Consequently, the album is rooted in genres such as vallenato, cumbia, bambuco and rock en español, making use of the traditional music instruments of Colombia, and incorporates salsa, tango, reggaeton and bachata styles alongside pop, hip hop, folk and musical theatre elements.

"We Don't Talk About Bruno" by various members of the Encanto cast and "Surface Pressure" by Jessica Darrow have been the album's best-selling tracks; the former topped the UK Singles and the US Hot 100 charts for multiple weeks, while the latter peaked at numbers four and eight, respectively.

Upon release, Encanto (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) was met with critical acclaim and received various accolades.

[8] An exclusive CD, including a poster, was made available via Target on December 17,[9] while picture discs were sold by Walmart.

[22] It incorporates the folk instruments of Colombia, such as marimba, accordion, tiple, tambora, guacharaca, caja, maracas,[23] arpa llanera, bandolas, and cuatros.

[28] During the 2018 research trip to Colombia, the filmmakers noticed that local musicians in Barichara were playing Colombian music on guitars and tiples in a 34 waltz time signature.

[25] Luisa Madrigal, one of Mirabel's elder sisters, expresses her insecurities and the stress she feels from her family in the song,[27] describing the weight of responsibility.

[29] "We Don't Talk About Bruno" is an ensemble number, featuring verses by Pepa, Félix, Dolores, Camilo and Isabela Madrigal, who are Mirabel's aunt, uncle, cousins, and elder sister, respectively.

"We Don't Talk About Bruno" fuses various genres,[17] such as salsa,[18] guajira, Cuban folk, hip hop, and dance styles.

[11] It sees the characters list their perspectives of Mirabel's uncle, Bruno Madrigal,[30][27] who became ostracized from his family after sharing unsettling visions.

[2] "Dos Oruguitas" plays when Alma Madrigal, Mirabel's maternal grandmother ("Abuela") and the matriarch of the family, loses her husband Pedro while fleeing gunmen involved in an armed conflict.

Club,[45] Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph,[46] and Chris Hewitt of Star Tribune have identified the music as one of the best aspects of the film.

[19] The Independent critic Clarisse Loughrey opined that many of the tracks are characteristic of Miranda's work in his musicals In the Heights or Hamilton, where "melodies will weave in and out of each other to reach a dizzying, final climax".

According to Rolling Stone, the unexpected success has "largely boggled critics, who have approached its resounding popularity like a riddle they've been asked to solve.

[50][57] The soundtrack reached number one on the Billboard 200 chart dated January 15, 2022, dethroning Adele's 30 (2021) by earning 72,000 album-equivalent units, which comprises 88 million streams and 11,000 album sales.

According to Slate critic Chris Molanphy, "the organic nature of the audience landing on 'We Don't Talk About Bruno' really is the marketplace picking the single and that's quite unusual, especially for an animated film".

[81][82] "Surface Pressure", reaching number eight, made Encanto the first Disney animated film to have generated multiple top-10 songs on the Hot 100.

[86] In Ireland, "We Don't Talk About Bruno", "Surface Pressure" and "The Family Madrigal" peaked at numbers one, eight and 19, respectively, on the Irish Singles Chart.

[50][29] Billboard editor Jason Lipshutz compared "We Don't Talk About Bruno" to the "meteoric rise" of Olivia Rodrigo's breakthrough single "Driver's License" in January 2021.

He said "We Don't Talk About Bruno" is propelled by high Spotify streams and trending TikTok videos like "Drivers License" and explained that audiences "look for the next big thing following the usual glut of Christmas music and fall releases from major artists".

[92] Patrick Ryan of USA Today cited RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) reports on Latin music revenues, which grew for a fifth consecutive year in the US in 2020, and highlighted the presence of "Colombian hitmakers" Maluma and Sebastián Yatra featured on the soundtrack, summarizing "it's no wonder that Encanto has enjoyed crossover appeal".

[78] /Film's BJ Colangelo called the soundtrack "The Biggest Thing In The World" (on January 10, 2022),[59] while CinemaBlend writer Rachel Romean stated the album "has proven that it can stand on its own two feet even outside of the film".

[93] Associated Press journalist Jake Coyle called it a pop culture sensation, saying "the music of Encanto was suddenly everywhere.