Worldbeat (album)

Worldbeat is the debut album by Kaoma, released in 1989. It provided three hit singles, two of them achieving success worldwide: "Lambada", "Dançando Lambada" and "Mélodie d'amour". The album is composed of songs in Portuguese, Spanish and English. It was ranked in the top 25 in Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Australia and Austria. It topped the Billboard Latin Pop in the U.S.

Worldbeat
Studio album by Kaoma
Released	16 December 1989
Recorded	September–November 1989
Genre	Latin
Label	Epic Records
Kaoma chronology
Worldbeat (1989) Tribal-pursuit (1991)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	^[2]

Critical reception

The album received generally positive reviews from critics. AllMusic wrote: "Not outstanding but definitely appealing, this CD effectively combines South American elements with dance music/disco, reggae and hip-hop. One hears Chic's influence on the funky 'Sopenala'."^[3] According to a review in Pan-European magazine Music and Media, the album "is of course made up of Latin tinged, summery dance songs with uplifting melodies".^[4] Music Week presented the album as "a collection of variations on the Lambada theme which never strays far from maximum accessibility. Pleasant and commercial, if not the real thing".^[5]

Track listings

1. "Lambada" — 3:27
2. "Lambareggae" — 3:52
3. "Dançando Lambada" — 4:44
4. "Lambamor" — 4:09
5. "Lamba caribe" — 4:07
6. "Mélodie d'amour" — 4:11
7. "Sindiang" — 3:58
8. "Sopenala" — 4:28
9. "Jambé finète (grille)" — 4:26
10. "Salsa nuestra" — 4:38

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1989–1990) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)^[6] 17 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)^[7] 16 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)^[8] 12 French Albums (SNEP)^[9] 14 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[10] 21 Norwegian Albums Chart^[11] 11 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)^[12] 41 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[13] 6 US Billboard 200^[14] 40 US Latin Pop Albums (Billboard)^[15] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1990) Position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)^[16] 86

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)^[17]	Platinum	250,000^*
Canada (Music Canada)^[18]	Gold	50,000^^
France (SNEP)^[19]	2× Gold	200,000^*
Italy	—	500,000^[20]
Japan (RIAJ)^[21]	Platinum	200,000^^
Malaysia	—	90,000^[22]
Netherlands (NVPI)^[23]	Gold	50,000^^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)^[24]	Platinum	100,000^^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)^[25]	Gold	25,000^^
United States (RIAA)^[27]	Gold	600,000^[26]
United States (RIAA)^[28] video	Gold	50,000^^
Summaries
Worldwide	—	4,000,000^[29]
^* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

• List of number-one Billboard Latin Pop Albums from the 1990s
• List of best-selling Latin albums

References

1. AllMusic review
2. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 388.
3. "Worldbeat, Kaoma — Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-07-11.
4. "Previews – Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 50. 16 December 1989. p. 14. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via World Radio History.
5. "LP Reviews" (PDF). Music Week. 24 February 1990. p. 24. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
6. "Australiancharts.com – Kaoma – Worldbeat". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
7. "Austriancharts.at – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
8. "Dutchcharts.nl – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
9. "Lescharts.com – Kaoma – Worldbeat". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
10. "Offiziellecharts.de – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
11. "Worldbeat, in various albums charts". Lescharts. Retrieved 2009-07-11.
12. "Swedishcharts.com – Kaoma – Worldbeat". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
13. "Swisscharts.com – Kaoma – Worldbeat". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
14. "Kaoma Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
15. "Worldbeat, U.S. albums charts". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-07-11.
16. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1990". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
17. "Brazilian album certifications – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil.
18. "Canadian album certifications – Kaoma – Worldbeat". Music Canada.
19. "French album certifications – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
20. "Kaoma". Epoca (in Italian). Vol. 41. 1990. p. 97. Retrieved January 13, 2023. In Italia , la « lambadamania » è scoppiata in settembre . Da allora sono state vendute oltre 500 mila copie dell'album dei Kaoma
21. "Japanese album certifications – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved 10 July 2020. Select 1990年8月 on the drop-down menu
22. Leo, Christie (8 September 1990). "Malaysian Teens Catch New Kids Fever" (PDF). Billboard. p. 66. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
23. "Dutch album certifications – Kaoma – Worldbeat" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter Worldbeat in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1990 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
24. Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 928. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
25. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Worldbeat')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
26. "MARKETING: Hurricane Of Hype". Time. 2 April 1990. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
27. "American album certifications – Kaoma – World beat". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
28. "American video certifications – Kaoma – World beat". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
29. "Spotlight - Kaoma" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 8, no. 27. 6 July 1991. p. 16. Retrieved 15 July 2020 – via World Radio History.