Jay Wheeler's 'De Lejitos' Tops Latin Airplay, Marking His Fourth Chart Leader
Jay Wheeler's single 'De Lejitos' climbed to No. 1 on Billboard's Latin Airplay chart dated Aug. 29, earning 6.7 million U.S. audience impressions in the tracking week. The Puerto Rican artist expressed pride in the achievement, noting the song was a fan favorite before its official release. Separately, Banda El Recodo de Cruz Lizárraga secured its 21st Regional Mexican Airplay No. 1 with a reworked version of Antonio Aguilar's 1958 classic 'La Cama de Piedra.'
Wheeler's fourth Latin Airplay leader extends a run that began in 2021, with each of his prior chart-toppers holding the summit for a single week. The song's resilience on Hot Latin Songs is notable, as it weathered a temporary drop during Karol G's album-release surge before rebounding to the top 10 on streaming strength.
Banda El Recodo's latest achievement deepens its legacy in regional Mexican music, with seven of its 21 chart leaders arriving since 2020. The reworked "La Cama de Piedra" pairs the band with the Aguilar family, bridging a 1958 classic to contemporary radio audiences through a multi-generational production team.
This dual chart milestone may reinforce the commercial viability of regional Mexican and Latin pop crossover acts on U.S. radio, potentially encouraging labels to invest in heritage re-recordings and family-driven collaborations. For audiences, it signals that nostalgic material can still compete with newer releases, while Wheeler's fan-driven success could inspire artists to test songs with audiences before formal promotion. The sustained presence of these acts may also shape programming decisions at Spanish-language stations, affecting what listeners hear in daily rotation.