Skip to Content
Subscribe
FAQ
My Account
News
Toronto & GTA
Ontario
Canada
World
Crime
True Crime
Weird
Money
Technology
Tech Essentials
Gaming
Gadgets
Weather
Podcasts
Opinion
Editorials
Columnists
Editorial Cartoons
Letters
Send Letter to the Editor
Sports
Hockey
PWHL
Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL
Soccer
Toronto FC
MLS
Baseball
Toronto Blue Jays
MLB
Basketball
Toronto Raptors
NBA
WNBA
Football
Toronto Argonauts
CFL
NFL
Golf
Other Sports
Olympics
Curling
Tennis
Horse Racing
Wrestling
FIFA World Cup 2026
Entertainment
Celebrity
Movies
Music
Television
TV Listings
Life
Eat
Fashion & Beauty
Relationships
Advice
Sex Files
Health
Healthing
Diet & Fitness
Homes
Travel
Travel International
Travel USA
Travel Canada
Ontario Travel
Travel Essentials
Savings
Contests
Lives Told
Tails Told
Shopping
Toronto Sun Store
Driving
Vehicle Research
Reviews
News
Gear Guide
Obituaries
Place an Obituary
Place an In Memoriam
Advertising
Advertising With Us
Advertising Solutions
Postmedia Ad Manager
Sponsorship Requests
Classifieds
Place an Ad
Business Card Directory
Celebrations
Working
Business Ads
This Week's Flyers
ePaper
SUNShine Girls
Become a Sunshine Girl
Puzzmo
Diversions
Comics
Puzzles
Horoscopes
Newsletters
Manage Print Subscription* Profile
Settings
My Subscriptions
Saved Articles
My Offers
Newsletters
Customer Service
FAQ
News
Opinion
Sports
FIFA World Cup 2026
Entertainment
Life
Shopping
Driving
Obituaries
Classifieds
ePaper
SUNShine Girls
Puzzmo
Newsletters
Manage Print Subscription
Montreal News
Sports
Football
How 2026 World Cup anthem Dai Dai came from secret St-Michel hitmaker
Montrealer Alexander (A.C.) Castillo Vasquez teams up with longtime collaborator Shakira to craft the world's biggest song.
Published Jul 18, 2026 • 4 minute read
You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.
Music producer Alexander (A.C.) Castillo Vasquez in his home studio in Montreal, on Thursday, July 16, 2026. Vasquez co-wrote and co-produced Dai Dai, the World Cup theme song by Shakira.
Music producer Alexander (A.C.) Castillo Vasquez in his home studio in Montreal, on Thursday, July 16, 2026. Vasquez co-wrote and co-produced Dai Dai, the World Cup theme song by Shakira. Photo by Tim Snow /Montreal Gazette
We independently select everything we recommend. Buying through us may earn us a commission, which supports our work.
Shakira and Burna Boy's 2026 FIFA World Cup theme song Dai Dai is the inescapable anthem of the summer.
It accompanies every broadcast when the players hit the pitch. It soundtracks postgame celebrations and explodes from phones when people swipe to a highlight clip.
Recommended Videos
Dai Dai is the perfect, deceptively simple pop song that speaks a universal musical language befitting an international event such as the World Cup. It also features a who's who of worldwide star power: Colombia's Shakira, Nigeria's Burna Boy and there's even a songwriting credit from England's Ed Sheeran.
Toronto Sun
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.
Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.
Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.
Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.
Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.
Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.
Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.
Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.
Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
Access articles from across Canada with one account.
Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.
Enjoy additional articles per month.
Get email updates from your favourite authors.
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
Access articles from across Canada with one account
Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments
Enjoy additional articles per month
Get email updates from your favourite authors
The song has humble beginnings, though. Dai Dai's journey to the top of the Billboard Global 200 — where it currently sits — began in a studio inside an otherwise nondescript residential building in St-Michel.
Even more specifically, it started as a riff on a couch in said studio. And music producer Alexander (A.C.) Castillo Vasquez is relaxing on it a day after flying back from New Jersey, where Shakira is prepping to perform the track on Sunday's World Cup final halftime show.
A trilingual St-Michel native who even named his company 14th Avenue, after the street he grew up on, Castillo Vasquez has plaques on his studio wall from working with some of the world's biggest hitmakers, such as Britney Spears, Pitbull, Justin Bieber and Becky G. But his best-known work comes from his decade-long partnership with Shakira, the unofficial Queen of the World Cup anthem.
