Latest news with #Rayo
USA Today
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
J Balvin talks 'Mixteip' album, fatherhood and taking it easy: 'Let life surprise me'
J Balvin has earned his superstar stripes, and now it's time to vacilar (have fun). The multiplatinum, Grammy-nominated Colombian singer is remapping his musical boundaries on his latest release "Mixteip" (out now). The experimental, 10-track mixtape sees Balvin playfully expand his signature reggaeton sound with fusions of hip-hop, merengue, salsa and drill rap. "I feel confident that I gave my 1,000% on this project. The rest is out of my hands," Balvin tells USA TODAY. "We're taking it more easy now. Of course, you want the mixtape to be successful and the songs to become a smash, but … I'd rather let life surprise me with it." Coming off the release of 2024's "Rayo," an eclectic album that broke sonic boundaries for Balvin, the singer continues to be fueled by a sense of creative freedom. "You suffer less," he explains, because you're not battling "high expectations." "Maybe because I'm more mature now, that helps too," says Balvin, who turned 40 in May. "It makes me feel way more stable, not caring about things that I used to that hurt me a lot." Why J Balvin channeled reggaeton nostalgia on 'Zun Zun' Balvin may be reggaeton royalty now, but he knows he's part of a larger dynasty. The singer, who made his debut with 2013's "La Familia," has scored 38 No. 1 hits on Billboard's Latin Rhythm Airplay chart, won three Latin Grammys for best urban album and was previously dubbed "the undeniable leader of a second-generation reggaeton revolution" by Guinness World Records. On "Mixteip," Balvin pays homage to the genre's roots with sensual banger "Zun Zun." The track, a collaboration with Justin Quiles and Lenny Tavárez, includes a shoutout to iconic production duo Luny Tunes, while its music video features a racy dance party that evokes the feel-good hedonism of classic reggaeton. "If it wasn't for the 2000s or the late '90s, we wouldn't be (where we are)," Balvin says. "It just takes me to the old times when I dreamed to be an artist, so we wanted to take that sound back." Belinda interview: Princess of Latin pop feels 'powerful' on comeback album 'Indómita' J Balvin gushes about fatherhood, 'amazing' girlfriend Valentina Ferrer When Balvin isn't cranking out the hits, he's a doting papi. The "Mi Gente" singer became a father in 2021 when he and longtime girlfriend Valentina Ferrer welcomed son Rio. "No matter what, my son has a beautiful and amazing mother who is raising him (in) the best way possible," Balvin says. While fatherhood hasn't softened Balvin's artistic edge, the singer reflects that family life has reshaped his experience of making music. "My son makes my life better, happier. And when you feel that you're stable with your emotions, you have that health to go into the studio." And while Rio shares his father's love of singing, Balvin says his parental focus is providing the 4-year-old with a grounded upbringing. "I would never pressure my son to be a part of this industry. I think there's better ways to be happier," Balvin says. But "whatever he wants to do, we're going to support him 1,000%" J Balvin collaborates with childhood idol Gilberto Santa Rosa on 'Mixteip' Balvin can cross off one more item on his musical bucket list. The reggaetonero nabbed a collaboration with Puerto Rican singer and salsa icon Gilberto Santa Rosa for the "Mixteip" track "Misterio," a bold mash-up that seamlessly weaves the singers' tropical and Latin urban styles. Balvin said Santa Rosa, who made history as the first tropical salsa singer to perform at New York City's Carnegie Hall, was a childhood influence, adding that Santa Rosa's live album "blew my mind." "It's one of my happiest moments in the last few years," says Balvin of the organic collaboration. "We were just doing music, and we were like, 'This song would be perfect for Gilberto.'" The two are slated to take the stage together July 24 for a performance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." 'I still have many things left to do': Rock icon Fito Páez isn't looking at legacy yet How J Balvin is using 'the power of music' to uplift the Latino community Balvin will always rep his Latino Gang, an affectionate shout-out to the Hispanic community that has become a lyrical call to arms. The singer, who hails from Medellín, Colombia, had his Latin heritage on full display during his July 13 performance at the FIFA Club World Cup when his ensemble of backup dancers sported brightly colored tops that mirrored the design of the Colombian flag. "It was beautiful that he we had the opportunity and (were able) to embrace and show the Latino culture and Colombia to the whole world," Balvin says. Although Balvin isn't an activist, the singer recognizes the power of his unapologetic cultural pride, especially amid a contentious political climate for the U.S. Latino community following the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. "I don't like politics. I never talk about it; it's just not my thing," Balvin says. "My passion is about human rights and using my platform – the power of music – to speak out about it. … Supporting our brothers and just creating the awareness that they're not alone."
