Billboard Regional Mexican Music Summit

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 11, 2008

Information provided by our Event Partner

October 6-8, 2008
Wilshire Grand
Los Angeles, CA

http://www.billboardevents.com/billboardevents/rmms/eng/index.jsp

Don’t Miss The only Summit Dedicated Exclusively

To The Top Selling Genre of Latin Music!

Now in its 3rd year, this unique summit celebrates regional Mexican music and unites the key industry players that drive this lucrative sector of the Latin music business.

Join today’s top regional Mexican artists, concert promoters, retailers, sponsors, managers as well as record label, digital/mobile entertainment, marketing, advertising and radio executives to network, do business and discuss hot industry topics.

Radio, Touring and Retail Trends
New Digital/Mobile and Licensing Opportunities
Publishing and Copyright Issues
Innovative Marketing/PR Strategies to Introduce New Artists into this Market

The Billboard Superstar Q&A
Live Artist Showcases with Up-And-Coming Acts
Roundtable Discussions

Discount Rate available for Hispanic MPR. Contact Brittany.davies@nielsen.com for a special rate.

(The discount code is MPR249)

Listen to podcast interview with Rayroq Acosta, CEO, Wu-Tang Latino about urban Latin music

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 11, 2008

Rayroq Acosta, chief executive officer and president, Wu-Tang Latino

Photo: Wu-Tang Latino

A podcast featuring an interview with Rayroq Acosta, chief executive officer and president, Wu-Tang Latino is available in the Podcast Section of Hispanic Marketing & Public Relations, HispanicMPR.com. During the podcast, he discusses urban Latino music with Elena del Valle, host of the HispanicMPR.com podcast.

Rayroq strives to innovate the ways Urban Latinos do business, promote and market their products. He co-launched and marketed Latinflava, a television show which evolved into a website. He also helped establish and build a non-traditional distribution and marketing system at United Box Office (UBO).

A native of the Dominican Republic, Rayroq arrived in Washington Heights, New York City with his family when he was three years old. It was in his neighborhood that he was introduced to hip hop, the music that would change his life. After graduating with a masters degree in design and marketing from the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), Rayroq started working in the music and fashion industry.

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Influenced by hip hop artists Run DMC, Kool Moe Dee and LL Cool J, Rayroq started a career in marketing and creative consulting. He co-owned Designey Inc., a design and marketing firm in New York City that provided logos, images and marketing for companies like Sony, Epic, Wu-tang, Rocawear, LL Cool J, Razorsharp Records, Wu-wear, Avirex, Disney, A&E, History Channel, Loud Records, SRC, Persaud Brothers, Sprite and Adidas.

As a result of the rapid growth of Latinflava, Rayroq was named senior vice president of Marketing and Latin Music at UBO; he also assisted in the building of the company’s non-traditional distribution and Freedom Girls marketing system. Rayroq and a long-time friend, Rza, member of the original Wu-Tang Clan, created Wu-Tang Latino, a new record label they hope will become the Def Jam of Latin hip hip and Reggaeton.He has served as liaison between rival Latino and African-American gangs to lessen gang violence and crimes. He is co-founder of the United AIDS Foundation, a non-profit organization that raises money for AIDS research.

To listen to the interview, scroll down until you see “Podcast” on the right hand side, then select “HMPR Rayroq Acosta,” click on the play button below or download the MP3 file to your iPod or MP3 player to listen on the go, in your car or at home. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save it to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the August 2008 section of the podcast archive.

Corporate executive shares advice to minorities on climbing corporate ladder

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 8, 2008

Good is Not Enough book cover

Photo: Portolio

Corporate executive Keith Wyche shares experience gleaned over 25 years working in some of America’s top-earning companies in Good is Not Enough: And Other Unwritten Rules for Minority Professionals (Portfolio, $24.95), his newly published title. In the 236-page hardcover book, Wyche sets out to advise minority readers who who want to climb the managerial ladder in corporate America.

His goal in writing the 12-chapter book was to address the power of perception, double standards, and the realities about corporate thinking and culture. He also shares suggestions for minorities to overcome the obstacles to success. The first time author emphasizes that today’s corporate America is much closer to political incorrectness than to the way things should be.

