Siempre He Estado Aquí

"Siempre He Estado Aquí"
A black wall with a red rectangle in the middle of the floor, going towards a door frame emitting white light. Two lions from the band's logo appear in white coloring on each side of the door, while a waxing crescent moon facing down is visible on top.
Single by RBD
LanguageSpanish
English title"I've Always Been Here"
ReleasedNovember 17, 2020 (2020-11-17)
February 23, 2023 (2023-02-23) ("S.H.E.A")
GenreLatin pop
Length3:10
LabelUniversal Music
Songwriter(s)
  • Andrés Torres
  • Mauricio Rengifo
Producer(s)
  • Torres
  • Rengifo
RBD singles chronology
"Para olvidarte de mí"
(2009) 		"Siempre He Estado Aquí"
(2020) 		"S.H.E.A"
(2023)
Alternative cover
The band members appear in front of the camera, covering most of the original logo. Christian is on the top left, with Christopher next to him. Maite appears in front of Christopher but in a sitting position, with Anahí by her side, in front of Christian in the same manner.
Live version released in 2021
Alternative cover
A blue background as the sky, with a waxing crescent moon is visible in the back. A part of the white long-sleeved shirt of the uniform from the group's originating telenovela appears over half the cover, with the red tie with blue and white lines floats on top.
2023 version with Dulce María
Music video
"Siempre He Estado Aquí (Animated Video)" on YouTube

"Siempre He Estado Aquí" is song by Mexican pop group RBD. Written and produced by Colombian duo Cali y El Dandee, the song was released on 17 November 2020 by Universal Music as the band's comeback single.[1] It was their first song in 11 years since "Para olvidarte de mí" was released in 2009.

The track was used to promote their reunion show celebrating the re-release of the band's music on digital platforms and stores.[2] Like the concert, the song features only four of the six original members: Anahí, Christian Chávez, Christopher von Uckermann and Maite Perroni. Bandmates Alfonso Herrera and Dulce María were not present due to personal reasons.[3] The live version was released on 5 February 2021 as the lead single of the its parent album.[4]

On 23 February 2023, with the intention of promoting the group's reunion and sixth tour, a new version of the song was released, with the title "S.H.E.A", with the newly recorded vocals of Dulce María.[5]

Background

On 22 December 2019, eleven years after the separation of RBD, Anahí, Alfonso Herrera, Christian Chávez, Christopher Uckermann, Dulce María and Maite Perroni, met and posted photos of a reunion on social media, raising suspicions of a supposed return of the group in the future.[6] Despite the rumors, Herrera clarified that the reunion was just a "meeting of friends", with no commercial intention.[7] On 27 August 2020, Anahí, Chávez, Uckermann, María and Perroni each posted a video and mysterious link on their social networks asking fans to subscribe to a page titled "RB2 World". On 8 September, all of the band's studio albums were made available on digital platforms by Universal Music Latino, as well as the music videos on YouTube, via the group's official page.[8] In December 2020, the group surpassed 250 million total streams on Spotify.[9]

After several other speculations surrounding the group's reunion, a virtual concert called Ser O Parecer: The Global Virtual Union, was announced on 30 September, which would feature only four original members: Anahí, Chávez, Uckermann and Perroni.[10] Due to the controversy caused by the absence of the other two members, Herrera and María, Chávez took to his social media to explain the reason for their absences, and considered the event as a tribute to RBD and not a definitive return. On 23 October, Anahí announced during an interview with the Mexican program Hoy, that the group would release a new song and that it would serve as promotion for the virtual event. On 11 November, Perroni posted a snippet of the song's instrumental through her official TikTok account.[11]

Composition and production

"Siempre He Estado Aquí" is a latin pop song that lasts three minutes and ten seconds, using the verse-chorus-post-chorus form. It is a tribute to the band's legacy and their fans. The song was written and produced by the Colombian duo Mauricio Rengifo and Andrés Torres, known as Cali y El Dandee, who also produced Luis Fonsi's hit single "Despacito" (2017), and contains melodic chords. The song sends the message that even though they were "separated", the quartet never moved away from their audience.[12] During the second verse, the group references five of their old songs: "Sálvame", "Este Corazón", "Enseñame", "Un Poco de Tu Amor" and "Sólo Quédate en Silencio", all included on their debut album Rebelde (2004), except "Este Corazón", which belongs to their second studio album Nuestro Amor (2005). This is done in the lines: "Sálvame con este corazón / Tan sólo enséñame un poco de tu amor / Y sólo quédate en silencio que aún hay tanto por contar...", sung by Anahí, Chávez, and Perroni, respectively. During their 2023 reunion tour, Perroni changed the line to "Aún hay algo por contar", referecing the second single "Aún hay algo" from Nuestro Amor.

The song's music video was directed by Peter Odor at Malabar Studios and released in December 2020. According to Perroni, all production and recording was done remotely, following safety protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[13]

Release

Even though the single's release was confirmed for 17 November 2020 at night, "Siempre He Estado Aquí" was played for the first time on Radio Disney in Mexico in the afternoon.[14] At 6pm (CST), the song was released worldwide on streaming platforms, along with its lyric video. On November 18, the single was released as a digital download.[15]

On 23 February 2023, the group released a second version of the song containing new vocals from María, in order to promote their reunion concert series Soy Rebelde Tour.[16]

Music video

On 24 November 2020, a teaser for the song's official music video was released. On 3 December, the clip was released in full with a futuristic theme, showing the four members, in avatar form, inside a ship destined for the virtual event.[17] On 17 December, an exclusive version of the clip was released on Facebook. The official video was directed by Peter Odor and produced by Guillermo Rosas. Extracts from the clip were shown during the performance of the song at the virtual concert.

