Parceros United, say that’s what sparked the idea to create the anthem “Parceros United.” They watched a Colombian soccer game and realized that many of these diehard fans, like them, had grown up or even been born in the United States. If music is so important to the tradition of soccer, and if music represents the culture so well, why wasn’t there a song that expressed the feeling of being a Colombian away from home? So they set out to make just that happen.

“It clicked. We wanted to create something that reflected the experiences of fans who grew up in two countries and that embodied what it was like to feel so much love for your homeland, even from afar,” Peña says.

They enlisted the help of Colombian artist Santibel, with whom they recalled a conversation earlier that year. “Santibel talked about returning to Colombia after living in Miami for years and this growing desire to reconnect with his roots and his identity,” says Sandoval. Santibel, a songwriter and producer with a handful of writing credits, including Selena Gomez’s “Vicio,” wanted to make music for himself. He decided to stay in Medellin permanently and focused all his creative energy on honoring traditional sounds, incorporating traditional cumbia, joropo, boleros and live percussion into his new work.

Santibel brought in La Fragua, a popular band that was innovating in Medellin with their “wild cumbia” and glamorous tropical fusions. With producer LowKey, they recorded each instrument live and created a beat based on the traditional sounds of cumbia. The finishing touch came in the form of an English rap verse from the Atlanta-based Colombian artist Butch Vega. A little here, a little here.

We wanted to create something that reflects the experiences of fans growing up in two countries and embodies what it’s like to feel so much love for your homeland, even from far away..

Like Santibel, Butch Vega recently traveled to Colombia on a similar search for identity. Vega was born in Bogota but soon emigrated and grew up listening to hip-hop in Atlanta. “I’ve been making music and rapping my whole life,” he said. “What I brought with me was that my family grew up in that culture, but my sound was shaped by my experiences growing up in the U.S., so I always stay true to that in my music.” Like many others who grew up between two cultures, he admits there can be tensions when it comes to identity. “But there’s no wrong way to be who you are,” he clarifies.

Sandoval adds that when he heard the finished version, he immediately knew Vega was the missing link: “She embodied who we are. Music is about shared experiences. We wanted our audience to feel seen.”

There is no fusion without a solid pillar of tradition. Parceros United’s song resonates with listeners because it’s not about being a perfect representation, but about building your own traditions and integrating them into the larger culture. As Colombia rides a winning streak into the semifinals of the Copa America, the Parceros United team hopes their song will continue to spread joy and acceptance.

Listen to “Parceros United” below.