Gender Gap and Gender Performance in Latin Collaborative Songs

4-year research project (2026-2029) funded by ANID Fondecyt Regular (1260561)

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Project abstract

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One of the most notable developments in recorded popular music in the twenty-first century has been the exponential increase in the popularity of collaborative songs. Following Duguay, this study defines collaborative song as one that is recorded by and credited to two or more independent acts. While credited collaborations are not a novel phenomenon in popular music–duets and other forms of joint performance have been present since the early days of commercially available recorded music in the early twentieth century–the prevalence of such collaborations has grown markedly since the late 1990s. This trend is particularly evident in the increasing proportion of collaborative tracks appearing at the top of popularity charts.

In Spanish-language popular music, this trend is even more pronounced. One useful metric for assessing this phenomenon is Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart, which tracks the popularity of Spanish-language songs in the United States. In the year-end Top 10 rankings, collaborative songs accounted for 70% of entries in 2017, 90% in 2018, and reached 100% in 2019. A notable recent example occurred in June 2024, when a Chilean song reached the number one position on the Hot Latin Songs chart for the first time in 34 years. Unsurprisingly, the track—"Gata Only" by FloyyMenor and Chris MJ—was a collaborative song, further underscoring the dominance of this format in the contemporary Latin music landscape.

As collaborative songs gained prominence, there was a marked decline in the representation of women artists on Billboard’s Latin music charts. For nearly half of 2015, no song with a woman as the main artist appeared on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart. Furthermore, no female-led song reached the number one position on that chart in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2018. Although the situation began to improve in 2019–with artists such as Karol G, Kali Uchis and Becky G achieving the top chart position–gender disparities persisted.

The decline in the representation of women at the top of Latin music popularity charts appears to coincide with the rise of collaborative songs as the dominant format in contemporary pop music. This temporal overlap raises important questions: To what extent are these two trends related? If a relationship does exist, is it one of mere correlation, or does it suggest a causal connection?

This project is a gender-based study of Latin collaborative songs produced over the past four decades (1986–2026). It adopts a dual methodological approach: a quantitative examination of gender gaps and a qualitative exploration of gendered performances. The quantitative component aims to assess the relationship between collaborative song formats and gender gaps in representation. Drawing on digital humanities methods, we will measure and interpret the presence of women in collaborative songs as reflected in popularity charts. To further investigate the underlying dynamics, we will employ variance decomposition techniques—commonly used in economics to analyze intergroup outcome differentials—to identify potential explanatory factors for observed gender gaps. The qualitative component seeks to determine whether gendered differences exist in the roles performed by men and women in collaborative songs, and how these roles may have evolved over time. This qualitative analysis will utilize musicological methods, including close listening and the analysis of lyrics, musical structure, performance, production, and mixing.

This proposal presents two primary scientific novelties: it constitutes the first empirical investigation of gender disparities in Spanish-language collaborative songs, and it offers the first comprehensive musicological analysis of the gender roles performed within these collaborations, including their evolution over time.

Researchers

Daniel Party, Responsible Researcher

María Fernanda Ramírez, Co-Researcher

I am an Assistant Professor at College UC and the Department of Industrial Engineering at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and an invited researcher at J-PAL LAC. My research is focused on Latin-American educational policies and interventions, studying gender bias and its effects on educational outcomes. In particular, I am interested in understanding why women are underrepresented in STEM areas, how peers' gender affects women and men differently, and what interventions can be implemented to close the gender gap at all levels of education.

I received my Ph.D. in Education with a concentration in Education Policy and Program Evaluation in 2022 and a a Master of Public Policy in 2017, both from Harvard University. Prior to joining PUC Chile, I was a postdoctoral research fellow at JPAL-LAC.

I was a founder of Educación 2020, a Chilean educational advocacy NGO. I worked at the Ministry of Education in 2012, and then transferred to work in public policy analysis and fundraising for Educación 2020. In 2014 I worked at America Solidaria Haiti as its Executive Director, based in Port au Prince, and then studied an MPP at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Research assistants

Diego Olivares

Thesis students

Publications

Party, D., & Olivares, D. Gender on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs Chart, 1987-2024. In preparation.

Invited Guest Lectures and Workshops

“Gender Representation on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs Chart (1987-2024)”, Workshop Materialities, Practices and Industries in Popular Music, Instituto de Música, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Nov 2025

“Brechas de género en el ránking latino de Billboard (1987-2024)”, Coloquio Plataformas digitales y dinámicas laborales en la industria musical chilena, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Apr 2025

Conference presentations

“Gender Gaps on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs Chart (1986-2024)”, LASA Congress (Paris, France), May 2026

“Latinidad and the Billboard Hot Latin Songs Chart (1986-2024)”, 70th Annual Meeting of the SEM (Atlanta, GA), Oct 2025

In the Media