Non-english Dance Songs Which Became International Hits

Just because we can’t understand a song doesn’t mean that we wont like it or enjoy it. Here are four Spanish, one German and one Korean danceable songs which topped the charts worldwide. And I know you can already name some of them if not all because indeed they were big hits worldwide.

La Bamba (Spanish)

“La Bamba” is a Mexican folk song made famous through the 1958 version of Ritchie Valens which he made into a top 40 hit in the US charts and one of early rock and roll’s best-known songs. It is the only non-English song listed on Rolling Stone Magazine’s  list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time ranked at #345. “La Bamba” is also ranked #98 in VH1’s 100 Greatest Songs of Rock and Roll and placed #59 in its 100 Greatest Dance Songs of Rock and Roll in 2000.

Lambada (Spanish)

“Lambada” is actually a Brazilian dance for couples which became popular in the late 1980s in Latin American and Caribbean countries.  The dance became an international hit when the French pop group Kaoma with Brazilian vocalist Loalwa Braz recorded the #1 worldwide summer hit song also entitled “Lambada” which sold 5 million singles in 1989. It spent 12 weeks at #1 in France and also went #1 in several countries worldwide.

Macarena (Spanish)

“Macarena” is not only a famous dance song but also became a dance craze. This Los del Rio hit is the second longest running #1 and best selling debut single of all time in the US. The years 1995 through 1996 saw theMacarena Fever that in 2002 VH1 ranked the song as the #1 Greatest One-Hit Wonder. It also landed at #5 on Billboard’s All Time Top 100 and ranks #1 on Billboard’s All Time Latin Songs.

Asereje (Spanish)

The song “Asereje” and its English version “The Ketchup Song” was a huge hit in 2002 topping the charts in more than 20 countries worldwide. Performed by the then three-girl Spanish group called Las Ketchup, the song was accompanied by a distinctive dance called “The Ketchup Dance”. The single received a Diamond Award in France and went multiplatinum in many European countries.

99 Luftballons (German)

I remember this song when it became a big hit, and I also remember that there were only two words I recognize every time I hear it—“99” and “ballons.” It turns out the song is German. Interestingly, “99 Luftballons” is a Cold War-era protest song by the German singer Nena. Although it also has an English version entitled “99 Red Balloons,” its original German version peaked at #2 on the American Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1984 higher than its English version, and the English-language version went #1 in the UK Singles Chart. It also went to #1 in many countries worldwide. VH1 ranked the song at #16 on 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s and #73 on 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s.

Nobody (Korean)

“Nobody” is the latest dance hit which also sparked a dance craze. Performed by South Korean group Wonder Girls, the song was released as a digital download single in September 2008 in their native Korea and became popular within hours, becoming a top search term ang ranking #1 on various digital music sites. When the video was released to various digital outlets, the song quickly became the #1 streamed and sold song online.

On October 24, 2009, an English version of the song debut at #76 on the Billboard Hot 100 making the Wonder Girls became the first South Korean act to enter the chart. It peaked at #1 on Billboard’s Hot Single Sales and Billboard’s Year End Hot 50 Singles Sales Chart for 2009.

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