Singer Prince Royce released a 2015 track, “Back It Up,” featuring Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull, and the refrain: “ Dámelo papi chulo,” or “Give it to me, papi chulo.” It debuted at #27 Billboard’s Hot Latin charts. Papi, papi, papi, ven a mí (Ven a mí) Papi, papi, papi, chulo. The lyrics describe the singer’s night out with a hot man on the dance floor. Papi, papi, papi ven a mí (Ven a mí) Papi, papi papi chulo (Chulo, chulo, chulo) Tú quieres mmm, te gusta el mmm. The song peaked at #25 on Billboard charts in the United States but reached #1 in France, #2 in Belgium and Italy, and #3 in the Netherlands. The phrase papi chulo gained popularity with the 2003 release of the single “ Papi Chulo …Te Traigo El MMMM” by reggaeton artist Lorna. Sweeter than a churro, she call me papi chulo.
Papi chulo carries some of these connotations along with it into contemporary use, though the term is more often used today as slang for a sexy, confident man who dresses well. (Bricks, this shit finna kill these niggas) (Go Grizz) (Kio, Kio) Skepta: Uh, met this pretty ting, nice to meet you, mucho gusto. In the 1990s, when Mexican-Americans were referred to as chulos, the term carried with it overtones of class-lower-income gangsters and recent immigrant laborers were insultingly referred to as chulos. By the late 1980s, chulo was an insult, referring to an effeminate man or a pimp. A direct translation of papi chulo from Spanish is “pimp daddy,” with papi being a diminutive form of “father” (and used like “baby”) and chulo meaning “pimp” but also “attractive,” “cocky,” or “cool” in colloquial settings.Ĭhulo alone has a storied history in American English.