Black Pumas’ Adrian Quesada Announces Album, Shares Video for New Song: Watch

Black Pumas co-founder Adrian Quesada has announced his new album Boleros Psicodélicos with a video for its first single “Mentiras con Cariño” (featuring iLe). The album is a tribute to the golden era of Latin American balada music, which first proliferated in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and features covers of classic baladas as well as Quesada originals. Boleros Psicodélicos is due out June 3 via ATO. Check out the full tracklist and the video for “Mentiras con Cariño” below.

In a statement, iLe said of the collaboration:

Making “Mentiras con Cariño” with Adrian was very fun since we share a similar appreciation for old school boleros. We both love the style of musical arrangements and textures that became a classic signature sound in those times where imperfections made everything feel just right. I wrote this song thinking about feeling sufficient with yourself on your own, even though love didn’t turn out to be the way you wanted.

Quesada first discovered baladas through the Peruvian band Los Pasteles Verdes, and he recreates their 1975 hit “Esclavo y Amo” with Natalia Clavier on Boleros Psicodélicos. Quesada shared a statement about the new album: “I always wanted to pay tribute to that sound that I was already hearing in my head without realizing that people had already done it. Balada changed the face of Latin music forever. If something like that happened today, it would be normal because everyone’s connected on Instagram. Think how powerful this sound had to be for everyone to be connected through the songs. As someone who grew up speaking two languages and living on both sides of the border, I love how much music can transcend barriers and boundaries. It really is a universal language, especially back then.”

Quesada’s band Black Pumas have been at the Grammys every year since 2020, when they were nominated for Best New Artist. They’re nominated for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Album at the 2022 Grammys. Quesada’s last solo album was 2018’s Look at My Soul: The Latin Shade of Texas Soul.

Boleros Psicodélicos: