We Broke the Rules

We Broke the Rules is the second studio album by the Dominican-American band Aventura, released on July 2, 2002, by Premium Latin music. On the album, Aventura incorporated elements of pop, hip hop, and R&B into bachata, giving what critics thought was a new flavor to the genre and extending its appeal to those who preferred urban music styles. This style of bachata was coined "the New York school",[2] or "urban bachata",[3] characterized by the inclusion of electric guitars instead of acoustic, and lyrics in Spanish and English instead of just Spanish. In addition, the singing style takes after R&B melodies. The album's themes mainly included heartbreak and melancholy, although it also included social themes like in "Amor de Madre", or "Mother's Love", which is a song describing the lifelong struggle of a prostitute and her son.

We Broke the Rules
Studio album by
Aventura
ReleasedJuly 2, 2002 (2002-07-02)
Recorded2001–2002
GenreBachata
Length45:42[1]
LabelPremium Latin Music
Aventura chronology
Generation Next
(2000)		 We Broke the Rules
(2002)		 Love & Hate
(2003)
Singles from We Broke the Rules
  1. "Obsesión"
    Released: 2002

The biggest hit of the album was the song "Obsesión" featuring Judy Santos. According to the article Aventura's Adventure, Aventura became "the first bachata act to land a No. 1 single, in Spanish, in virtually every European territory."[3] The album sold around 1.5 million units internationally and remained in the number one position in the European charts in countries like Italy, France, Germany, and Norway for several weeks.[3] "Obsesión" also remained in the number one position in the French top 100 singles charts for seven weeks, and at number one in the Italian top 50 singles chart for 16 weeks.[4]

Cultural influence

Bachata music developed in the Dominican Republic during the 1960s and 1970s.[5] It was a regional music primarily performed and heard by lower class males. The style is traditionally performed using acoustic guitars, bongos, and maracas. In the article review published in January 2005 called "Bachata: Music of the People", there is an important observation of the similarities between bachata and the blues. The article states: "Some have described Bachata music as the Dominican equivalent of blues music in the U.S. Both styles of music came out of struggling communities and gradually gained acceptance among middle and even upper classes."[6] The album Bachata Rosa, released on December 11, 1990, by Juan Luis Guerra, marked the beginning of a new acceptance of bachata among the middle and high socio-economical classes.[7] Almost ten years later, with the release of We Broke the Rules, Bachata became as internationally famous as merengue and even salsa. Despite Guerra's efforts, most Dominicans still thought of Bachata as music for illiterate, poor people from the rural areas of the Dominican Republic.[8] Bachata also carried the stigma of being the preferred music in brothels, colmados, and cabarets, a connotation that kept bachata in the lowest level of all music genres in the Dominican Republic.[9] In "Bachata", Deborah Pacini Hernandez describes bachata as "the blacksheep of the country's music business".[10] Aventura helped change the general opinion about bachata because as young and "hip" New Yorkers, they did not fit the stereotype of bachateros but embraced the genre and identified themselves with it anyway. Along with Monchy & Alexandra, Aventura put a fresh face on the genre and revitalized it. Besides altering bachata's sound, Aventura also changed its image. Aventura also influenced a new generation of urban bachateros, such as Prince Royce, Toby love, Xtreme, and Carlos y Alejandra, who sing, dress, and play in a similar style as Aventura.

Band members

Aventura has four band members, Anthony "Romeo" Santos (lead singer/composer/producer), Henry Santos Jeter (singer/composer), Lenny Santos (guitarist/arranger/producer), and Max Santos (bassist). Romeo Santos and Henry Santos are cousins and Lenny and Max Santos are brothers, but the two Santos families (Romeo/Henry and Lenny/Mikey) are not related to one another.[11]

Other credits

The other contributors to the album We Broke the Rules include: musicians Miguel Echavarria (tambora, bongo drum, and Sammy Puntiel (guira); audio mixer Monchy Jiminez; and photographer Manuel Sierra.[12]

Aventura and their label Premium Latin Music, Inc. were sued for $50,000 because of flipping the main melody of "Axel F" by Harold Faltermeyer in their song Perdi El Control.[13] The issue was resolved by removing the song off the album, and replacing it with "Cuándo Volverás". The song is still available on original physical copies of the album.

