New Webinar Exploring the Latin Music Boom & How to Capitalize

The webinar ‘Borderless Beats: The Latin Sound—Regional Success to Global Dominance,’ sponsored by Open On Sunday, brought together leading figures in the music industry to discuss one of today’s most dynamic growth stories. Focusing on the rise of Latin music from a regional success story to taking the international stage, this panel featured a broad range of guests with each contributing a unique perspective.

This article was created in collaboration with DMN partner Open On Sunday.


‘Borderless Beats’ Panelists

• Juan Carlos Gonzalez brings expertise as a business Consultant for MusiCapital and serves as Regional Director of TuStreams, advising on music investment and distribution strategies across multiple markets.
• Anana Love is the Director of Membership at Open On Sunday, where she leads initiatives to expand community engagement and strengthen industry connections.
• Zulma Oviedo works as a Music Publishing Administrator and Royalty Collection Strategist with The Innovative People, specializing in rights management and maximizing earnings for creators.
• Rob Velez holds the role of Vice President, Inclusive Network & LATAM Sales at VEVO, driving inclusive opportunities while growing the company’s presence across Latin America.
• Alexiomar Rodriguez is a Founding Partner at Xiola LLC, leveraging his entrepreneurial vision to guide artists and entertainment ventures through strategic business development.

The webinar focuses on how Latin music continues to outperform many other genres globally, but explores ways in which artists and labels may be leaving money on the table. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reports that in the US, Latin music generated $1.42 billion in recorded music revenues in 2024—outpacing the general market’s growth by 5.8%. In Latin America itself, recorded music revenues surged 22.5% in 2024, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).

Yet despite this momentum, panelists point to persistent ‘revenue leakage’ that prevents artists from fully capitalizing on these gains. Many independent creators face structural barriers in royalty tracking, with unclaimed performance, mechanical, and neighboring rights royalties representing significant lost income across the region. This missing revenue not only hurts artists, but also disadvantages publishers and rights holders who support them.

Streaming dominates Latin music in the U.S. market, where it represents 98% of all revenue collected. Within that total, ad-supported, on-demand streaming stood out with $354 million in 2024, nearly 25% of the genre’s streaming revenues. This is more than double the 10% share that ad-supported streams represent in the overall U.S. market, highlighting the unique consumer behavior around consuming Latin music.

This dominance of streaming can leave broader market opportunities left undeveloped. Physical formats like collector’s vinyls, merchandising, and direct-to-fan sales are all underutilized in the Latin music market compared to its North American counterparts. Vinyl production is particularly constrained in much of Latin America despite strong collector demand, underscoring a structural challenge that could be monetized with stronger infrastructure to support the physical retail of merch and music.

Panelists during the webinar agree that building proper business structures for Latin music professionals plays a critical role in sustaining long-term success. Independent creators often lack access to the same data tools and accounting systems available to larger players, leading to overlooked royalty streams and inefficient catalog management.

Meanwhile, catalog acquisition and management processes require standardized metadata and verified ownership records, particularly in markets like Brazil where multiple contributors can create complex rights tracking issues.

With 659 million people in Latin America, including 448 million Spanish speakers (excluding Portugal and Spain), the region represents one of the largest global audiences in the world. The 65 million Latinos living in the United States account for about 20% of the population, while the total Spanish-speaking population has increased to 7% of the world’s total population.

Over the last nine years, Latin music has been the only genre that has posted uninterrupted annual growth, underscoring its cultural and commercial momentum.

The overarching takeaway from this ‘Borderless Beats’ webinar is clear—while Latin music is growing at an extraordinary pace—too much money is slipping through the cracks. The opportunity exists for artists to treat themselves not only as creatives but as a successful business, structuring their careers to capture revenue across royalties, merchandising, and direct-to-fan engagement.

Success today requires not just talent, but also education and the right network of advisors to help artists maximize their reach and long-term sustainability. Curious to learn more? Check out Open On Sunday’s business model.