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rayo Vallecano celebrate banner night: ‘25 years later, Europe sees us again'
Rayo Vallecano's fans rolled out the banner at 10.46pm on the last Saturday of the season and rolled it away again a minute later. There had been a sneak glimpse of the message they hoped to stretch across the one end of a ground that is actually an end and not just a wall at risk of falling down, but it wasn't quite time for the big reveal. For now all they wanted was to pull 40 metres of fabric into place, huge white letters proudly painted on a red background, ready for when, if, it actually was. They certainly didn't intend to tempt fate; it wasn't done yet, history still not made and, God knows, if there is a place where anything can go wrong, where football and life isn't always kind but is always lived, it is here. There was though a brief look before the banner was hidden again behind the back row – something about years, Europe and us – and they were close now. There were 10 minutes plus added time left and the side from the Independent People's Republic of Vallekas, the last of the neighbourhood teams, not just in the barrio but of the barrio, were on the verge of qualifying for the Conference League. All they had to do was beat Real Mallorca and it turned out they wouldn't even have to do that: they had taken 28 shots without scoring but it still didn't matter because up in Vitoria, the team that could take the place from them hadn't scored either, Osasuna losing 1-0 to Alavés. Or so they thought until, with two minutes to go and Rayo having had time and a two-goal cushion on their side, Osasuna equalised. A final day that hadn't had much drama until then, Rayo briefly in a Europa League place and never out of a Conference League position, suddenly had some, fate now being decided on some far away field, everything on hold, no control over their own destiny. The final whistle went in Vallecas at 10.59pm with the score 0-0; 352km away, though, Osasuna and Alavés were still playing and Rayo knew a goal up there and it would be over. Osasuna would be going to Europe in their place, the impossible dream exactly that. Some Rayo players slipped to the floor exhausted, just sitting there, unable to do anything more now: their 38 games were gone, the final minutes of someone else's would decide what they had been worth. Pacha Espino held up a finger on each hand: 1-1. A huddle gathered around Dani Cardenas who had the game on his phone and was tapping at the screen to get it to move. In the stands, supporters desperately tried to get their mobiles to work; the more of them tried, the fewer of them succeeded. Some, the sensible ones, had old-school transistor radios on the go. Down on the pitch, Rayo's coach Iñigo Pérez sought refuge in club captain Óscar Trejo. 'That was my selfishness: he gives me a feeling of security,' Pérez said later. 'We knew Osasuna had equalised. In that moment, you start to think of that classic footballing scenario where the team that does everything, that creates chances, that pushes, that has to win doesn't. In those seconds your heart sinks, imagining that the blow is on its way.' Thirty seconds passed, 60, then 90, ever more convinced the cruelty was coming. Until two minutes later the final whistle at last went on Alavés-Osasuna, the huddle broke, fists in the air, and Vallecas exploded, Pérez and Trejo skipping off arms around each other, running in delirious circles. 'I'll probably look back on the footage and feel embarrassed, but I enjoyed it,' Pérez said; they all did. They were only 15 seconds into the invasion when goalkeeper Augusto Batalla had given his shorts away. Fans did knee slides, or just lay on the grass. They cut themselves chunks of turf, burnt off bits of the net to keep and swung from the crossbar. They held their players, hugged and cried. Kids went up on shoulders, twirling scarfs. 'They deserve this, we all do,' Trejo said. 