Sue Rodríguez Relaunches Christmas with Afrobeat
The Puerto Rican singer re-releases "Lelolai" and "El corazón ya tiene luz" for the 2026 Christmas season.
Sue Rodríguez relaunches her Christmas with afrobeat: two tracks return in the 2026 season. entreCristianos reported that "Lelolai" and "El corazón ya tiene luz" are back to put the birth of Jesus back at the center of December.
Afrobeat for the birth of Jesus
"El corazón ya tiene luz" came out at the end of 2025 with production by El Zoprano. The proposal is presented as the first Spanish Christmas song with urban afrobeat, and its center is the birth of Jesus.
"Lelolai," meanwhile, draws on native Puerto Rican rhythms. It was released in 2023 as the artist's first Christmas single and resonated inside and outside the island's churches, according to entreCristianos. The message is clear: Christmas is about sharing with family and its meaning is bigger than gifts.
«Faith doesn't compete with talent: it puts it at the service of Another»
For a young person living between two cultures, that matters. In the United States, the season starts in November with lights and shopping; in the Latino home, with music, food, and grandparents. A song that names Jesus with a rhythm already playing on your phone can fill a space that the traditional carol no longer fills.
Both can be heard on streaming services and on the artist's YouTube channel, which on social media appears as @suerodriguezministry.
From Aguadilla to the stage
Rodríguez was born in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, and grew up in a family of worshipers. She studied music, holds an associate degree in Theology, and has served as a chaplain and worship leader in Puerto Rico and the United States.
Between 2009 and 2019 she founded and directed Ministerio Generación 5, with the musical "Digno eres tú," presented at venues in Miami, including Expolit. In 2022 she returned as a solo artist with "Adoraré."
In 2023 she released "Cielo y Tierra" and was nominated for the Premios Ecomova in "Voz Femenina" and "Canción Congregacional," with a third place in voting. In August 2024 she won her first Premio El Galardón Puerto Rico, in the "Revelación Música Balada" category, after presenting "Salvador" during that year's Holy Week.
In 2025 she joined Eliud L' Voices on "Gracia Épica," a remix of "Gracia," and received another nomination for the Premios El Galardón, this time international, as "Cantante Femenina." She closed the year singing in Vega Alta alongside Yashira Guidini, Jacobo Ramos, and Arthur Callazans.
In 2026 she continues writing and producing songs, with time of intimacy with God and performances in towns across the island. She also participated in Travy Joe and Trapformation's "ADN Conferencia," alongside Yashira Guidini and Arthur Callazans, and in Puerto Rico's first Operation Christmas Child Party, where gift boxes were packed for children.
A trophy is not the goal
Sue Rodríguez Ministry sums up its approach in one phrase: "everything she has, including her powerful and beautiful voice, belongs to God." That includes awards, nominations, and stages.
That way of looking at talent clashes with the logic of December, the month of rankings and year-end lists. A trophy is celebrated and kept on a shelf; a song that announces the birth of Jesus points to something that doesn't expire. Faith doesn't compete with talent: it puts it at the service of Another.
Paul wrote something similar to a church living between cultures, like ours: "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31, ESV).
This week you can do something concrete. Open your music app, make a Christmas playlist with "Lelolai" and "El corazón ya tiene luz," and share it in the family group. The lyrics give you a way to talk about Jesus without giving a sermon. What Christmas song do they play in your house when family arrives?
