Leury José Tejeda Brito, who records as Chimbala, is a Dominican dembow singer. Billboard has named him among the principal performers of the genre in Latin America, and he is one of the few Dominican artists to have taken a dembow record to the top of an American radio chart.

The first records

He has been recording since 2008. In 2012 came Tu Ere un Loco and Cuenta Conmigo, the second made with Pablo Piddy and Toxic Crow. Two years later he cut Tu No Corre a Na in answer to a record on which El Alfa had come after him, which was how disputes in the genre were settled at the time.

He came back in late 2016 with Tamo Burlao, made with El Fother, and spent the following year touring Europe, Argentina and the United States.

Maniquí

Maniquí, released in May 2018, is the record that moved him. It travelled through Latin America, Miami and parts of Europe, particularly Spain and Italy, carried by a video of dancers built around the song.

That same year the national commission for public entertainment and broadcasting banned it in the Dominican Republic, along with other records, judging the lyrics and the video obscene. The song went back onto the radio after its words were changed: it was not withdrawn, it was corrected and returned.

Colombiana

In January 2019 he released Colombiana, produced by B-One and issued through La Para Records, the label belonging to Mozart La Para. He also recorded Se Me Nota with Omega, which earned an American certification.

Loco

Loco, in 2021, was made with the Puerto Ricans Justin Quiles and Zion & Lennox and went to number one on Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart. It was certified triple platinum in the United States and gold in Spain and Italy, and it topped Los 40 in Spain.

The following year he sang Wow BB with Natti Natasha and El Alfa, premiering it live at Premio Lo Nuestro; it was certified platinum in March. Feliz went to number one on the Dominican Monitor Latino chart, and Déjate Ver repeated that in 2023.

The scene

He belongs to the generation that made dembow exportable, and works inside it rather than beside it: he shared the urban segment of the Premios Soberano with Don Miguelo and has recorded with Bulin 47. He has also worked with Wisin, Farruko and Pitbull.