If You Grew Up In The ’00s, You Definitely Dedicated One (Or All) Of These Latina Jams To Your Crush
It’s 2006. You have a crush on your classmate. The butterflies in your stomach prevent you from speaking more than three words in their presence, so you use music to show the one who makes your heart go pitter-patter how you feel. You put together a mix CD and draw pink and red hearts all over it, but before you hand it over you think like Paula DeAnda and ask, “baby, am I doing too much?”
Yes, early teen version of yourself, you are — but it’s the 2000s, and love songs are extra af. And, honestly, that’s what makes them so great.
Here, some of the mushiest Latina-sung tunes you dedicated to your sweetheart back in the double zeros, even if you never built up the courage to tell them (Don’t worry! Neither did I).
1. When there just ain’t another and you don’t want no other lover, Lumidee’s “Never Leave You (Uh-Oh)” came through.
In this summer 2003 mega hit, the Nuyorican singer helped us tell all of our crushes that we were willing to kick anyone else to the gutter and never leave their side if they just said the word.
2. For the moments we actually felt bold and flirty, we let Christina Milian let our dreamboat know that we were offering “Whatever U Want.”
In this 2004 jam featuring Joe Budden, the cubana showed us we had to go after what we wanted confidently, letting our crush know we were capable of being all they ever wanted and more.
3. In the summer of 2006, Paula DeAnda dropped a hit for all the girls who were “Doing Too Much” for their crush’s attention.
DeAnda and Baby Bash gifted us with the thirsty girl’s anthem, a song for the ones who called their lover way too much and were probably always grounded for all their texting charges. Honestly, we’re all probably guilty of being so eager for our crush that it didn’t work out, but at least the Tejana encouraged us to keep our self-esteem in tact.
4. There was a time you thought the boy who sat in front of you in your seventh grade history class was the hottest thing around (just me?), so you dedicated Christina Aguilera’s “Ain’t No Other Man” to him.
Sadly, he ended up not being ishh, and when you moved on to high school, you learned that, despite what your fave part-Ecuadorian superstar taught you, there were actually hundreds more aint-shit other boys just like him.
5. Of course we didn’t see it that way at first. And when that middle school heartbreaker ended the relationship, venezolana Mariah Carey made us really feel like “We Belong Together.”
“When you left, I lost a part of me. It’s still so hard to believe. Come back, baby, please, ’cause we belong. Together.” Oh, to be young, in “love” and heartbroken by our crush.
6. A month passes. You’re over it. Now you have your sights set on somebody else, and Thalia helped you tell them “I Want You.”
In this 2003 pop hit featuring Fat Joe, the mexicana gave us formerly crushed babes a song for the new cutie we were just starting to heart-eye.
7. When we were completely lovesick, Fantasia made the perfect R&B jam to describe just how we felt “When I See You.”
“Start to blush when somebody says your name. In my stomach, there’s a pain. See you walk in my direction. I go the other way. I start to stutter when I speak. Try to stand, but my knees go weak. What’s happening to me?” The cubana American Idol winner nails all the silly things we did and felt when we were jonesing hard.
8. When your crush 100 percent knew how you felt, Cassie gave you the courage to ask ’em what’s good with “Me and You.”
Sure, the part-mexicana was talking about sexo, but you’re a teen and don’t really understand the naughty meanings behind all your favorite songs, so for you this is just a song about making the move to win your crush’s heart.
9. When you started feelin’ someone unexpectedly, J.Lo’s “Do It Well” was on repeat.
So, like the Puerto Rican megastar, you were minding your business, doing what you do, then all of a sudden you can’t take your eyes off of someone. Bam! You got it bad.
10. When Jason Mraz and mexicana Ximena Sariñana dropped “Suerte,” you started to feel a few things for one of your friends and wondered if maybe the two of you could be one of the “lucky” ones.
While sometimes we love songs because of how perfectly they describe our current romantic situations, other times we enjoy them because they open up our eyes to a love that’s been in front of us the whole time (or at least one we imagine has been there but probably really is nothing). That’s what “Suerte” did for tweens and teens in circa 2008.
11. You were so head over heels this time that Shakira had you feeling this love could last “Whenever, Wherever.”
So maybe you’re not going to climb the Andes for your “forever” boo like this colombiana, but you can hit the climbing walls at gym this week to get their attention.
12. When the crush hit obsessive levels, Demi Lovato’s “Until You’re Mine” held you down.
Sure, we will probably never admit to dedicating this song to anyone now (creepy!), but as young ones, puppy love felt all-consuming, and Lovato, being the same age as many of us, totally got it.
Read: 12 Songs For Your Girl Friends To Belt Out During Your Next Karaoke Night
Let us know which songs you dedicated to your crush back in the day in the comments below.
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