'This is a club made to suffer, where happiness is rare; on days like this you would pay to be a footballer.' Someone tried to heave Isi Palazón on his back and ended in a heap; others had better luck. At 11.02pm, from the back of the stands, the banner was raised, a proper look this time: '25 years later, Europe sees us again.' It's more than a quarter of a century, which is why when the chant went round declaring 'Vallecas entera se va de borrachera' – the whole of Vallecas is going on the piss – no one could blame them. Rayo have only ever played in Europe once before, in the 2001 Uefa Cup, when they reached the quarter-finals having been handed a place thanks to the fair play table. The only time they had actually qualified, they were banned from taking the place because the club was in administration. Yes, they had looked like they might get close under Andoni Iraola. But now, the man who was supposed to be his assistant at Bournemouth, yet who the UK home office said could not make a contribution to English football, had led Rayo there for the first time ever. It is a monumental achievement, made all the better, worth celebrating, by how monumentally out of place it all feels, way beyond the fact that no team in the first division has a lower income. So out of place in fact that you genuinely wonder if they will be allowed to play European football at their place. 'I don't need to run through the difficulties we have here,' Pérez said. 'All you have to do is take a little walk around to see it.' A walk around the stadium where there's no stand at one end, the pitch instead overlooked by flats – a Fede Valverde shot literally flew into someone's living room – and where concrete crumbles, pipes are rusty, and water comes in through the roof. Where 'water' flows across toilet floors but not out of the taps. Rayo have never won anything, or even played a final. Three weeks ago, thieves broke in and took everything. Police are looking for a man with a carpet, etc and so on. Actually, thieves really did break in and police are looking for a man with 60 pairs of boots. The players refused to train in protest because it was the third time it has happened. Staff have to pay for much of their own material and gym equipment has been chewed on by pests. This is the only club with no online ticket sales and they're not very good at telling anyone when the actual ticket offices will open, either. In the buildup to this game, hundreds of fans queued overnight, sleeping in the street, just in case they opened the next day. They didn't. There may be no owner – no man at all – more despised by fans than Rayo's. 'Sometimes you think: 'Bloody hell, how are we where we are with what we have?'' left winger Álvaro García said, and that was before they had got here, to Europe. 'Rayo don't have the normal things that other grounds and other clubs have.' As one visiting manager put it on his way outone day, this is a place that needs 'disinfecting'. And yet this, that same manager says, is special, real, the connection authentic, different, like something from another time. At the end of Saturday's win, Mallorca goalkeeper Dominik Greif said he had never experienced anything like it: 'Incredible: it is the dream of any player to have fans like this.' Real Betis 1-1 Valencia, Real Madrid 2-0 Real Sociedad, Leganés 3-0 Real Valladolid, Espanyol 2-0 Las Palmas, Alavés 1-1 Osasuna, Getafe 1-2 Celta Vigo, Rayo Vallecano 0-0 Mallorca, Girona 0-4 Atlético Madrid, Villarreal 4-2 Sevilla, Athletic Club 0-2 Barcelona There is something about Vallecas, Madrid's self-consciously working class, left-wing neighbourhood, and the team that represents it. When new players arrive, supporters take them around and show them. There is always a risk of romanticising poverty, justifying failures as character and fans really would like some basic amenities. Players would too. Yet at Rayo in the place of the resources and facilities many clubs take as standard, goes pride and identity, a different feel about the dressing room, the whole place, something that brings it all back to the start, some of the trappings and traps of professionalism stripped away. Something that makes a European qualification feel so special, matter so much; something, perhaps, that makes it possible in the first place, changing mindsets and attitudes. 'We're a poor club, a humble one,' Pérez said. 'But that first day, the players laid aside their shirts with their names and numbers on and left themselves entirely naked, giving absolutely everything they have. In professional football where everyone has a name, where they are in a good position economically, it's very hard to achieve that. And yet there has not been a single day when they have not done so. Those weaknesses we have bring many strengths.' The biggest party they had ever seen was earned the hard way, everyone forced to wait just a little longer before they could say it: Rayo Vallecano – Rayo Vallecano! – were on their way into Europe. First though they were on their way round the neighbourhood, a big, blue, suitably battered looking bus making its way down Avenida Albufera to collect the them. 