Keith Wyche, author, Good is Not Enough

“Yet in certain ways, today’s minority professionals, all of them, still have to reconcile their corporate advancement strategies with ‘the way it is’ in their corporate cultures, while still holding strong to their cultural integrity and core values,” said Wyche. “My goal is to provide insights from the inside of the executive suite and to help minority professionals see themselves through the same lens from which executive decision makers view them. From that lens, and based on my own experience, I can frankly tell them ‘good is still not enough’.”

According to Wyche, minority professionals who thrive in the corporate environment follow the unwritten rules instead of relying on their credentials or university degree. He also suggests aspiring ladder climbers should: learn how others see them because their perception can become reality; be informed; and be prepared with an exit strategy even when it doesn’t seem necessary.

Wyche emphasizes the importance of managing performance, exposure, and perception. In the book, he shares personal experiences to illustrate why he believes minorities must work harder than expected to advance their careers.

Wyche, a resident of Scarsdale, New York, is president of United States operations for Pitney Bowes Management Services, a division of Pitney Bowes Inc. Prior to that, he worked for Ameritech, AT&T, and IBM.

Click here to buy a copy of Good Is Not Enough

Six retailers receive awards at Miami conference

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 7, 2008

Pat Hensley and Jose Amaya accepted the award for Hy-Vee

Photos: Nielsen

Some 360 marketers from across the nation gathered in Miami, Florida last week to discuss the latest trends in the Hispanic retail industry. Nielsen Business Media, the conference organizer, took advantage of the gathering to recognize retailers. Six retailers in five categories received 2008 Hispanic Retail Excellence Awards: 7-Eleven, Jewel/Osco, Hy-Vee, Longs Drugs, Target, and Best Buy during the fourth annual Hispanic Retail 360 summit, held July 28-30 in Miami.

Conference representatives presented the Mass Retail award to Target Stores; the Grocery award to Jewel/Osco and Hy-Vee (tie); Convenience Stores to 7-Eleven; Drug Stores to Longs Drugs and Specialty Retail to Best Buy.

Representatives from Best Buy accept their award

The awards, based on a poll of more than 1,000 Hispanic-focused retailer and supplier executives, including members of conference’s 22-company Retailer Advisory Board, are designed to recognize leadership among retailers targeting the growing Latino population.

Poll recipients were asked to write in the name of the retailer in each of six classifications (Drug Stores, Convenience Stores, Grocery, Mass Retail, Specialty Stores and Department Stores) that “has done the most in the past year to win the hearts, minds and spending dollars of Hispanic consumers.” There were 100 responses to the poll and 12 companies received votes.

Roger Gonzalez of AARP, Mark Banister of Longs Drug, and Don Longo with Nielsen

The Advisory Board, representing retailers with more than 42,000 stores and more than $190 billion in annual revenue, also heavily influenced the content of the conference program. The board includes retailers from varied channels of retailing and food service such as ExxonMobil, Giant Eagle, McDonald’s Corp., Minyards, SuperValu, and Winn-Dixie.

Last year’s winner of the Hispanic Retail Excellence Award was Phoenix-based Bashas’ Food City. The 2006 winner was Anaheim-based JAX Markets and the 2005 winner was Pros Ranch Market, which operates Hispanic market stores in southern California and four in Phoenix, Arizona. Hispanic Retail 360 is produced by Progressive Grocer and Convenience Store News, two media brands owned by Nielsen Business Media.

“Best in Class Hispanic Strategies” audio recording

Presenters Carlos Santiago and Derene Allen

• Find out what makes 25 percent of the top 500 Hispanic market advertisers out perform the remaining companies

• Discover what questions to ask, steps to take to be a Best in Class company

Click here for more about “Best in Class Hispanic Strategies” audio recording

Watch video – Detroit station to offer first Spanish language baseball presentation

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 6, 2008

Greg Hammaren, senior vice president and general manager, FSN Detroit

Photos: FSN Detroit

For the first time Detroit station FSN Plus will air Spanish language coverage of a Tigers Oakland Athletics game in an effort to attract Spanish dominant viewers in the areas it serves. Broadcaster Clemson Smith Muñiz will provide a play-by-play commentary and Adrian Burgos, Jr., a Latino Baseball historian, will serve as analyst Saturday, August 9 for the Detroit Tigers annual ¡Fiesta Tigres! Night at Comerica Park. Scroll down to watch 15-second promo video in Spanish.

