LA NUEVA ESCUELA is a band from Uruguay, formed in 2022 and fronted by the singer Jonathan "Jona" Suarez Gularte. They play plena, the fast, percussive tropical style that fills dance halls across Montevideo, and they are credited with pulling the genre back into the mainstream by giving it a younger, more urban production.
Their records keep plena's rolling percussion and call and response energy while borrowing the polish of contemporary Latin pop, and their releases through Montevideo Music Group have passed 200 million streams and views. A run of viral singles and collaborations with other Uruguayan acts has made them one of the country's biggest live draws, playing to packed rooms most weekends at home and touring elsewhere in Latin America.