'That's the first I had heard of it, but I will follow,' Pérez said. 'After the game I hugged Batalla. He was crying. And he said: 'Mister, tonight you will come out, tonight you will celebrate', because he knows I never do. I said: well, tomorrow I've got to think about the Conference League. But today, I'm enjoying this. I promise you. My granddad used to say to me effort equals reward. That's not always true, but I'm happy that tonight it is.' Pos Team P GD Pts 1 Barcelona 38 63 88 2 Real Madrid 38 40 84 3 Atletico Madrid 38 38 76 4 Athletic Bilbao 38 25 70 5 Villarreal 38 20 70 6 Real Betis 38 7 60 7 Celta Vigo 38 2 55 8 Rayo Vallecano 38 -4 52 9 Osasuna 38 -4 52 10 Mallorca 38 -9 48 11 Real Sociedad 38 -11 46 12 Valencia 38 -10 46 13 Getafe 38 -5 42 14 Espanyol 38 -11 42 15 Alaves 38 -10 42 16 Girona 38 -16 41 17 Sevilla 38 -13 41 18 Leganes 38 -17 40 19 Las Palmas 38 -21 32 20 Valladolid 38 -64 16
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Rayo Vallecano celebrate banner night: ‘25 years later, Europe sees us again'
Rayo Vallecano's fans rolled out the banner at 10.46pm on the last Saturday of the season and rolled it away again a minute later. There had been a sneak glimpse of the message they hoped to stretch across the one end of a ground that is actually an end and not just a wall at risk of falling down, but it wasn't quite time for the big reveal. For now all they wanted was to pull 40 metres of fabric into place, huge white letters proudly painted on a red background, ready for when, if, it actually was. They certainly didn't intend to tempt fate; it wasn't done yet, history still not made and, God knows, if there is a place where anything can go wrong, where football and life isn't always kind but is always lived, it is here. There was though a brief look before the banner was hidden again behind the back row – something about years, Europe and us – and they were close now. There were 10 minutes plus added time left and the side from the Independent People's Republic of Vallekas, the last of the neighbourhood teams, not just in the barrio but of the barrio, were on the verge of qualifying for the Conference League. All they had to do was beat Real Mallorca and it turned out they wouldn't even have to do that: they had taken 28 shots without scoring but it still didn't matter because up in Vitoria, the team that could take the place from them hadn't scored either, Osasuna losing 1-0 to Alavés. Advertisement Or so they thought until, with two minutes to go and Rayo having had time and a two-goal cushion on their side, Osasuna equalised. A final day that hadn't had much drama until then, Rayo briefly in a Europa League place and never out of a Conference League position, suddenly had some, fate now being decided on some far away field, everything on hold, no control over their own destiny. The final whistle went in Vallecas at 10.59pm with the score 0-0; 352km away, though, Osasuna and Alavés were still playing and Rayo knew a goal up there and it would be over. Osasuna would be going to Europe in their place, the impossible dream exactly that. Some Rayo players slipped to the floor exhausted, just sitting there, unable to do anything more now: their 38 games were gone, the final minutes of someone else's would decide what they had been worth. Pacha Espino held up a finger on each hand: 1-1. A huddle gathered around Dani Cardenas who had the game on his phone and was tapping at the screen to get it to move. In the stands, supporters desperately tried to get their mobiles to work; the more of them tried, the fewer of them succeeded. Some, the sensible ones, had old-school transistor radios on the go. Down on the pitch, Rayo's coach Iñigo Pérez sought refuge in club captain Óscar Trejo. 'That was my selfishness: he gives me a feeling of security,' Pérez said later. 'We knew Osasuna had equalised. In that moment, you start to think of that classic footballing scenario where the team that does everything, that creates chances, that pushes, that has to win doesn't. In those seconds your heart sinks, imagining that the blow is on its way.' Thirty seconds passed, 60, then 90, ever more convinced the cruelty was coming. Until two minutes later the final whistle at last went on Alavés-Osasuna, the huddle broke, fists in the air, and Vallecas exploded, Pérez and Trejo skipping off arms around each other, running in delirious circles. 