The Spanish-language presentation will be available to most cable and satellite households throughout the FSN Detroit regional footprint. The Spanish-language coverage is scheduled to begin at 7 pm with Smith Muñiz and Burgos, Jr. The English-language telecast of that night’s Tigers-A’s game with Mario Impemba and Rod Allen will air as usual on FSN Detroit and FSN HD. The one time effort will be promoted via FSN Detroit and local cable companies.

“This is the perfect opportunity for FSN Detroit and the ball club to reach out to an important segment of the Tigers fan base, while honoring the heritage of many fans’ favorite players,” said Greg Hammaren, senior vice president and general manager, FSN Detroit. “We are proud to provide this important piece of programming to our cable and satellite providers in conjunction with the ¡Fiesta Tigres! celebration that night at Comerica Park.”

Target Latinos effectively by anticipating changes in the market with

“Hispanic Projections with 2007-08 update” audio recording

Presenter Roger Selbert, Ph.D.

Find out

• About Latino buying power growth in the future
• How Latino market growth compares with other markets in the U.S.
• What drives the rise of Latino economic clout
• Who should target the Latino market
• What is the size of the Hispanic affluent market
• If the luxury Latino market is growing

Stay ahead of your competition with “Hispanic Projections”

¡Fiesta Tigres! is the Tigers annual salute to the contributions of Hispanics and Latinos to the game of baseball. The team’s 2008 roster includes Magglio Ordoñez, Carlos Guillen, Miguel Cabrera and Armando Galarraga (Venezuela); Placido Polanco, Fernando Rodney, Ramon Santiago, Freddy Dolsi, Aquilino Lopez and infield coach Rafael Belliard (Dominican Republic); Edgar Renteria (Colombia); and Joel Zumaya (Mexico).

“This is a historic telecast for the Tigers, and for our ¡Fiesta Tigres! celebration,” said Duane McLean, senior vice president of Business Operations for the Tigers. “We’re thrilled FSN Detroit is offering the game in Spanish-language, and joining us in honoring the contributions of Hispanic players past and present.”

The latest census data shows 4 percent, approximately 390,000, of the population of Michigan is Hispanic. The largest Hispanic communities are Grand Rapids (13.1 percent or 25,000), Pontiac (12.8 percent or 8,590), Saginaw (11.7 percent or 6,730); Detroit (5 percent or 43,500).

Broadcaster Clemson Smith Muñiz

Smith Muñiz, a native of Puerto Rico, has an extensive Spanish-language broadcasting resume, including TV play-by-play and pre- and post-game hosting for the New York Mets, Yankees and MLB International. The longtime Spanish play-by-play voice for the New York Knicks, Smith Muñiz also serves in that capacity for the New York Jets, Monday Night Football for Univision Radio, as well as Army football.

He has also worked as commentator for Super Bowl XLI and XLII, as the English and Spanish-language sideline reporter for Westwood One during the broadcast of the first NFL regular-season game in Mexico City in 2005, and as commentator during the 1997 and 1998 NBA Playoffs. A former sportswriter for the Hartford Courant, the New York Daily News and Spain’s El País, Smith Muñiz started his Spanish-language broadcast career in 1991 with ESPN International calling Australian Rules Football before graduating to major events such as the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Finals and World Series. He is president of Smith Muñiz Productions, a New York-based company that helps clients target the Hispanic market.

Burgos, an educator and author, is an associate history professor at the University of Illinois specializing in U.S. Latino history, African-American studies, sport history and urban history. In 2007, Burgos published Playing America’s Game(s): Baseball, Latinos and the Color Line, a book that examines the impact Latino players had on U.S. professional baseball and on baseball’s color line and racial understandings.

