I Like It

The opening horn blast of Pete Rodriguez's 1967 boogaloo classic "I Like It Like That" kicks off one of the defining crossover smashes of the late 2010s. Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin each bring their own flavor to this track, Cardi's brash Bronx energy, Bad Bunny's melodic trap cadences, and J Balvin's reggaeton polish. The song arrived on April 6, 2018 as a promotional single from Cardi B's debut album Invasion of Privacy, then became the album's third official single on May 25. Production by J. White Did It, Tainy, and Craig Kallman weaves the sample's retro brass and piano into a trap beat, creating a sound that feels both nostalgic and current.

Lyrics toggle between English and Spanish, celebrating wealth, luxury cars, and designer clothes, a flex that felt earned after Cardi's breakout year. The track hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 dated July 7, 2018, making Cardi B the first female rapper to score multiple chart-toppers (following "Bodak Yellow"). It also topped the Hot Latin Songs chart and went diamond in the US, certified 11x Platinum by the RIAA. Beyond the numbers, the song became a cultural bridge, its sample introduced a generation to Nuyorican boogaloo, while its Spanish verses proved bilingual pop could dominate English-language radio.

Eif Rivera directed the music video, released June 1, 2018. It's a riot of color: the three artists perform at a car wash, a diner, and a street party, with choreographed dancers and cameos from figures like DJ Khaled. The video has over 1.5 billion views on YouTube. Critical reception was effusive, Billboard called it "the ultimate Latin crossover track," and Rolling Stone ranked it among the best songs of 2018. It received Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, and won Top Hot 100 Song and Top Collaboration at the 2019 Billboard Music Awards. [edit]