Nobody has done more for bachata in the 21st century than Romeo Santos and Prince Royce. Yet, while their chosen genre’s appeal proliferated in the 2020s via Latin stars from beyond the Dominican diaspora, these two top-tier hitmakers somehow remained maddeningly elusive collaborators despite palpable fan demand. Thus, their surprise joint album announcement on social media just days before the release of Better Late Than Never raised already astronomical expectations to even higher levels than previously imagined. And, as the slow-building opener of a title track suggests, the pair intend to make this long-anticipated moment worthwhile for their collective listenership. As bachateros, both Romeo and Royce have famously pushed the genre’s sonic bounds and branched out into other sounds throughout their storied careers, including on their respectively preceding LPs Fórmula, Vol. 3 and LLAMADA PERDIDA. Yet, Better Late Than Never intentionally seeks to give their foundational format the glory it truly deserves, especially in this period of exceptional visibility for the genre. Still, there’s nothing remotely restrained about the artistry on display, with throwback R&B funk shaking up the scandalizing spectacle of “Jezabel” and the clubby percussive intro that leads into “Ay! San Miguel.” The baker’s dozen’s worth of dynamic duets presented here come packaged with all the charm and flair people expect from these established superstars, evidenced by the domestic revelations of “Estocolmo” and the deeply lovesick pleas of standout “Dardos.” The relationship tumult found regularly in their catalogs naturally characterizes much of the album’s thematic content, from the astonishing jealousy narrative of “Lokita Por Mi” to the fittingly dramatic finish of “La Última Bachata.”