This Dominican Musician Composed the Merengue on Bad Bunny’s ‘Después De La Playa’

One of the most popular songs from Bad Bunny’s latest album Un Verano Sin Ti is a merengue-infused banger called “Después De La Playa.” Unbeknownst to many, though suspected by some, a Dominican musician named Luis Daniel Frías Felix, better known as Dahian el Apechao, had a hand composing the breakdown.

The song starts off with Benito asking the person he’s with what they’re gonna do after the beach. “Que la luz ya se fue/ Y la noche llegó, ey/ Quiero saber si usted quiere lo mismo que yo,” he croons. “Dime pa’ dónde vamo’ después de la playa.”

A third of the way through, the beat switches up, and the song is filled with drums, horns, and the unmistakable güira that’s a staple in any merengue classic. It’s no surprise that Benito enlisted a Dominican to help him craft the tune.

Twitter user Alex Medina tweeted: “The mambo (merengue) y’all hear on Bad Bunny’s “Después de la Playa” was composed by el Dominicano, Dahian el Apechao. Bad Bunny and team hired one of the hardest musicians in the genre to bless him with the swing and sound.”

In a YouTube interview, Frías recounts how he came to work with Benito, saying his team reached out to him after seeing his work with Farruko. At first, he wasn’t told what artist was commissioning him and was instructed to bring with him only his work team. Frías was only told he’d be working with Bad Bunny two days before going into the studio in San Carlos, Dominican Republic. “Me dijeron, ‘es con fulano,’ y yo dije, ‘¡¿Qué?!’” he noted. Frías added that he initially thought Bad Bunny wouldn’t be in the studio, sharing it’s normal for him to work on the instrumentals for American artists without actually meeting them. 

“It was a cool feeling, and at the same time, it was something normal,” he said about finally seeing Bad Bunny. He shared that he introduced himself to everyone in the studio when he walked in. “When he was finally by the computer, he took off [his mask], and I said, ‘this man is here,” Frías said. 

He then added that when they finally recorded, Benito flowed well with him and his team. “It really was a very cool vibe, very positive. Firstly, he was willing to be cool. He gave us the trust. And there was no pressure. What there was, was a desire to show a cool, satisfying feeling,” he said.     

After being asked how his life has changed since “Después De La Playa” came out, he said: “I can say [Bad Bunny] opened a door so that people know who Apechao is.” He added that his schedule has been busy lately after all the attention, and that he even got the green light from Benito to play the record on his own shows.   

Benito’s latest album has already become one of his most popular, and he’s already broken multiple records — even one previously held by Drake. After 24 hours, the album received over 183 million streams and became the biggest single-day debut on the platform since Drake’s Certified Lover Boy.