As an homage fueled by nostalgia of times past, GAWVI recently released Noche Juvenil, which translates to Youth Night, to capture the Latino Christian experience he and his friends wished for while growing up. Consistent with his aim to create a new sonic lane for Christian Music, GAWVI taps into his native culture to bring the change he desires to see in music and faith culture. GAWVI’s first full Spanish-language production, Noche Juvenil draws inspiration from some of the most groundbreaking Latino urban artists. Musically, it is “straight-up reggaeton with sprinkles of EDM and trap” that presents an array of exhilarating collaborations with fellow trailblazers like Blanca, Maria Juliah, Madiel Lara, Tommy Royale, and WXLF. In this TCB Exclusive, Gawvi shares about his vision for the record, the timing of the release and his hopes for the collection.

Congratulations on the recent release of your first ever Spanish-language album titled Noche Juvenil! How long has this album been a dream of yours?
Wow, since I started music, I knew it was something I wanted to do.

Why is it important to you that you created a Spanish-language album?
It feels really important to connect with my roots as a Latino, it’s who I am and I always want my music to reflect who I am.

Looking back, is there one moment during the process that you can identify now as providing the resolve that this music needed to be released into the world?
For this album, it needed to come out now, because the way the music is going in the Latin market, the influence is so wide and vast, and I knew there needed to be more of the Christian movement getting behind it.

You are releasing the full album as a surprise with little to no warning of a release date. What prompted this decision?
I like things feeling mysterious and secretive when it comes to my projects because it’s like my baby and I want to hold onto it as much as I can from the world, and also because I love seeing the reaction of my fans and how they react to that mysterious momentum. But I will say, I did tease it a lot on my socials, so my fans could tell what was coming early on.

If you could pick just one of the tracks, which do you think the world most needs to hear now and why?
I would say “Dicen” because it’s such an intimate prayer that I had with God that I got to write down and sing about. I think a lot of the time the world is telling you who God is, but I think it starts when you truly find out who God is in your heart.

You released a music video alongside the first single “Que Paso” last month. How did you find the inspiration behind the track and ultimately create the accompanying visual?
I knew I needed to create something crazy that I personally had never heard before in the Christian Latin market – my personal opinion. It felt very on brand with what I do in the Christian market but with a Latin flare. The meaning of the song was about here, now, this is the new movement of Christian reggaeton and ‘What happened?! We are here!’

In addition to your own music, you were also recently featured on Blanca’s “Zone”. How did this collaboration come about?
We have been trying to connect for years. I knew Manuel from Group 1 Crew and that’s how the connection started. Then last year in 2020, it became official that she wanted me to get in the studio with her and I ended up producing 4 of her tracks and then in turn, I wanted her on my album as well, and from there we started a cool friendship.

What are you most expectant for in 2021?
I am hoping we can throw some of the biggest tours! I would love to merge Heathen and Noche Juvenil together.

courtesy of thechristianbeat.org