From Village Festivals to Viral Stardom
From performing at local village festivals to receiving praise from international artists like Quevedo and Tony Tun Tun, the success of the Tenerife orchestra Nueva Línea knows no bounds. Their covers of ‘Un Beso’ and ‘Noche de Copas’ have broken into the top three of Spain’s fifty most viral songs on the Spotify platform. Their innate talent, combined with their social media savvy, has led the four vocalists – Alicia Padilla, Raquel González, Mayte Cabrera, and Sofía Marrero – and the rest of the group to connect with people from all over Spain and Latin America. On Instagram alone, they have over 150,000 followers, a figure that rises to 737,500 on TikTok.
The Viral Phenomenon Takes Hold
Their first viral hit came with ‘Noche de Copas’, which has already amassed over forty million views – twenty times the population of the Canary Islands and almost the population of all of Spain – and one million likes on the social network. But it has only been in recent weeks, with their cover of Willy Calderón’s ‘Un Beso’, that the voices of these women in their twenties have permeated every corner of the internet. Influencers like Xuso Jones, Lola Lolita, Fabiana Sevillano, and Anabel Pantoja have continually recreated the trend associated with the song. ‘El típico de Tenerife’, a well-known Instagram profile, has also dedicated a post to them. And artists like Quevedo have been unable to resist showing their enthusiasm in comments on their TikTok profile.
“That was the moment we realised the reach we were having,” confesses Marrero, who was the first to see the message. “I was in class and couldn’t help but get emotional and share the screenshot with the rest of my bandmates,” she adds. Several people have even taken to social media to explain the Nueva Línea phenomenon and their clever use of algorithms. Some are already predicting that the girls’ songs will become the anthems of the 2026 Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival, much like Karol G’s ‘Tusa’ was six years ago.
Viral Fame Translates to Real-World Success
Perhaps most importantly, this social media virality is already translating into real bookings. “We have received up to four messages a day about future concerts and we couldn’t be happier,” details Cabrera. Their most recent conquest came yesterday, with their performance at the Army Awards in Madrid. These are awards organised by the well-known influencer Ceciarmy for the online community and mark the beginning of a new trajectory for the orchestra, as they plan to take their music to other cities in Spain without neglecting their homeland.
A 23-Year Journey to the Spotlight
However, the story of Nueva Línea did not arise by chance. To truly understand where these women come from, one must look back 23 years. From the beginning, the idea of an all-female orchestra was present. Their manager and director, José Marrero, decided to bet on female voices to differentiate the group from the rest, as 90% of orchestras in the Canaries were male. “There are also men who are part of the orchestra, but the commitment to this format has always been clear,” he says.
Numerous singers and musicians have passed through Nueva Línea. But the latest renewal is what has made them go viral. “In the last four years is when we have experienced that boom of the group, which coincided with the new signings,” explains the founder. It is, therefore, a relatively recent line-up. While Padilla and González joined the group almost four years ago, Marrero did so a year ago. Cabrera, however, arrived just six months ago. Very soon, they will celebrate their first year together.
The Team Behind the Voices
Although they are the most visible face on social media, the orchestra is composed of five other members: José Marrero himself; saxophonists Carmen Hernández and Sergio Torres; percussionist Juan Carlos García; bassist and pianist Sara Marrero. Additionally, the team includes a sound technician, Miguel Ángel Delgado, and a producer, María Dolores Pérez. The vocalists – all natives of Güímar, except Cabrera who is from Fasnia – knew each other beforehand, often crossing paths at various places and events. “It’s curious to see how everything has led us here to succeed together,” details Padilla.
Indeed, from a young age, all four have been linked to the world of music. “We were all practically born singing,” says González with a laugh. Now, the young women find it amusing to be stopped in the street or even shown videos from their TikTok profile to confirm it’s really them. “The other day I went to a birthday party for a woman in my town and I was recognised; I’m still processing it all,” reveals Cabrera.
Navigating the Double-Edged Sword of Fame
At their first concert of the year, which took place in the municipality of Arafo for New Year’s Eve, they could hardly believe people were recording them. “We’ve gone from seeing people dancing at the foot of the stage to hundreds of mobile phones focused on us,” notes the Fasnia native. But the other side of Nueva Línea’s virality is the overexposure of the vocalists. “We have felt a bit judged and have received comments about our appearance,” reveals González. Criticism for singing “in a masculine way” – with deeper tones – when an original song cannot be covered has also been present. “They ask us why we wear such revealing clothes or why we don’t let our hair down,” details Cabrera. These are the kind of criticisms a male performer would never receive. Even so, they acknowledge that most comments are positive. They prefer to focus on the support received and constructive criticism.
Now, all that remains is for them to process the whirlwind of emotions they are experiencing and harness the momentum to continue doing what they love most: music.
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