Did he think the Dai Dai riff would travel the world when he and his sister, and Kaaribe bandmate, Vanesa, came up with it?
opening envelope
Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond.
By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.
A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.
The next issue of Your Midday Sun will soon be in your inbox.
We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again
" No, because you never know," Castillo Vasquez said. "That's what I've learned over the years. Sometimes I'm so excited with a song and a beat, I'm like: 'Oh my God, this is gonna be crazy,' and nothing happens.
"And this one, this time, I didn't have any particular thoughts. I liked the riff that we did. But it was quick, we did it like in 10 minutes. I just recorded that guitar and I saved it."
At first, the riff was presented to an unnamed local artist, along with a beat from the same session. Said artist chose the beat.
But the melody kept coming back to Castillo Vasquez and, when he and Shakira started discussing the possibility of her fourth World Cup official theme, the riff returned.
"She was listening to a few options and she wasn't really clicking 100 per cent. And one day we were in the car on the way to a soundcheck at a stadium in Argentina," he said.
" It was maybe an hour-long ride. We were far from the venue. She's trying to find a solution for the song and, usually, I'm never pushy about this stuff, but this time I thought 'this could really turn into something.'
So I said, 'Yo, Shak, listen to this.' We were already out of the car and walking to the main stage. I just played it on my phone. And she stopped. It clicked right away. She told her manager to listen to it. And you know, everybody stopped in that moment. The doors were about to open, we're late to the show, and she's singing on it right there."
After the show, Castillo Vasquez and Shakira left for Miami and she asked to hear the song again.
" She wrote a part of the song in that plane. And then the next day we were in Miami, in her backyard. We finished the main structure of what would be the final song."
As is often the case with the modern hit machine, more collaborators joined the fray. Castillo Vasquez called Shakira "a genius" who knows where to place all the elements in a song.
Shakira wanted Sheeran to hear it, so off Castillo Vasquez went to New York to work with the Brit in-person in a temporary studio set up in a hotel room. Then another Montrealer, Benny Adam, added some more special sauce at Shakira's request.
" She heard some of the music we did together," Castillo Vasquez explained.
Music producer Alexander (A. C. ) Castillo Vasquez in his home studio in Montreal, on Thursday, July 16, 2026. Vasquez cowrote and coproduced Dai Dai, the World Cup theme song by Shakira.
Music producer Alexander (A. C. ) Castillo Vasquez in his home studio in Montreal on Thursday, July 16, 2026. Vasquez co-wrote and co-produced Dai Dai, the World Cup theme song by Shakira. Tim Snow / Montreal Gazette
So while Castillo Vasquez may not always know when a songwriting session will yield a hit, Shakira has the Midas touch. So putting himself in her shoes, why are her tunes the go-to when it comes to rousing anthems capable of reaching every continent?
"The lyrics need to bring people together. It's a message of 'we're stronger together and we're overcoming obstacles,' " he said.
"Wanting to get people pumped is obviously part of it. It needs to have all these cool little hooks inside. And it's not just a pop thing. It needs to be a mix of all these genres, with all these different inspirations from different places."
Asked if their cultural backgrounds — she's Colombian of Lebanese and Catalan descent, while he's a Montrealer with parents from Colombia and the Dominican Republic — makes them particularly adept at capturing a world sound, Castillo Vasquez called it "a strength."
"Being born here, but from Latin parents and living in L.A., I've been touching so many different kinds of music," Castillo Vasquez said.
"But she's a master at that. I'm just there following the vision and trying to understand where she wants to go."
There are keepsakes strewn about his studio. There's a printed lyric sheet with Shakira's handwritten notes scrawled over it. There's a plaque from Muso celebrating his more than 8 billion streams across 90 songwriting and production credits.
He may need an updated one soon as Dai Dai approaches the 200 million mark on Spotify alone, and that's before Sunday's performance, which he'll be watching in Montreal with friends and family.
There's also a CM-15 portable microphone, which he held in his hand.
"Shakira recorded the vocals on this," Castillo Vasquez said. "I think I'll frame this next."
Bike Share Toronto bicycle wrapped in tape
Toronto & GTA
Right winger Claude Lemieux of the Colorado Avalanche in action during a game against the New Jersey Devils in 1998.
NHL
New York haze
Columnists
Magna International founder Frank Stronach leaves Toronto's 361 University Avenue Courthouse during his trial for sexual assault, Thursday February 5, 2026.
Toronto & GTA
SUNshine Girl Katie
Sunshine Girls
This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.