Adrian Burgos, Jr., a Latino Baseball Historian

Burgos, who earned his doctorate from the University of Michigan, also was a contributing author to the 2006 book Shades of Glory: The Negro Leagues and the Story of African American Baseball. He served on the screening and voting committees for the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2006 special election on the Negro Leagues, and consulted on the Hall’s ¡Béisbol- Baseball!: The Shared Pastime project.

According to promotional materials FSN Detroit and FSN Plus coverage of the Tigers is available in 3.2 million cable and satellite households throughout Michigan and portions of Northwest Ohio and Northern Indiana.

Make your ads resonate with Hispanics
Listen to C&R’s Research Director Liria Barbosa in

“Hispanics’ Perspective on Advertising” audio recording

Liria Barbosa gives a presentation and participates in an extended Q&A discussion about

• Type of ads Latinos prefer
• Latino top media choices
• Percent of Latinos who tried products because of ads
• Percent of Latinos who purchased products because of ads
• What makes an ad “Hispanic”
• If ad language is important for bicultural Latinos
• What to keep in mind when targeting bicultural Latinos with ads

Click here for information on Hispanic Perspectives on Advertising

LATV hires host for regional Mexican music program

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 5, 2008

Yolanda Perez, host, Mex 2 the Max

Photo: LATV

LATV recently contracted Yolanda Perez, who is well known in banda music circles, as the new host for its 30-minute regional Mexican music program, Mex 2 the Max. During the program, Perez is tasked with conducting interviews, introducing live performances and hanging out with celebrities on Mex 2 the Max, which airs Monday to Thursday from 9 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. PT.

“Yolanda Perez brings a true insider’s perspective to Mex 2 the Max, one of LATV’s signature shows. She is our audience, hip, bilingual and bicultural,” said Luca Bentivoglio, vice president of Programming, LATV. “Her star power and natural appeal made her the perfect choice to head up this regional music favorite. It’s a great coup for us.”

Find out which Latino markets are booming with

“The Next Step: Secondary Latino Markets” audio recording

Presenter Dora O. Tovar, MPA

Click here for information on Secondary Latino Markets

Born in Los Angeles, California Perez comes from a family steeped in banda music lore. Her music style mixes the traditional elements of banda with hip-hop and rap. Known as La Potranquita (Little Filly), she transitions from Spanish to English in her music. Her fifth and most recent album is titled Todo de Mi (All of Me, Fonovisa Records).

Pérez first gained popularity in 2003 with the song Estoy Enamorada (I’m in Love), playing the sassy daughter in a duet with cranky radio character Don Cheto. Talking back in Spanglish, Pérez vows to stand by her boyfriend.

Pérez is the first child born in the United States to immigrants from the Mexican state of Zacatecas. She grew up in Montclair, where her mother worked in a carpet factory. At home with her parents, she spoke Spanish and listened to Banda El Recodo and Tucanes de Tijuana. With friends at school, she spoke English and listened to Alicia Keys, Lauryn Hill and Tupac Shakur.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, LATV has been on the air in the Los Angeles market since 2001 and launched nationally on April 23, 2007. LATV Networks, LLC is owned by Costa del Oro Media. LATV is ad-supported and offers original and live programming, music, lifestyle and entertainment.

The network targets 12 to 34 year-old Latinos. The bicultural network’s new programming lineup includes LATV-produced and international concerts, two new music video vehicles and a special video countdown from Universal Studios.

Find out what multicultural kids across America think
Listen to Michele Valdovinos, SVP, Phoenix Multicultural in

“Marketing to Multicultural Kids” audio recording

Michele Valdovinos gives a presentation and participates in an extended Q&A discussion about multicultural children based on a Phoenix Multicultural and Nickelodeon study of 1,300 multicultural children in 16 United States markets.

Find out about

• The Phoenix Multicultural Kids Study
• Relationship between children and their context
• Family, technology and media, diversity, buying power, relationships in household, self perception, values, acculturation, cultural heritage, frequency of media activity, income and spending, brand preferences, the American Dream
• How many billions of dollars buying power multicultural kids children have
• Children’s spending attitudes, habits by ethnicity
• How much money a year Hispanic kids have available to spend
• Types of products Hispanic kids buy

Click here for information on “Marketing to Multicultural Kids” audio recording

Listen to song – Mexican singer releases new album

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 4, 2008

Haciendo Escándalo album cover

Photos, song: Gato Loco Music

Haciendo Escandalo! (Causing Scandal!) is Singer Diegodiego’s newest release and his second album. Scroll down to listen to Mi Castillo Azul (My Blue Castle), a single from the new album.

