European Quarterly 2: Latin Execs Craft Spain's Cultural Bridge

Record companies have long viewed Spain as the gateway to Europe for artists from Latin markets. Increasingly, Latin music executives are coming to Spain to swing that gate wide open.

The arrival in late April of Paula Narea from Chile to the newly created post of international exploitation manager at Sony Music Spain is just the latest Latin addition to the executive ranks at Spain's record companies. Such executive moves strengthen the musical bridge between the "mother country" of Spain and Latin markets across the Atlantic.

That bridge is built upon 500 years of linguistic and cultural history. And, in the music business today, it is helping Spain and Latin territories become a unified market.

"Spanish fans listening to Ricky Martin or Shakira don't really [consider them] foreign, they're just other [artists who sing] in Spanish," says Luis Merino, CEO of Gran Vía Musical (GVM), the music conglomerate that runs several labels featuring Spanish and Latin artists, including MuXXIc and Sunnyluna.

Sony's Narea has extensive experience and he joins several other fellow Latin executives now helping to run the Spanish music industry. This year, Marcelo Castello Branco arrived from Brazil to helm Universal Music Iberian Peninsula; Roberto "Chacho" Ruiz arrived a year ago from Argentina to take over at EMI Spain; and Mariano Pérez is in charge at Warner Spain after three years running Warner Mexico.

In addition, the head of GVM's music division, Carlos Sanmartín, took charge in 2000 after four years as president of BMG Argentina. Each of these executives has significant experience in selling Latin artists in Spain and promoting Spaniards in Latin markets.

"There is now a constant influence of Spanish artists in Latin America and Latin artists here," says Narea. "It is a single international market."

Sony Music Spain president José María Cámara notes that Spain has historically exported executives to Latin America as well as such artists as Nino and Julio Iglesias. Cámara cites senior Miami-based executives Manolo Diaz and Jesús López at Universal, Ramón Segura at BMG, Rafael Gil formerly of EMI, and Iñigo Zabala at Warner.

However, the exchange of executive talent between Latin markets and Spain has not yet translated into a sustained breakthrough for Spanish repertoire in Latin America. "It's probably at one of its lowest moments in its history," says Cámara.

"It seems that now the best Latin executives consider the Spanish market as a desirable phase in their professional careers," he adds. "That honors and enriches the Spanish market with better informed points of view on the Latin American reality. The two-way traffic marks the maturity of all Spanish-language markets but, at the same time, these markets must be conceived as a single market," says Cámara. "No one [territory] is big enough by itself. Artists, executives or labels that [limit] themselves to their local market cannot expect a long career."

Cámara also stresses the importance of spanning the musical bridge. While La Oreja de Van Gogh is already multi-platinum in Latin America, executives are preparing to promote other Spanish artists in the Americas, such as flamenco chill-out band Chambao, and singers Melody and Malú. At the same time, Sony in Madrid is working hard to promote Sony Latin artists Ricardo Arjona, Natalia Lafourcade, Alejandro Fernandez, Elefante, Sin Bandera, and Soledad.

HIGH EXPECTATIONS

"Expectations have never been so high," says Universal's Castello Branco of sales via the musical bridge, but he cautions, "The Spanish music market needs to learn from the past to export future artists, to recover its creative self-esteem, to seek the originality that in other areas—such as gastronomy, tourism or soccer—have never before been so well promoted and sold abroad."

"For Latin America," he adds, "Spain remains the best and friendliest entry into Europe, [which is both] an adventure and a challenge." Among Universal artists ready to make that journey to Spain are Ivete Sangalo and Sandy y Junior, as well as veteran artist Caetano Veloso.

Universal artist Ismael Serrano, from Spain, recently finished a long tour of Latin America, where labelmates Rosana and Sergio Dalma have also been successful. Among new artists ready to hit Latin America are Maldita Nerea, Efecto Mariposa, Coti, and Radio Macandé.

Warner Spain president Mariano Pérez says he expects his experience in Mexico to benefit Latin acts in Spain. He cites the success in Spain of Mexico's Maná, whose latest tour of Spain, played venues holding at least 10,000 fans.

Warner has achieved success in recent years in Spain with Mexico's Luis Miguel and Cuban-born Francisco Céspedes, who toured here supporting Spanish superstar Alejandro Sanz. And the company boasts Latin American impact with its Spanish roster, including Sanz, Miguel Bosé, Café Quijano, and Alex Ubago.

"These are examples of Warner's impact on Spain–Latin America trade, which I hope to carry on," says Pérez.

At BMG, the company's BMG Ariola label in Spain signed Brazilian star Carlinhos Brown earlier this year. His first BMG album, Carlinhos Brown Es Carlito Marrón (Charlie Brown Is Charlie Brown), was released in 12 countries, including the U.K. and Japan, in April.

Brown signed with BMG with the express intention of breaking into Europe through Spain. His European tour this summer will be followed by a U.S. tour in October. Brown's previous album, "Tribalistas", sold more than 1 million units in Brazil.

GVM's Sanmartín says he wants MuXXIc to serve as a platform for all new Latin product. He cites the recent launches in Spain of Argentina's Bandana and Venezuela's Jeremias and sales successes in the last year (under MuXXIc license) of Brazil's Caetano Veloso and Mexico's Los Tigres del Norte.

"Our artists, such as Tamara, are not thought of [just] for a Spanish market but for the whole Latin market," says Sanmartín. "In the same way, Latin American artists must grow in Spain, so that the whole thing develops like one giant common market."