'I'll probably look back on the footage and feel embarrassed, but I enjoyed it,' Pérez said; they all did. They were only 15 seconds into the invasion when goalkeeper Augusto Batalla had given his shorts away. Fans did knee slides, or just lay on the grass. They cut themselves chunks of turf, burnt off bits of the net to keep and swung from the crossbar. They held their players, hugged and cried. Kids went up on shoulders, twirling scarfs. 'They deserve this, we all do,' Trejo said. 'This is a club made to suffer, where happiness is rare; on days like this you would pay to be a footballer.' Someone tried to heave Isi Palazón on his back and ended in a heap; others had better luck. At 11.02pm, from the back of the stands, the banner was raised, a proper look this time: '25 years later, Europe sees us again.' Advertisement It's more than a quarter of a century, which is why when the chant went round declaring 'Vallecas entera se va de borrachera' – the whole of Vallecas is going on the piss – no one could blame them. Rayo have only ever played in Europe once before, in the 2001 Uefa Cup, when they reached the quarter-finals having been handed a place thanks to the fair play table. The only time they had actually qualified, they were banned from taking the place because the club was in administration. Yes, they had looked like they might get close under Andoni Iraola. But now, the man who was supposed to be his assistant at Bournemouth, yet who the UK home office said could not make a contribution to English football, had led Rayo there for the first time ever. It is a monumental achievement, made all the better, worth celebrating, by how monumentally out of place it all feels, way beyond the fact that no team in the first division has a lower income. So out of place in fact that you genuinely wonder if they will be allowed to play European football at their place. 'I don't need to run through the difficulties we have here,' Pérez said. 'All you have to do is take a little walk around to see it.' A walk around the stadium where there's no stand at one end, the pitch instead overlooked by flats – a Fede Valverde shot literally flew into someone's living room – and where concrete crumbles, pipes are rusty, and water comes in through the roof. Where 'water' flows across toilet floors but not out of the taps. Rayo have never won anything, or even played a final. Three weeks ago, thieves broke in and took everything. Police are looking for a man with a carpet, etc and so on. Actually, thieves really did break in and police are looking for a man with 60 pairs of boots. The players refused to train in protest because it was the third time it has happened. Staff have to pay for much of their own material and gym equipment has been chewed on by pests. This is the only club with no online ticket sales and they're not very good at telling anyone when the actual ticket offices will open, either. In the buildup to this game, hundreds of fans queued overnight, sleeping in the street, just in case they opened the next day. They didn't. There may be no owner – no man at all – more despised by fans than Rayo's. 'Sometimes you think: 'Bloody hell, how are we where we are with what we have?'' left winger Álvaro García said, and that was before they had got here, to Europe. 'Rayo don't have the normal things that other grounds and other clubs have.' As one visiting manager put it on his way outone day, this is a place that needs 'disinfecting'. And yet this, that same manager says, is special, real, the connection authentic, different, like something from another time. At the end of Saturday's win, Mallorca goalkeeper Dominik Greif said he had never experienced anything like it: 'Incredible: it is the dream of any player to have fans like this.' Advertisement Real Betis 1-1 Valencia, Real Madrid 2-0 Real Sociedad, Leganés 3-0 Real Valladolid, Espanyol 2-0 Las Palmas, Alavés 1-1 Osasuna, Getafe 1-2 Celta Vigo, Rayo Vallecano 0-0 Mallorca, Girona 0-4 Atlético Madrid, Villarreal 4-2 Sevilla, Athletic Club 0-2 Barcelona There is something about Vallecas, Madrid's self-consciously working class, left-wing neighbourhood, and the team that represents it. When new players arrive, supporters take them around and show them. There is always a risk of romanticising poverty, justifying failures as character and fans really would like some basic amenities. Players would too. Yet at Rayo in the place of the resources and facilities many clubs take as standard, goes pride and identity, a different feel about the dressing room, the whole place, something that brings it all back to the start, some of the trappings and traps of professionalism stripped away. Something that makes a European qualification feel so special, matter so much; something, perhaps, that makes it possible in the first place, changing mindsets and attitudes. 