In Haciendo Escandalo! the singer and actor from Merida, Mexico focuses on positive messages and dance rhythms “to inspire peace and harmony.” Diegodiego composes and performs his music. His first CD was Quema Quema (Burn Burn), a dance music album. Haciendo Escandalo is dedicated to Raul Vale, his close friend and collaborator.

Diegodiego

“Raul Vale taught me a lot of things, but the most valuable advice he gave me was when he said: ‘Diego, you are nothing more or less than a scandal! Fight for what you want; you have my blessing,’” said Diegodiego. “The best thing that can happen to an artist is the pleasure of entertaining while at the same time enabling others to achieve their own aspirations.”

Diegodiego began his acting career with the television soap opera La Culpa directed by Pynkie Morris. He later competed, along with 5,000 applicants, for a much coveted role in a Disney Company production. In the end, he was one of three Latinos and one of only 60 candidates selected to perform at Disneyland in California. Click on the play button to listen to Mi Castillo Azul (My Blue Castle), a single from the new album.

California life coach shares advice on quinceanera celebrations in book

Posted by Elena del Valle on August 1, 2008

Quinceañera Connection cover

Photo: Priscilla Mills

California resident Gail Priscilla Mills has had a varied career including building a multi-million dollar business as well as being a life coach, business consultant and author. Seven years ago, while she provided life coaching and consulting to injured workers she heard the heartfelt stories of hardship of many of her clients, 70 percent of which were Latino.

Her client’s positive feedback about facing life challenges and their injuries, and often their desire to share what they had learned with their daughters, inspired her to write her first book, Quinceañera Connection: Your Dream Celebration On A Budget (American Treasures Library, $12.95). She also established a companion website to promote her book, offer positive content and offer products.

Click here to buy Quinceanera Connection

The 187-page soft cover book provides information for Latino families who want to celebrate their daughter’s coming of age on her 15 birthday. Quinceañera means fifteen year old girl in Spanish.

Quinceañera Connection is divided into four sections and 41 chapters including one section for the celebrant and another for the parents. The first section, Introduction, has two chapters. Section Two, Creating a Celebration has chapters 3 to 24. Section Three, Girl Talk for the Quinceañera, has chapters 25 to 33; and the final section is Parent Talk.

Mills is a graduate of the Harvard Business School-OPM program where she focused on entrepreneurial operations. She attended New York City College and University of California, Los Angeles. Mills was also the founder and chief executive officer of a multi-state inventory management company for over 15 years.

Click here to visit the Quinceañera website

CDC: Almost one in three Latinos is obese

Posted by Elena del Valle on July 31, 2008

Soulmates by Suzan Wolters

Art: Soulmates by Suzan Wolters

In spite of the social stigma associated with being overweight one quarter of the adult population in the United States is obese as defined by Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) standards of weight. To address the issue of obesity several years ago the leadership of that organization set a goal to reduce the number of obese people to 15 percent of the adult population by 2010. That may be a lofty goal since not a single state has reached it.

Obesity exceeds 30 percent in three states, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee; and one quarter of states have 25 percent obesity levels. The state with the lowest obesity is Colorado and 19 percent of adults in that state are obese.

To find out the state of obesity in the country the CDC analyzed the results of a national telephone survey, the 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a random-digit–dialed telephone survey of the country’s civilian population 18 years of age and older by state. Among ethnic minorities 36 percent of blacks and 28.5 percent of Hispanics were obese.

College graduates, men and women, were the least likely to be obese. Men who responded to the survey and had graduated from college reported 22 percent obesity; women respondents who had graduated from college reported 17.9 percent obesity.

From a geographic perspective, residents of Southern states were most likely to be obese, 27 percent; while the Midwest region showed 26.5 percent; the Northeast region had 24.4 percent; and the West had 23.1 percent.

