All photos courtesy Mandinga
Mandinga, the European band best-known for their unique blend of Latin rhythms and global pop sensibilities, has just released their latest single… and it’s a hot one.
Marking a deliberate shift toward Latin urban territory, the track, Mala, is now available on all major streaming platforms and pairs Afrobeat-influenced production with unapologetic lyrics delivered by Romanian-born frontwoman, Barbara Isasi.
A Personal Statement Set to Heavy Bass
For Isasi, Mala isn’t just a musical experiment. The singer, who has fronted Mandinga since the group’s formation, says the song allowed her to drop the polish that often comes with commercial Latin pop.
“I wrote Mala for myself, but I know I’ll have behind me all the women who are sick of being ‘good,'” Isasi explains. “It’s about that moment when you stop filtering everything, stop being polite, stop smiling when you don’t feel like it.”
The track opens with a hook built around the phrase “Cali mala, pura diabla,” a line that repeats throughout and anchors the song’s defiant tone. Production-wise, Mala leans into bass-heavy urban beats rather than the salsa and bachata arrangements that defined much of Mandinga’s earlier catalog.
The Production Team Behind the Sound
Chupi Tool, the group’s founding drummer and producer, recognized early that Mala would require a different approach than previous releases.
“I knew from the first few seconds that Mala was different from anything we’d done,” he says. “We decided to open new lines in Latin urban to deliver each message the way it deserves: direct, without softening it.”
The executive production credit goes to Dani Joo (born Dan Ioan Plohi), a 17-year-old bassist who has already built a reputation in Romanian music circles. Mala marks his first executive producer role on a project of this scale. Mixing and mastering duties fell to Dragomir Gabriel-Iulian, a veteran audio engineer whose work spans multiple genres across the Romanian and international music scenes.
A Visual Companion That Matches the Message
The official video, directed by Rimenescu, places Isasi at the center of every frame. Choreography by Ruxandra Timoasca features dancers Teodora Dutca, Mihai Ioana Mihaela, and Ioana Alexandra Gramada in sequences designed to reinforce the track’s central theme: Isasi leads, everyone else follows.
The visual treatment avoids the bright, tropical aesthetics common in Latin pop videos. Instead, the production opts for darker tones and tighter shots that keep attention fixed on Isasi’s performance.
“That doesn’t mean we’re not preparing new music for traditional Mandinga fans, salsa, bachata, everything that has defined us,” Chupi Tool clarifies. “But it does mean we’re no longer limiting ourselves. If the message calls for urban, we go urban.”
The group has indicated that additional releases are planned throughout 2026, spanning both Latin urban and their more traditional catalog. For now, Mala serves as the opening statement for what the band promises will be a productive year.
You can watch the full video here: Mala, by Mandinga.