Sech dropped his third studio album 42 on Thursday (April 15). An album that was born “fully in the pandemic” and a tribute to his Afro roots, the artist calls it “his best project.”
“I’m so excited that this album is finally out on the streets and with everyone we achieved. It’s amazing,” Sech tells Billboard.
Released under Rich Music, the set is home to 11 tracks including collaborations with Wisin, Yandel, Arcangel, Nicky Jam, and Rauw Alejandro.
The number 42 is representative of the Panamanian artist. “It’s a tribute to Jackie Robinson, the first African American baseball player to play in Major League Baseball. He went through a lot and never quit,” Sech explains. “From there, they removed the number from baseball and they later gave it to Mariano Rivera, a Panamanian baseball player. It has a lot of value for me.”
Unlike his sophomore album 1 Of 1, which was partially done in lockdown, 42 was entirely born in the pandemic.
“This album is all me, without thinking about numbers or the industry. It’s me opening my heart,” he says. “My brother found a notebook of mine where I would write my feelings when I was younger and I decided to turn those feelings into songs. The first one I wrote was ‘911.’ All of these songs are real and part of my life.”
Below, Sech shared five of his most personal tracks on the album, followed by a 12-minute documentary where he opens up about his challenging success story.
“Pata’ Abajo” ft. Wisin, Yandel
I had so many memories about reggaeton, of all the parties back home. I was everyone’s friend, so I would get invited to all the parties in town. With this song, I had nostalgia for old-school reggaeton. When Wisin y Yandel released Los Extraterrestres to the world, that drove me crazy and I said, someday I will have a song like that and collaborate with them. And truthfully, it has an incredible beat, that’s why it’s the opening track.
“Mi Ex”
“Mi Ex” is a song about my ex. Honestly, I was going to release “911” and “Mi Ex” together, but I decided to hold back on this one. I couldn’t say everything I needed to say to my ex in just one song, so I did these two.
“¿Que Somos?”
“What are we?” That’s a question I wrote down in my journal and it’s hard to answer. When I got asked that question, I said, “we’re humans.” This song makes me laugh because I went through that awkward moment. If you pay attention to the lyrics, you’ll notice that the answer is long, because I finally answered that question, now that I’m older.
“Feliz de Mentira”
This song sounds very Mexican. You can hear mariachi in the song. I wrote the entire song, too. It’s about a person who broke up with me and is now dating someone else but she’s happy with the lies.
“PSL”
This is about two people who don’t have a serious relationship but they have big chemistry. In fact, even if the two people have their partners, they never stop seeing each other. They are jealous of each other, even if they each have their separate lives. It’s a cycle.