'We're a poor club, a humble one,' Pérez said. 'But that first day, the players laid aside their shirts with their names and numbers on and left themselves entirely naked, giving absolutely everything they have. In professional football where everyone has a name, where they are in a good position economically, it's very hard to achieve that. And yet there has not been a single day when they have not done so. Those weaknesses we have bring many strengths.' The biggest party they had ever seen was earned the hard way, everyone forced to wait just a little longer before they could say it: Rayo Vallecano – Rayo Vallecano! – were on their way into Europe. First though they were on their way round the neighbourhood, a big, blue, suitably battered looking bus making its way down Avenida Albufera to collect the them. 'That's the first I had heard of it, but I will follow,' Pérez said. 'After the game I hugged Batalla. He was crying. And he said: 'Mister, tonight you will come out, tonight you will celebrate', because he knows I never do. I said: well, tomorrow I've got to think about the Conference League. But today, I'm enjoying this. I promise you. My granddad used to say to me effort equals reward. That's not always true, but I'm happy that tonight it is.'
Scotsman
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
More than just a half million kind of Friday
An Edinburgh grandfather received the call of a lifetime from Greatest Hits Radio Edinburgh's Gemma Atkinson on Friday evening to reveal he'd won £533,000, after entering the station's epic 'Make Me A Winner' competition. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Colin Christie (71) was listening to the station at home and preparing for a relaxed weekend when he received the call that that left him, in his own words 'shell shocked'. He explained: 'I listen to the radio all the time as I was used to having it on in the background during my years working as a taxi driver. I've been listening out for the Make Me A Winner competition since it started and have entered regularly – I just had the mindset that someone has to win. I never dreamed it would be me!' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Originally from Musselburgh, Colin and his late wife Sue brought up sons Scott (43) and Neil (41) in the city, where they lived and worked, with Colin retiring to care full time for his nurse wife Sue, when she was tragically diagnosed with ovarian cancer - she sadly passed away three years later. Colin Christie. Now living a stones-throw from both sons, Colin is also a grandad to Olivia (13), a promising young footballer who talents are fast getting her noticed, even as far as the national team. Colin continued: 'Family means everything to me and it's so special to have them close by to be able to call in and have a cup of tea and a catch up with them any time. 'Neither of my sons would believe me when I told them about the win and I still don't think it has sunk in for any of us yet. It's a wonderful feeling to know that it has made the future so much more secure for all of us and I can make sure that everyone is looked after. It's simply removed all my worries and will allow us to just enjoy life together as a family even more.' You could be a winner too! Go to or listen to your favourite radio station on the Rayo app for your chance to win a life-changing amount of money this Friday (May 23).
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
🤕Betis reveal Sabaly's medical report
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here. The player had to leave the match against Rayo early and suffers from a left acromioclavicular joint news for Pellegrini at Betis as it seems he won't be able to count on Sabaly for the two remaining league matches and is a doubt for the Conference final. 🚑 PARTE MÉDICO | Youssouf Sabaly sufre un esguince acromioclavicular en su hombro izquierdo 😔🆙¡Mucho ánimo! 💪➡ — Real Betis Balompié 🌴💚 (@RealBetis) May 16, 2025 The player suffers from a left acromioclavicular joint sprain, which forced him to leave the match against Rayo early, and there is no established recovery time. 📸 Justin Berl - 2024 Getty Images
