“Pepas” is a single released in 2021 by Puerto Rican musician and rapper under the stage name “Farruko”. The song quickly gained popularity and held the 25th position in the popular music chart “Billboard Hot 100” and others. The listeners liked the composition and quickly went “to the people”, and over time even David Gata made an official remix. To date, the musical composition is considered the highest paid in the musician’s arsenal. Let’s see what this song is about and what inspired the artist to create it.
History of the song
In an interview, Farruko repeatedly described this song as a total experiment. The original idea was to gather musicians in the studio of the Sony Music Latin label and invite them to play the so-called stadium song, which would definitely appeal to millions, but at the same time would sound like a church choir singing. The improvisation turned out to be successful, which is clearly seen from the positions of the track in world music chats.
What is the song “Pepas” about?
If we analyze the translation of the lyrics of the song, then the first thing that catches your eye is the multiple descriptions of dance parties, the use of alcohol, drugs and promiscuity. Essentially, the song is a nostalgic anthem for what young people are missing while burdened by COVID-19 restrictions. After all, during the period of a general lockdown, large-scale parties are prohibited, which have long become an important part in the lives of young people.
The title of the song “Pepas” is translated as “Wheels” and is the leitmotif of the entire song, repeatedly mentioned in the text:
“Wheels”, water from dry land:
Everyone is high at the disco.
“Wheels”, water from dry land:
Everybody’s high in the disco
violent,
Stoned…
What an awesome arrival!
Rainbow Fa-fa-ru.”
The dance composition is a mixture of tribal guarachero and reggaeton – national musical trends from the performer’s homeland. They give the song a peculiar flavor and favorably distinguish it from the background of works similar in meaning. The lyrics of the song are full of slang and phrases typical for the dialect of Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
The final lines of the song are curious:
“Tell Chino
The Most Winning
Victor Cardenas
White Star
Sharo Towers
the 167
The 167″.
You can consider them a kind of message to famous producers, music artists, rappers and labels in America and Colombia. Thus, the rapper loudly declares himself, demanding to pay attention to his new album “La 167”, the single of which, in fact, is this musical composition. The musician’s plan worked, as evidenced by the popularity of the track in the chat rooms and the mark of a million plays on Spotify. Unfortunately, the author himself in his interviews avoids interpreting the text of the song and does not admit what exactly he wanted to convey to the listener. Therefore, we can only put forward our versions.
It is noteworthy that in the homeland of the musician the song was not very popular and did not stay in music chats for a long time, unlike Ireland, Canada and the Czech Republic.
Clip for the composition
To consolidate the success of the song, it was decided to shoot a music video. The video sequence is made in accordance with the texts, namely, it is a protracted rave party overflowing with neon lights, cigarette smoke, girls and guys in unusual clothes. All of them, including the performer of the song, are dancing incendiary on the roof of shipping containers, which are located in some kind of abandoned warehouse. On YouTube, the number of views almost reached one million, on the official channel of the label.
The atmosphere of the video for a Russian person will involuntarily evoke associations with the Kazantip music festival, which took place on the Black Sea coast and was overflowing with everything that Farukko sings about: an abundance of alcohol, drugs and the opportunity to have an affair for a couple of nights. Having let off steam in this way, people returned to their lives in order to reach new heights, recharged with energy. Maybe that’s what the rapper is hinting at?
Interesting facts about the song
The songs of the young Puerto Rican rapper are often provocative. If we take “Pepas” as an example, the composition is full of descriptions of being under the influence of substances (alcohol and drugs), while the singer wanted it to sound like a church choir song. In the winter of 2022, he completely stopped his concert in Miami and began to lead a church sermon, along the way repenting for the excessive emancipation and unworthiness of some of his texts. In response to the indignation of the perplexed fans, he said: “Farru has retired, and Carlos is here now” and promised all those who were dissatisfied to return the money for the tickets to the performance.
