Just over a decade ago, a baby-faced Hesperia, Calif., native auditioned on “La Banda,” a Spanish-language reality TV series designed to assemble the next great Latin boy band.
To honor his Mexican roots, 16-year-old Joel Deleōn, then known as Joel Pimentel, belted out the Manuel Bonilla classic “Eran Cien Ovejas” before a formidable panel of judges: ex-Menudo member and global pop icon Ricky Martin, as well as the Spanish singer Alejandro Sanz, and Italian diva Laura Pausini. In the middle of his audition, Pausini asked for a different song selection — which led Deleōn to sing Ed Sheeran’s “I See Fire,” which helped him move forward in the competition.
“It’s crazy to think that it’s already been 10 years,” he recalls, now a bearded 26-year-old with an abundance of tattoos. “I didn’t think I could win ‘La Banda,’ especially at a time where I didn’t speak Spanish fluently. To think that going for the audition changed my life… It’s a constant reminder [to not be] afraid to go after what I want.”
Martin and former “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell, who famously helped propel One Direction to greatness, created “La Banda” to fill the void for a boy band in the Latin market, which was left by Menudo in the 1980s. Eventually, during the show’s finale, dated Dec. 13, 2015, viewers voted for Deleōn to join CNCO with Christopher Vélez, Richard Camacho, Erick Brian Colón and Zabdiel de Jesús.
Each member represented a different part of Latin America, but onstage the boys were in sync with their heartthrob harmonies and tight choreography. Fame quickly followed for CNCO with multiple world tours, a best new artist nomination at the 2017 Latin Grammys, and multi-platinum hits like the alluring “Reggaetón Lento (Bailemos)” and the anthemic “Hey DJ.”
Much like Geri Halliwell in the Spice Girls, Zayn Malik in One Direction, and Camila Cabello in Fifth Harmony, Deleōn shockingly decided to leave the group in 2021 to “start building my own path and career.” That’s when he changed his stage name from Joel Pimentel to Joel Deleōn, as a nod to the surname of his late grandfather, who inspired him to pursue music.
After releasing a few solo singles under CNCO’s label, Deleōn found himself at a creative standstill. In 2023, he took the independent route and released the fittingly titled EP “Ahora Me Escuchan???” (Can You Hear Me Now???) — unveiling a more punchy and playful sound that recalls Joe Jonas’ pop-rock side project, DNCE, but with more Latin detours.
Since then, Deleōn has found his own groove as a Chicano pop-R&B star. This past year, he went on his first solo tour of Latin America — and on Nov. 28 he teased his upcoming debut album with the bilingual banger “Me Alegro Por Ti.” In honor of CNCO’s 10th anniversary Dec. 13, De Los caught up with Deleōn about the group’s legacy, his departure and life after the boy band.
What did you take away from your time with CNCO? I take with me a lot of dedication to the art of music. You have to have a lot of dedication and passion for your music. I feel like that’s a big reason why CNCO became so big: There was so much dedication and so much hours put into the studio, choreography, interviews and things like that. Obviously, I take those awesome memories I lived with the four other guys, and it’s something that motivates me to keep working to get to that level as a solo artist as well.
What kind of impact do you think CNCO had, 10 years later? A huge impact! The band’s legacy is going to live on for a long time. I keep seeing the support from the fans. I don’t feel like CNCO is completely done. Eventually, there will be something that happens between all of us. Obviously, each of us wants to take our time to do our things individually. It’s insane. Sometimes I think to myself, “If I ever become a dad, I’m going to be like, ‘Look, I was in this boy band that got to travel to Asia, Europe, and was listened to in Africa.’”
What do you remember about the time you decided to leave the band? Would you change anything about that? It was obviously difficult. It was a decision that I meditated on. It was never intended to make it seem like I was abandoning them. The guys and I, we’re cool. I don’t keep [as] much contact with them as before, but it’s normal. Each person is doing their own thing.
Look: I probably would have been in CNCO a little longer if it weren’t for certain things, which maybe I’ll leave this as a theory for the readers to fill out, and see what it could be. [Laughs.] It definitely had nothing to do with the guys. If anything, those last couple of years were the nicest years I had with them personally.
I don’t regret it because throughout these last four years as a solo artist, I’ve learned so much — so many things that I wouldn’t have learned being in the band. [These were] years of growth. Obviously, when you’re in a band that’s managed by this huge record label, everyone is taking care of your things. You don’t have anything to worry about, but once you’re out, and you have to do it for yourself, you learn so much. I am grateful for the way everything turned out, to be honest.
To further your solo career, how important was it for you to go the independent route? I think being independent for me is the best thing that could’ve happened, without throwing any shade at any record labels. When you come out of a boy band and you’re signed to such a big record label, sometimes [executives] expect you to do a certain thing that they think [will] work out, [and] at the end of the day, they’re the experts. But if this is something that an artist loves and wants do for the rest of their life, it’s also important for the artist to be genuine [and] share what they want to share.
The best part of being an independent artist is the creative freedom. I could use some help in other areas. [Laughs.] It’s been really cool. The producer I’m working with, Palace, he’s amazing. He gets it. He understands me. I think that it’s really important to have a producer that actually understands you and wants to build the vision that you have.
You kicked off a new era last month with your song “Me Alegro Por Ti” — what else can we expect? I would describe it as the most vulnerable era that I’ve had so far. This song [describes] one of the first phases of a relationship, once you’re done with it. Eventually, throughout this conceptual album, you’re going to see every emotion a person goes through from the beginning of a relationship to the end of it and afterwards. This song fits into that “I’m having fun without you” phase, but soon you’ll hear the rest of the story. The music and genre are definitely something that feels 100% real to me. This really does fit with who I am, especially as an artist. I’m excited for what’s to come. Hold tight for 2026. There’s going to be so much music.
You recently wrapped your Latin American Nostalgia tour, which included both your songs and CNCO’s hits. Could you bring it to the U.S.? There’s a big chance, to be honest. I look at my streaming numbers and the U.S. is actually the second country with the biggest audience that I have. So there has to be something done over here.
In the future, would you be open to doing a reunion tour with CNCO? I would love to. There’s some people that didn’t get to come to our shows [back then]. It wouldn’t just be for us to enjoy the good old times, but to give these good old times to the people that have never been a part of it, the people that want to relive those times, or those fans that have a kid now and want to introduce them to the music they grew up listening to. I’m not sure where the guys’ heads are at right now, but I think it would be a good idea.
Now that you’re all solo, each member could have a section of the tour to perform their own songs too. That would be sick! We could create an EP or album without any label involved. We could create music from where we stand and what our hearts are saying, so the fans can connect even more to us. They already connected to us at such an extreme level back then, but to connect to music that’s a lot more vulnerable and real to us, would be something they would go crazy for. It would be great to showcase our solo work as well, so it’s a whole big party of different things.
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