HUGEL Reveals "Mami" Was the Song That Started "Twenty One"

HUGEL has released "Mami" with Mexican singer-songwriter Netón Vega, but the track's story started long before its release. According to HUGEL, it was actually the song that kicked off the entire writing process for his debut album "Twenty One."

HUGEL says he wrote "Mami" last October in Los Angeles, shortly after deciding it was finally time to make an album. There was just one problem: he had made the decision, but still had no idea where to begin.

Then came a session with Netón Vega. According to HUGEL, the two connected immediately and the track came together without much overthinking or forcing a direction. That session became the first song he wrote for "Twenty One."

"Twenty One" eventually arrived in June as HUGEL's debut album, bringing together a huge list of collaborators including Snoop Dogg, David Guetta, Big Sean, French Montana and Tokischa.

But "Mami" was not part of it. The track that HUGEL says helped him find the starting point for the album stayed unreleased while the rest of the project made its way out.

Nearly a year after that original session, "Mami" is finally out. The finished track brings Netón Vega's vocals into HUGEL's Latin house world, with Mexican-inspired trumpets, rhythmic instrumentation and percussion running through the production.

The release also reconnects "Mami" with the album it helped start. Current release material places the track within the continuing "Twenty One" chapter, even though it missed the original version of the record.

It gives "Mami" a slightly unusual place in the story of HUGEL's first album. The song that came first ended up being one of the last ones we got to hear.