
Photograph by Shoccara Marcus
Until recently, Jema Kellum had never danced salsa. She was more into Reba McEntire and line dancing at the local VFW in Dallas, a northwestern exurb of Atlanta. But then something changed. She went on a date to a Latin Party at the restaurant Rosa Negra. “I’m originally from Alabama, where we can line-dance to anything,” says Kellum, a hairstylist at Bloom Hair Salon. “But salsa is freer. You shake your hips more.”
Kellum is part of a wave of salsa fever currently taking over the country, much of it inspired by a single source: Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican singer-rapper-songwriter, and his wildly popular new album, released in January.
DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS (in English, “I Should Have Taken More Photos”), which was recorded entirely in Spanish, reimagines classic salsa with sleek, contemporary production. It spent three weeks atop the Billboard 200 albums chart, then shot back to number one again in May following its release on vinyl; DeBÍ TiRAR now holds the record for the biggest vinyl sales week for a Latin album in the United States. At the same time, the album caught fire on TikTok; viral trends linked to certain tracks have helped to push old-school rhythms into new territory and introduced salsa to a huge swath of Americans.
The combination has given salsa dancing an unlikely footing across metro Atlanta and beyond.
Longtime dance instructor Carrie Thomas says she never would have guessed that she would be teaching salsa outside of the city limits. And yet these days, students are flocking to her private salsa classes around Acworth, Dallas, Marietta, and Douglasville. She credits social media with the demand. “People are watching the dance clips online and coming in saying, ‘I want to learn that!’” she says.
Thomas, who’s taught dance in Atlanta for more than two decades, says salsa’s growing popularity makes sense. “Line dancing is more solo, just memorizing a pattern,” she explains. “Salsa is a lot more impromptu.”
In Dallas, Rosa Negra—a Latin fusion restaurant—has become an unlikely cultural hot spot. Juan Quintana, Rosa Negra’s former manager, says that he wouldn’t have thought to offer salsa to a mostly Southern, non-Latino crowd who’d never heard of Bad Bunny, much less danced to Celia Cruz.
But earlier this year, Quintana and Rosa Negra’s co-owner, Colombian American restaurateur Adrian Quintero, “took a chance” and began hosting a full Latin Party every fourth Friday, complete with a live band. “It’s packed,” says Quintana, who has since left Rosa Negra. “The staff has to move all the tables out of the way. People just want to dance.”
Miami native Tatiana Sanders, the catering and events manager at restaurant Cubanos ATL, which has locations in Roswell and Sandy Springs, says she’s also noticed a newfound love of Latin music. “Lately our patio is packed on salsa nights,” she says.
These enthusiasts may have just discovered the centuries-old appeal of salsa rhythms, but they’ve jumped in with both feet. Kellum, in Dallas, is out on the floor as often as she can get there.
“I love salsa dancing,” she says. “It just makes you feel alive.”
Ponce’s placita
Bad Bunny is credited with kicking off the latest salsa craze with the hit song “Baile Inolvidable” that pays homage to the music of his native Puerto Rico. Riding that wave is a recurring salsa night at Ponce City Market. Every other Friday night, the first floor in the middle of the main food hall turns into a Latin town square with pulsating salsa music and dance. Hosted by the restaurants El Super Pan and La Metro, both owned by Puerto Rico native and Top Chef alum Hector Santiago, the event is a miniature version of “Bad Bunny Nights” at La Placita de Santurce in Puerto Rico where people gather at the popular town square to salsa dance, party, and socialize. The evening includes quick bites and cold drinks, in addition to free salsa lessons at 8 p.m. to kick things off.
This article appears in our August 2025 issue.
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