A. Chal Explained

A.CHAL
Birth Date:30 May 1986[1] [2]
Birth Name:Alejandro Chal Salazar[3]
Birth Place:Trujillo, Peru
Origin:Queens, New York, U.S.
Instrument:Vocals
Years Active:2011–present

Alejandro Chal Salazar (born May 30th, 1986), professionally known as A. Chal (stylized A.CHAL),[4] [5] is a Peruvian-American singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer.[6] [7] He released his first EP, Ballroom Riots, in 2013.[7] [8] His debut studio album, Welcome to GAZI, was self-released in June 2016.[7] [9] His single, "Round Whippin, was premiered by Zane Lowe in 2015.[8] [9] He has performed at the Day N Nite Fest.[4] [5] [7] Pigeons & Planes named him one of the best new artists in 2015.[10]

Early life

Alejandro Chal Salazar was born in Trujillo, Peru, where he lived for 4 years before his family moved to Queens, New York City. His mother was from rural northern Peru.[6] His stage name is derived from his brother's name, Ichal who died at 2 weeks old, which in turn originated from a mountain that was named after that his father grew up near in Peru, along with being closer to large Peruvian cities.[3] He began rapping at age 12 and later started making beats and writing songs with a friend at the Museum of Science in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2010, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as a songwriter and producer.[4]

Career

A.CHAL released his debut EP, Ballroom Riots, in 2013. The album found some success, which he later signed a publishing deal with Sony/ATV Music Publishing.[4] [6] In June 2014, he produced the song "Never Satisfied" by American singer Jennifer Lopez, from her eighth studio album A.K.A.

2015 – 2017

However, after this appearance A.CHAL kept low profile for two years before taking up his artistic pursuits in a highly diversified way. In 2015, he began a series of single releases, which one after another forged his community of followers.

He then spent two years out of the public spotlight before beginning to release a variety of singles in 2015.[4] [8] One of those singles, "Round Whippin'", was debuted online on The Fader and then followed up with a world premiere on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 channel and supported on Canadian rapper Drake's OVO Sound Radio.[8] [9] As a result of this publicity, A.CHAL was named one of Pigeons & Planes best new artists of 2015.[10] He also performed at the Interview Magazine event during Coachella that year.[4] [5]

In February 2015, he released the single "GAZI", which he co-produced with Count Justice.[4] In September 2015, A.CHAL released another a single, "Vibe W/U", which was first publicized by American rapper ASAP Rocky on his Twitter profile.[8] [9] [11] In 2016, A.CHAL performed at the Day N Nite Fest.[7] He also released a few more singles before self-releasing his debut studio album, Welcome to GAZI, in June 2016.[6] [9] He has since premiered the official music video for "Round Whippin'" with Complex.com[12] and been featured on tracks by Ro James,[13] Stwo,[14] and Tess.[15]

On June 2, 2017, he released the single "Cuánto", featuring American rapper ASAP Nast.

2018 – 2019

On January 25, 2018, Alejandro released the remix of his single "Love N Hennessy", featuring American rapper 2 Chainz and reggaeton singer Nicky Jam.

In March 2018, A.CHAL signed a record deal with Epic Records.[16]

In November of the same year, he produced the song "Bottled Up" by American singer Dinah Jane, with rapper Ty Dolla Sign and singer Marc E. Bassy.

In April 2019, A. CHAL was featured in Spanish singer Rosalía's song "Me Traicionaste", which appeared on the American TV series Game of Thrones soundtrack, "".

2020–present

On May 6, 2020, Alejandro released the single "Hollywood Love", featuring American rapper Gunna.

Musical style

A.CHAL's music generally fits into the hip hop and R&B genres. USA Today has described his music as falling somewhere "in the negative space between Hip-Hop, R&B, chillwave, and pop music."[11] A.CHAL himself has described his music's genre as soul.[6] His sound has also been characterized as "sedated", "hazy", and "almost-psychedelic".[4] [10] [17] Remezcla has called his voice "sultry, sparse, and desperate".[4]

Lyrically, he largely discusses anecdotal experiences. Writing about his 2016 album Welcome to GAZI, Jules Muir of Pigeons & Planes noted that A.CHAL attempts to cut "to the core of many of society's ills and triumphs by tapping into a deep well of personal experiences and anecdotes."[8]

Discography

Studio albums

Title! scope="col" style="width:23em;"
Details
Welcome to Gazi
On Gaz
  • Release: June 2, 2017
  • Label: Empire
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

EPs

Singles

As lead artist

TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
US
R&B<br />Airplay
[18]
US
Latin
Pop

[19]
US
Rap
Airplay

[20]
US
Rhy.