The CDC determines obesity using height and weigh to establish a person’s body mass index. For example, a 5 foot 9 inch adult with a weight of 203 pounds has a body mass index of 30 and is considered obese.

The mission of the CDC is “to promote health and quality of life by preventing and controlling disease, injury, and disability.”

“Happy for No Reason” audio recording

Presenter Marci Shimoff, author, Happy for No Reason

What: An audio presentation by Marci Shimoff and Q&A with Marci Shimoff and HispanicMPR.com audio program host Elena del Valle about finding happiness.

Available exclusively on HispanicMPR.com!

What you receive: Downloadable recording of a 39-minute audio presentation “Happy for No Reason” and a bonus 50-minute interview of Marci Shimoff.

Ready to buy? Select a format to add to your shopping cart:

Downloadable MP3 of Happy for No Reason $119.95

Audio CDs of Happy for No Reason $139.95

More information on “Happy for No Reason” audio recording with Marci Shimoff

Watch video – Cartoon series designed to promote bilingualism becoming popular

Posted by Elena del Valle on July 30, 2008

Bertrum and Raimundo

Photos, video: Giddy Gander Company

In an effort to support bilingual (Spanish-English) fluency in the United States beginning with children and children’s television, the Giddy Gander Company launched a cartoon series and brand called The Wumblers in early 2007. Success soon followed. So much so that beginning July 2008, the bilingual branded program is airing on Spanish language television. Scroll down to watch a promo video about The Wumblers.

Also, The Wumblers products will be sold at Walmart through a joint promotion, between The Wumblers, the National Watermelon Association, and Walmart. The promotion was due to begin this July in one of the retail merchant’s Texas stores.

The Wumblers main characters are Bertrum, a young Wumbler, and Raimundo, a bilingual Latin American snail, who are best friends. Bertrum was created to reflect the cultural issues of the toddler children who watch the series. Raimundo is Bertrum’s conscience, mentor, and best friend, even if he is a Spanish speaking snail.

Bertrum’s other imaginary friends show up to advise and tempt him at important moments. He has two loving parents, one of which runs an ice cream shop; and an “eccentric aunt” who likes to paint and sing.

A Wumbler is Born

“The idea is to help Spanish speaking children in the United States achieve English fluency in a new and innovative way while remaining consistent with the values that remain key to the strong family ties and cultural origins of this flourishing community that offers so much to our U.S. society,” said Laura J. Wellington, creator of The Wumblers.

I really believe that it’s time for someone to look up and give Hispanic-Latino children the recognition and heroes they deserve within mainstream U.S. television (and subsequent platforms) with a thrust that warrants the continued emergence and positive contributions made by the Hispanic-Latino people to U.S. (and global) society.”

The Wumblers began as a cartoon series on television nine months ago. The success of the concept is reflected in the recent promotion with Walmart and the National Watermelon Association as well as the production of DVDs that became available for retail purchase this month.

The Wumblers, multi-colored, bulbous-shaped characters, are born from watermelons and eat food that falls from the sky. They are the creation of Wellington, a preschool teacher, mother of four, and widow. In 2006, she co-founded the Giddy Gander Company LLC to respond to requests for The Wumblers.

Find out what multicultural kids across America think
Listen to Michele Valdovinos, SVP, Phoenix Multicultural in

“Marketing to Multicultural Kids” audio recording

Michele Valdovinos gives a presentation and participates in an extended Q&A discussion about multicultural children based on a Phoenix Multicultural and Nickelodeon study of 1,300 multicultural children in 16 United States markets.

Find out about

• The Phoenix Multicultural Kids Study
• Relationship between children and their context
• Issues relating to family, technology and media, diversity, buying power, relationships in household, self perception, values, acculturation, cultural heritage, frequency of media activity, income and spending, brand preferences, the American Dream
• How many billions of dollars buying power multicultural kids children have
• Children’s spending attitudes, habits by ethnicity
• How much money a year Hispanic kids have available to spend
• Types of products Hispanic kids buy

Click here for information on “Marketing to Multicultural Kids” audio recording