More than two decades ago, a new music genre began to take shape in Cuba — and was promptly banned. Blending urban music with traditional Cuban sounds including son, timba and rumba — reparto was initially restricted on the island partially due to its explicit lyrics that often reflected the poverty, struggles and street life of the marginalized neighborhoods of Havana’s suburbs.

“Back then, we didn’t have nightclubs and the internet didn’t exist” on the island, recalls reparto singer Wow Popy, who began his career in 2012. “To hear our music, you had to go to bonches [street parties or gatherings held in people’s homes] because that music couldn’t be played on the radio or television.”

Bebeshito, Helabusador & Rey Tony, DJ Conds and Wow Popy will speak at the first reparto panel at Billboard Latin Music Week. Register at billboardlatinmusicweek.com.

Since 2020, though, the genre has grown — and become widely embraced across the globe — thanks to recent breakout hits like “Dichavate” from Cuban newcomers Ya Ice Dilan, Rey Tony and Helabusador.

Released last Christmas, first on YouTube and two weeks later on Spotify, the cheeky “Dichavate” — Cuban slang for “exposing oneself” — has provocative lyrics that reference the “best partner in bed” and quickly gained traction on social media: With over 141 million YouTube views and 18.4 million TikTok posts, it’s one of reparto’s most viral songs.

Without any official promotion strategy, the DJ Honda-produced track (released on independent labels JIP Music Global and Planet Records), broke onto the Billboard charts this March, peaking at No. 1 on Peru Songs and reaching a No. 5 high on Spain Songs in April — making history as the first reparto song to hit the top five on both Billboard Hits of the World charts (based on streaming and sales activity from within each respective country as tracked by Luminate).

“Everything happened very quickly,” Helabusador told Billboard at the time. “We didn’t have the opportunity to run advertising campaigns on Spotify or YouTube due to the explicit lyrics … We tried, but we couldn’t. We didn’t even have the chance to invest in the song.” Still, as Rey Tony added in the same interview, the song didn’t need much: “Back in Cuba, it just really took off.”

By August, after a wave of Latin artists not known for making reparto music — including Bad Gyal, Ryan Castro, Greeicy and Maluma — posted videos jamming to the song, it surged up even more on the charts. To date, “Dichavate” has reached peaks of No. 11 on Hot Latin Rhythm Songs, No. 26 on Hot Latin Songs, No. 85 on Billboard Global Excl. U.S., No. 7 on the Billboard Argentina Hot 100 and No. 2 on the Billboard Colombia Hot 100.

Helabusador believes this was the song to cut through after so many years because the artists injected their own styles into it, offering a new take to those familiar with reparto, and a new way in for those hearing it for the first time. “Within our own genre, this represents a completely different style,” Helabusador said. “It is very international — we [drew] upon that foundation in order to operate; we studied the sound, incorporated our own slang, and I wanted to add a distinct vocal quality. The song has magic.”

Now, the world has started to discover a music movement that not so long ago was a hidden gem known only locally. Dating back to the 1990s, reparto referred to two things: a type of salsa dancing powered by timba music performed by acts such as Michel Maza of La Charanga Habanera and Manolín “El Médico de la Salsa” (The Salsa Doctor), and Cuba’s marginalized neighborhoods as a whole.

In the 2000s, a wave of urban artists from said repartos — among them the late Elvis Manuel (who drowned in 2008 as he migrated to the United States by raft), Adonis MC, El Úniko, Chocolate MC, Harryson and Wildey — began experimenting with reggaetón and timba, lacing it with a bass drum pedal and wooden clave while incorporating their own street slang and local phrases in the lyrics. Chocolate, known for songs like “Parapapampan (El Campismo)” and “Guachineo,” christened this fusion as ragga morffa, which ultimately became known as reparto today.

“Reparto music has a sound that’s incredibly catchy — it’s tropical, full of flavor. I feel it’s a musically complete genre,” says reparto artist Bebeshito, whose “Tacto Que Llegó El Reparto” entered the Hot Tropical Songs and Tropical Airplay charts last year. What makes it most distinct, however, isn’t any one sonic element but rather its lyrics and storytelling. “Most of us reparteros come from the streets,” Bebeshito adds, “and what we sing about are the things we experience on the street.”

Despite having very few resources and government backlash, the movement started to gain traction in Cuba thanks to its underground distribution system: El Paquete Semanal, a collection of digital entertainment distributed weekly across the island on physical hard drives and USB sticks; Zapya, an offline file-sharing app using Bluetooth; and old-fashioned word-of-mouth.

But since 2018, when public Wi-Fi hotspots were made more accessible on the island, social media has enabled many Cuban artists to share reparto with the masses. After the pandemic, some of the first songs to benefit from viral popularity included “La Triple M” by Mawell; “Tienes Que Nacer de Nuevo” by El Chulo, Wampi, Dany Ome & Kevincito el 13; and the reparto cover of Alejandro Sanz’s “Corazón Partío” by Popy and Charly & Johayron.

“There are more collaborations among Cuban artists these days,” Popy says, “but unity will always be difficult because this is an urban genre and rivalry is inevitable. Still, there are more of us. All the artists are working on their own projects and doing features. We are taking it more seriously and placing greater importance on the music.”

Already in the past year, collaborations have abounded between reparto acts and bigger names outside the genre: Popy teamed up with Lenny Tavárez on “Hasta Atrás”; Dany Ome & Kevincito el 13 dropped “Paciente” with Ozuna and “Extrañarte Más” with Wisin; Nacho and Maffio teamed up with L Kimii on “Nosotros”; El Alfa has worked with Bebeshito and Ya Ice Dilan; and Tito El Bambino joined Pututi and Nesty on “Los Despechaos,” which entered the Latin Airplay and Latin Rhythm Airplay charts this fall.

And for the artists of a genre that first bubbled up three decades ago, reparto’s global takeover is just getting started. “I feel that over time, as the reparto genre becomes more established, the lyrics will be more carefully crafted and won’t be sung in such a raw, street style,” Bebeshito said. “All of us reparto artists are happy — we just need a bit more exposure. This momentum will keep building.”

This story appears in the Oct. 10, 2026, issue of Billboard.