[21]
"Round Whippin'"2016Welcome to Gazi
"To the Light"2017On Gaz
"Matrix"
"Love N Hennessy"
50 24 20
"Perdóname"
"Cuánto"
"000000"201940 28Exotigaz
"Hollywood Love"[22]
2020
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

As featured artist

TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
ARG
[23]
ECU
[24]
MEX
[25]
URU
[26]
"No Promises"
2014
"Out at Night"
2016D.T.S.N.T.
"Endlessly"
Tess
"Primavera"
2017
"No Te Pegas"
2018
"100 Grados"
19 53 38 8Brava
"Madonna"
2019Paradise
"Me Traicionaste"
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

External links

Notes and References

  1. AlejandroChal. 1266871795862274048 . I am about to go protest [on my birthday].
  2. Web site: A. Chal, Astro Databank. August 19, 2022 . March 10, 2024.
  3. Web site: An Afternoon and Evening with A.Chal, the Peruvian Singer-Songwriter up Next. https://web.archive.org/web/20190809050523/https://peopleenespanol.com/chica/a-chal-interview/ . August 9, 2019 . March 10, 2024.
  4. News: Montano. Zoe. Meet A.Chal, the Sultry R&B Singer You Won't Be Able to Get Out of Your Head. Remezcla. July 10, 2015 . December 5, 2016.
  5. News: Williams. Megan. Meet A.CHAL: LA's Rising Star. Idol Magazine. June 3, 2015. December 5, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20170505184437/http://www.idolmag.co.uk/music/meet-a-chal-las-rising-star/. May 5, 2017. dead.
  6. News: Krastz. Roger. A.Chal Has His Sights Set on World Domination. XXL. September 28, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  7. News: Seabrook III. Robby. Welcome to A.CHAL's Changing World. Noisey. September 13, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  8. News: Muir. Jules. A.CHAL on the Afterlife, Equality, and Reaching GAZI Level. Pigeons & Planes. August 17, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  9. News: A.CHAL Drops Regretful but Cathartic "Far From Home". Noisey. May 31, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  10. News: Best New Artists of 2015. Pigeons & Planes. December 17, 2015 . December 5, 2016.
  11. News: Peters. Micah. Scott. Nate. The 10 best songs of the week. USA Today. October 16, 2015 . December 5, 2016.
  12. News: Mench. Chris. Premiere: A.CHAL Shares the Dreamy Video for "Round Whippin'". Complex. August 10, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  13. News: Kellman. Andy. Eldorado – Ro James – AllMusic Review by Andy Kellman. AllMusic. 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  14. News: Wilson. Zanda. Hear A.CHAL Vibin On Stwo's New Cut 'Out At Night'. The Interns. June 21, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  15. News: Tess – Endlessly (Ft. A. CHAL). Fashionably Early. November 16, 2016 . December 5, 2016.
  16. News: Estavez. Marjua. A.CHAL Signs Deal With Epic Records. March 8, 2018. Vibe Magazine. March 5, 2018. March 8, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180308231625/https://www.vibe.com/2018/03/a-chal-signs-with-epic-records/. dead.
  17. News: Montes. Patrick. A.Chal – Round Whippin. HypeBeast. June 23, 2015 . December 5, 2016.
  18. A.CHAL Chart History: R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay. https://web.archive.org/web/20180809090834/https://www.billboard.com/music/achal/chart-history/hot-r-and-b-hip-hop-airplay. dead. August 9, 2018. Billboard. August 9, 2018.
  19. A.CHAL Chart History: Latin Pop Songs. Billboard. May 7, 2019.
  20. A.CHAL Chart History: Rap Airplay. https://web.archive.org/web/20180809122013/https://www.billboard.com/music/achal/chart-history/rap-airplay. dead. August 9, 2018. Billboard. August 9, 2018.
  21. A.CHAL Chart History: Rhhythmic Songs. https://web.archive.org/web/20180521001415/https://www.billboard.com/music/achal/chart-history/rhythmic-40. dead. May 21, 2018. Billboard. August 9, 2018.
  22. Web site: Top 40 Rhythmic Crossover. All Access. July 9, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200709104626/https://www.allaccess.com/top40-rhythmic. July 9, 2020.
  23. Web site: Top 20 Argentina – Del 21 al 27 de Mayo, 2018. Monitor Latino. May 29, 2018. es.
  24. Web site: Top 100 Ecuador – Semana 26 del 2018 – Del 22/06/2018 al 28/06/2018. National-Report. July 2, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180629181259/http://www.national-report.com/top-ecuador/. June 29, 2018.
  25. Mexico Airplay : Jun 09, 2018. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. June 5, 2018. subscription .
  26. Web site: Top 20 Uruguay – Del 25 de Junio al 1 de Julio, 2018. Monitor Latino. July 13, 2018. es.