On the same week merengue has been loudly reclaiming ground across Latin radio, "Borracha," a new single from Cuban artists El Rojo and Néstor in collaboration with Dominican producer Maffio, landed out of Miami with the kind of rhythmic urgency the format demands.

The track, recorded at Nexus Prime Studios and released under the Nexus Prime label, sits at the intersection of traditional merengue structure and urban reparto, a style rooted in Dominican street music that blends the tambora's gallop with contemporary electronic production. According to materials from the release, the song is built for the dance floor, arriving with a music video shot on location in Miami.

El Rojo and Néstor Bring Cuban Roots to Dominican Rhythm

The pairing of El Rojo and Néstor on a merengue reparto track is itself worth noting. Both artists are Cuban. David Acosta, known as El Rojo, trained at the Escuela Nacional de Música and the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, according to previous materials from Nexus Prime. Néstor Meneses, who performs as Néstor Meness, emigrated from Cienfuegos to the United States at 14. Their catalog has moved across genres, from tropical pop to rumba flamenca, including a previous single reinterpreting Selena Quintanilla's "Si Una Vez" for a pop-flamenco format. With "Borracha," the duo steps into Dominican-rooted territory, a move that reflects a broader pattern in Latin music: the merengue and reparto revival has drawn artists well outside the Dominican orbit. As Rolling Stone reported in 2024, major artists from Bad Bunny to Karol G have incorporated the staccato tambora gallop into their recent output, while original Dominican practitioners continue to push the genre forward at home.

Maffio Brings His Production Track Record to the Single

The production credit belongs to Maffio, born Carlos Ariel Peralta Mendoza in Santo Domingo. He is credited as the creator of the merengue electrónico subgenre and has placed over 50 recordings on the Billboard charts and won three Latin Grammy awards. In October 2024, Maffio and Nacho won at the Billboard Latin Music Awards, taking home Latin Pop Song of the Year for their collaboration "No es Normal." That win added a Billboard trophy to his Latin Grammy haul and kept him among the more active producer-artists in the tropical and Latin pop space heading into 2026. Everipedia + 2

His involvement in "Borracha" ties the release to a production pedigree that is hard to ignore for a song entering the summer cycle. The merengue reparto format has been building momentum for several years. The intersection of traditional Dominican rhythm and contemporary urban codes has positioned a new wave of artists at the vanguard of a revival that now stretches well beyond the island. A song like "Borracha," with Maffio steering the board, lands in that conversation with credibility behind it. Rolling Stone

The music video, shot in Miami, is out now on YouTube. For El Rojo and Néstor, it adds a third distinct sonic chapter to a catalog still building its audience. Whether "Borracha" breaks through the summer noise will depend on radio support and streaming placement, but it arrives with the right producer and a genre wave moving in the right direction.

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