Critical reception

The music video received harsh criticism from fans since the release of the teaser, who questioned the fact that the video was made using animation. Perroni's avatar was also criticized, with fans claiming that it did not resemble the singer. Another controversy was the use of an altered photo of the group from 2008, which showed only the four returning members, leaving out María and Herrera.[18] During a live on YouTube, the video's director, Peter Odor, clarified that he cut the former members from the photo due to image rights, as they were not part of the project.[19]

Live performances

The song was performed by the group during the virtual concert Ser O Parecer: The Global Virtual Union on 26 December 2020. The performance was made available on the group's official channel on 4 February 2021. The track was peformed during the band's Soy Rebelde Tour, being the 18th song on the setlist.

Commercial performance

After its release, "Siempre He Estado Aquí" entered the US iTunes Top50 list, as well as topping the store's download rankings in several countries including Mexico, Slovenia and Latin America. In 24 hours, the song received more than 700,000 streams.[20]

Track listing

  • Digital download
  1. "Siempre He Estado Aquí" – 3:10
  2. "Siempre He Estado Aquí (En Vivo)" – 3:07
  3. "Siempre He Estado Aquí" (Short Version) – 0:22
  4. "S.H.E.A" – 3:10

Awards and nominations

Organization Year Category Result Ref.
Prêmio Jovem Brasileiro 2021 Hit Musical Latino Nominated [21]
Premios Lo Nuestro 2022 Song of the Year - Pop Nominated [22]

References

  1. ^ "RBD presenta el sencillo "Siempre he estado aquí"". El Espectador.com (in Spanish). 17 November 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
  2. ^ Gomes, Robson (17 November 2020). "Após 11 anos, RBD lança single inédito; Ouça 'Siempre He Estado Aquí'" [After 11 years, RBD releases new single; Listen to "Siempre He Estado Aquí"]. UOL - Seu universo online (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 17 October 2024.
  3. ^ "RBD entrega motivo da ausência de Poncho e Dulce María no retorno do grupo". UOL - Seu universo online (in Brazilian Portuguese). 8 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
  4. ^ "RBD - Siempre He Estado Aquí (En Vivo) - iTunes". iTunes. 5 February 2021. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
  5. ^ "COM TURNÊ DE REUNIÃO TOTALMENTE "SOLD OUT", RBD LANÇA 'S.H.E.A', NOVA VERSÃO DE "SIEMPRE HE ESTADO AQUÍ", COM A VOZ DE DULCE MARIA". Universal Music Group (in pt br). 23 February 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2024.{cite web}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  6. ^ González, Jimena (23 December 2019). "Tras 11 años de espera, los RBD se reencontraron y el momento fue más que emotivo". Quién magazine (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  7. ^ Hahne, Stephanie (2 January 2020). "RBD se reúne em foto e Alfonso Herrera nega reunião da banda: "amigos"". Tenho Mais Discos Que Amigos! (TMDQA) (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  8. ^ "RBD's Best-Selling Catalog Returning To Digital Platforms". uDiscoverMusic. August 28, 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  9. ^ Berrogain, Isabela (4 December 2020). "Siempre He Estado Aquí: RBD volta com mais força que nunca". tracklist (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  10. ^ Calvario, Liz (December 26, 2020). "RBD Reunites for Virtual Concert 12 Years After Last Show -- See Fan Reactions". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  11. ^ Olímpio, Victória (11 November 2020). "Maite Perroni confirma especulações e divulga trecho da nova canção do RBD". Correio Braziliense (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  12. ^ "VIDEO. RBD lanza 'Siempre he estado aquí', su primer sencillo en 12 años". Los Angeles Times (in Spanish). November 18, 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  13. ^ Matos, Thaís (18 November 2020). "RBD lança 1ª música em 12 anos e Maite comenta: 'Coração bateu mais forte quando ouvimos'". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  14. ^ "⚠️ Atento a tu radio porque estamos estrenando #SiempreHeEstadoAquí, el nuevo tema de @RBD_oficial.🤩". Radio Disney México. 17 November 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2025 – via Twitter.
  15. ^ "Siempre He Estado Aquí - RBD - Amazon". 18 November 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2025 – via Amazon.
  16. ^ Villa, Lucas (February 24, 2023). "LISTEN: RBD Returns With New Single "S.H.E.A."". Remezcla. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  17. ^ Castruita, Luisa (3 December 2020). "RBD presenta nuevo video musical de canción Siempre he estado aquí". El Siglo de Durango (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  18. ^ Macedo, Maira (4 December 2020). "RBD libera clipe em animação de 'Siempre He Estado Aquí', mas decepciona fãs! Entenda". Festival Teen (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  19. ^ "RBD: a polêmica da foto cortada de 'Siempre He Estado Aqui'". Terra (in Brazilian Portuguese). 8 December 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  20. ^ Torres, Leonardo (18 November 2020). ""Siempre He Estado Aqui": desempenho comercial da música nova do RBD". POPline (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  21. ^ "PJB 20 anos: confira os 5 finalistas em cada categoria". Prêmio Jovem Brasileiro (in Brazilian Portuguese). 12 September 2021. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
  22. ^ "Premio Lo Nuestro 2022: mira la lista completa de ganadores". Univision (in Spanish). 24 February 2024. Retrieved 11 February 2025.