Dominican singer Zavier Fernández has released his new merengue single El que madruga alongside producer Dahian El Apechao and urban artist Lennox in Santo Domingo.
Fernández, who performs under the stage name El Nuevo Feeling, takes the lead vocal role on the track, while veteran Puerto Rican performer Lennox delivers the urban rhythms. The song was written by composer Juan Daniel Cruz.
Dominican musician and arranger Dahian El Apechao directed the musical arrangement for the single. He structured the track by integrating the genre's defining components, including lively accordion melodies and syncopated percussion, alongside contemporary urban beats.
The song weaves popular Dominican idioms and everyday street phrases throughout its lyrics. According to coverage published in Santo Domingo by Diario Libre, the artists developed the project to introduce merengue to fresh sonic landscapes without compromising Dominican cultural identity.
Dominican merengue and urban fusion
Merengue is the national music and dance of the Dominican Republic, recognized by UNESCO as part of humanity's cultural heritage. The genre traditionally relies on three core instruments: the accordion, the two-headed tambora drum, and the metal güira scraper. While big band merengue dominated international airwaves in the late twentieth century, modern Caribbean artists have continued to combine its rapid tempo with urban rhythms.
Dahian El Apechao has become a central figure in modernizing Dominican accordion music, having arranged and performed the merengue instrumentation on Bad Bunny's 2022 hit Después de la Playa. Lennox, born Gabriel Pizarro, built his career as part of the veteran Puerto Rican duo Zion and Lennox, helping pioneer the reggaeton genre across Latin America.
Collaborations across the Caribbean
The release follows a growing wave of cross-genre collaborations uniting urban reggaeton stars with Dominican musicians. Lennox recently partnered with American singer DaniLeigh and Dominican artist La Insuperable on the single Island, maintaining an active creative bridge between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
The track's title, El que madruga, draws from the well-known Spanish proverb stating that God helps those who wake early. By anchoring the upbeat record in everyday Dominican expressions, Fernández aims to keep the country's national rhythm vibrant for a new generation of listeners across the Spanish-speaking world.
