Natti Natasha Talks About Her New Album, New City, and New Baby

You might hear Natti Natasha hits such as "Criminal," "Sin Pijama," and "Ram Pam Pam" in Miami clubs, but chances are you won't see the reggaeton songstress partying there anytime soon. That's because Natasha (real name: Natalia Gutierrez) gave birth to a daughter, Vida Isabelle Pina Gutierrez, in May at South Miami Hospital with her fiancé and record producer, Raphy Pina, at her side.

As if that isn't enough, she's busy promoting her sophomore album, Nattividad, which drops today, September 24. She'll celebrate the album's release tonight alongside Justin Quiles at the Oasis in Wynwood as part of Billboard en Vivo.

"The last time I went out at night was March 2020," Natasha tells New Times over Zoom, adding that her nights weren't always so quiet. "You don't want to see my wild side. I try to keep her in. She's tame right now. I think I'm [now] more about restaurants and chill vibes: A little drink, a little food, some friends and laughs, and lots of talking."

The pandemic is partly to blame. It kept most people, including Natasha, from clubbing last year. The pandemic also happens to be one of the main reasons Natasha now calls Miami home.

Natasha moved to Miami in 2020 after spending the previous years living in Puerto Rico, New York, and her native Dominican Republic. She felt she needed to be closer to the Latin music industry's biggest producers and eye-popping music-video locations — both of which can be found in Miami — in order to keep working during quarantine.

On Nattividad, Natasha gives the 305 a nod with her single "Noches en Miami," which she says is based on a real experience. The girls-night-out music video was filmed in downtown Miami, Wynwood, and Miami Beach.

"It's more of a song about things that happened in Miami," Natasha explains. "It's about going out and partying and trying to forget someone, and then texting them and looking for them. It happens to all of us."

Although the song isn't a love letter to the city like, say, Will Smith's "Miami," sometimes all it takes is the mere mention of our town in the chorus for it to become a Miami anthem (see LMFAO's "I'm in Miami Bitch”).

Natasha would love to see that happen with "Noches en Miami." She gets a massive kick out of passing cars or boats that are blaring her music and likes to watch as people dance and sing along, unaware that the singer is looking on.
It wasn't always this way. Natasha has spoken in interviews about having her career stall and struggling to make ends meet after catching her big break on Don Omar's 2012 single, "Dutty Love." She eventually bounced back in a big way with help from Daddy Yankee — with whom she collaborated on 2017's "Otra Cosa," among other songs — and cemented her place in the industry with her 2019 debut album, Iluminatti.

Nattividad got off to a solid start with Natasha's Prince Royce duet "Antes Que Salga El Sol" and the Becky G collabo "Ram Pam Pam," both of which reached number one on Billboard's Latin Airplay chart. The album also features collaborations with Maluma, Justin Quiles, and Farina.

Hip-hop and R&B fans might notice that her songs "No Quiero Saber" and "Hablando de Mí" sound familiar. They sample Mario Winans' "I Don't Wanna Know" (which sampled Fugees' "Ready or Not") and 50 Cent's "P.I.M.P.," respectively.

What's the difference between the Natti Natasha who released Iluminatti two years ago and the Natti Natasha who's releasing Nattividad now?

"Everything," Natasha responds. "She's now more grown and sure of herself. The insecurities she had have gone out the window. I'm really enjoying the music I'm doing."

Natasha plans to take that music on the road next year, but she says needs to figure out how to make a tour work now that she's a mother. For now, she sings mostly for an audience of one.

"I sing to my baby," she says. "She has her own songs. She has her 'drink milk' song. She has her 'change the diaper' song. I could do a whole baby album. There's [also] a very special song that is for her, but it's not on this album. It will come in the future."

Speaking of the future, Natasha says she also plans to venture into the worlds of fashion and film, though she declines to provide details.

"I want to grow," she says. "I want to say I did everything I wanted to do."

Natti Natasha. With Justin Quiles. 8 p.m. Friday, September 24, at the Oasis, 2335 N. Miami Ave., Miami; oasiswynwood.com. Admission is free with RVSP via tixr.com.