More than 35 years after Juan Luis Guerra’s “Estrellitas y Duendes” earned the Dominican singer-songwriter his third top 10 on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart, the reimagined version featuring Sting sets new marks for both artists.
The Spanish-language collaboration debuts at No. 24 on the Tropical Airplay chart (dated March 21), returning Guerra to the list after a two-year absence, and giving Sting his first appearance on the survey.
Both Sting and Guerra tell Billboard that their team-up represents yet another high in their decades-long discographies.
“I’m thrilled to be on the Billboard Latin charts with friends Juan Luis Guerra and Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso,” Sting says. “I’m also honored to have collaborated in the past with many amazing Latin American musicians, including Rubén Blades and Charly García. These particular shared musical and cultural experiences are some of the most cherished of my career.”
Adds Guerra, “Working with Sting has been an immense honor. His artistry and sensitivity brought a new light to ‘Estrellitas y Duendes.’ Hearing him sing one of my songs in Spanish is a great gift and privilege.”
The original solo “Estrellitas y Duendes” was released as the fifth single from Guerra’s fifth studio album, Bachata Rosa, which earned him his first No. 1 on Top Tropical Albums and dominated for 12 weeks in 1991, the chart’s longest reign that year. The track hit No. 3 on Hot Latin Songs that March, marking his third of 20 top 10s.
The new collaborative “Estrellitas y Duendes” was released on Rimas Entertainment in November and debuted and peaked No. 9 that month on Latin Digital Song Sales. With its Tropical Airplay debut, Guerra revisits the chart after achieving his 24th top 10 with “La Noviecita” in March 2024.
Although Sting has been a chart staple dating to 1979, as frontman of The Police before going solo in 1985, “Estrellitas y Duendes,” on which he sings entirely in Spanish, marks the English singer-songwriter’s first appearance on a Latin radio chart. It also follows his collab with Argentinian duo Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso, “Hasta Jesús Tuvo Un Mal Día,” which hit No. 23 on Hot Latin Pop Songs (Feb. 28).
Among Sting’s prior collaborations that expanded his musical and lyrical palette, “Desert Rose” features Algerian artist Cheb Mami singing in Arabic. The hit reached the Billboard Hot 100’s top 20 in 2000. Meanwhile, Sting’s Billboard chart history also stretches across adult, alternative, classical, dance, holiday, R&B/hip-hop, reggae, rock and world music rankings.