Track listing
# Title Lyrics Translated Name Time
1 "Obsesión" (featuring Judy Santos) Anthony Santos "Obsession" 4:24
2 "I Believe" (featuring Toby Love) Anthony Santos "Yo Creo" 4:37
3 "Todavía Me Amas" Anthony Santos "You Still Love Me" 4:43
4 "Perdí El Control" Anthony Santos "I Lost Control" 4:06
5 "Amor De Madre" Anthony Santos "A Mother's Love" 6:02
6 "Gone" (featuring Toby Love) Justin Timberlake, Wade J. Robson 4:26
7 "Mi Puerto Rico" Anthony Santos "My Puerto Rico" 3:49
8 "Enséñame A Olvidar" Anthony Santos "Show Me How to Forget" 5:52
9 "9:15 (Nueve & Quince)" Anthony Santos "Nine Fifteen" 4:22
10 "Obsesión" (English Remix) (featuring Judy Santos) Anthony Santos "Obsession (English Remix)" 4:10

Sample credits

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[31] Platinum 20,000 

References
  1. We Broke The Rules, MP3 Album Music Download at eMusic
  2. http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/scmsAdmin/media/users/xr1/History_of_Bachata.pdf
  3. Cobo, Leila. "Aventura's Adventure". Billboard 117.18 (2005): 41. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 July 2013.
  4. https://italiancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Aventura&titel=Obsesi%F3n&cat=s
  5. Goldstei, Donna. "Bachata". Popular Music & Society Summer 2000, Vol. 24 Issue 2, p172. 4p. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 July 2013.
  6. "Bachata: Music of the People". Music Educators Journal. January 2005, Vol. 91 Issue 3, p70-71. 2p. Academic Search Premier. Web. 10 July 2013.
  7. Crook, Larry. "Popular Music in the Caribbean". Studies in Latin America Popular Culture. 1999, Vol. 18, p. 171. 4p. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 July
  8. Kugel, Seth. "A Latin Dance Music Sings the Blues". The New York Times, June 16, 2002. Web. July 12, 2013.
  9. Wayne, David C. "History of Bachata, the Guitar Music of the Dominican Republic". New York Univ. Steinhardt, n.d. Web. July 12, 2013.
  10. Goldstein, Donna. "Bachata". Popular Music & Society Summer 2000, Vol. 24 Issue 2, p172. 4p. Academic Search Premier. Web.11 July 2013.
  11. Cobo, Leila. "Aventura: The Latin Kings". Billboard. 5/1/2010, Vol. 122 Issue 17, p18-21. 4p. Academic Search Premier. Web. 10 July 2013.
  12. http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=4929294
  13. "Perdi El Control by Aventura on WhoSampled". WhoSampled. Retrieved 2020-06-22.
  14. "Austriancharts.at – Aventura – We Broke the Rules" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  15. "Ultratop.be – Aventura – We Broke the Rules" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  16. "Ultratop.be – Aventura – We Broke the Rules" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  17. "Dutchcharts.nl – Aventura – We Broke the Rules" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  18. "Lescharts.com – Aventura – We Broke the Rules". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  19. "Offiziellecharts.de – Aventura – We Broke the Rules" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  20. "Italiancharts.com – Aventura – We Broke the Rules". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  21. "Portuguesecharts.com – Aventura – We Broke the Rules". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  22. "We Broke The Rules by Aventura - Music Charts". acharts.co. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  23. "Spanishcharts.com – Aventura – We Broke the Rules". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  24. "Swisscharts.com – Aventura – We Broke the Rules". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  25. "We Broke the Rules - Aventura: Awards: Allmusic". Allmusic. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  26. "Jaaroverzichten 2004". Ultratop. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  27. "Rapports Annuels 2004". Ultratop. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  28. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 2004". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  29. "Top de l'année Top Albums 2004" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  30. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2004". hitparade.ch. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  31. http://www.swisscharts.com/search_certifications.asp?search=aVENTURA
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