Coloreando El Mundo: How J Balvin Is Changing The Music Industry’s Palette

Orli Arias – De Colores
J Balvin’s performance at Coachella in 2019 showcased his playful, imaginative and colorful style with cloud-themed mascots, playing off the “Arcoiris” (rainbow) theme of his tour that year.

This year J Balvin made Latin Grammys history as the first artist to garner 13 nominations in one year. The artist has already won four Latin Grammys in his career, but this year’s recognition carries a special significance.

This wave of appreciation for J Balvin, reggaeton and Latin trap within Latin Music comes just a year after numerous urban artists complained the subgenre was snubbed in 2019.

“Sometimes people have a hard time wrapping their head around something ‘new’ or ‘different’ and that has kept certain artists from quick success as it takes time for the culture more broadly to catch up with the youth culture,” J Balvin told Pollstar. “We’re here now, though! And I do feel like the appreciation is real now, and it means a lot to have my work be recognized on such a massive scale.”

– J Balvin
The cover of Pollstar for Nov. 16, 2020

Indeed, the Grammys have historically had issues with certain genres or subgenres lacking representation in nominations or victories – specifically hip-hop and R&B almost never winning the major categories – but the Latin Grammys’ voters appear this year to have heard the voices of the public and artists. This year they made a substantial statement, nominating urban stars like Bad Bunny, Daddy Yankee, Karol G, Anuel AA, Cazzu, Ozuna and J Balvin for major categories of Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Song Of The Year, and Best New Artist.

That the Latin Recording Academy has gone from what some saw as selling reggaeton artists short, to showering J Balvin with the most honors in a single year shows just how far the genre has come. And it is fitting that J Balvin is the artist receiving such an honor, as he has in many ways been leading the charge.

His song “Rojo” is nominated for Record Of The Year and he is also featured on the nominated song “China,” a collaboration with Anuel AA, Daddy Yankee, Karol G and Ozuna. His collaborative album with Bad Bunny, Oasis, is up for Album Of The Year, as is his solo album Colores. And he has a slew of other nominations for songs including “Morado,” “Azul,” “Loco Contigo” with DJ Snake featuring Tyga, and “Medusa” with a slew of other collaborators.

J Balvin has been an absolute content machine for the past several years as, just in terms of albums, he released Colores in March of this year, Oasis in June 2019, and Vibras in May 2018. And perhaps more impressively he has released or been featured on at least 33 singles, not including more than a dozen remixes. And he has another album due out in early 2021, his team told Pollstar.

At publication time, J Balvin was Spotify’s 5th most listened to artist in the world with 56 million monthly listeners. But J Balvin’s manager, Fabio Acosta, who spent years working in record companies prior to founding his own company, Vibras Lab, credits radio as a key medium for allowing J Balvin’s music to spread the way that it has.

“I firmly believe that radio is the way to maximize the success and reach of a song,” Acosta told Pollstar. “With José (Álvaro Osorio Balvín, 35) we have seen him become the Latin urban artist with the most No. 1s on the Billboard Latin Airplay charts. For José, the radio has been fundamental to his success and global positioning.

We’ve seen success not only in Spanish-speaking countries but in countries on other continents where his music consistently sits among the most popular songs on the programming of these stations.”

When asked if there are limits on how large J Balvin and Spanish-language music can grow, Acosta responded: “There is definitely more space for our music to continue conquering the corners of this planet. We are a culture full of creativity and rhythms that will allow music in Spanish to continue to grow worldwide. The success of the urban movement in the world demonstrates that there is room for more growth – both globally and in Spanish-speaking markets – for reggaeton.”

In terms of live, J Balvin is already an arena headliner. As a part of his “Arcoíris Tour” in 2019 he grossed $1.1 million at Staples Center on 12,571 tickets and raked in $607,409 at Movistar Arena in Santiago, Chile on 14,810 tickets.

Orli Arias – Dónde Está Mi Gente
J Balvin’s performance at Coachella 2019 showed the world that reggaeton was ready for the global spotlight.

He also topped the $1 million mark at Madison Square Garden with a sellout crowd of 12,264 and nearly broke the $1 million mark at AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami, where he grossed $900,468 on 11,337 tickets at 100% capacity. He also sold out Coliseo de Puerto Rico in San Juan, Puerto Rico; Scotiabank Arena in Toronto; and Place Bell in Quebec. At festivals, too, J Balvin has likewise blazed reggaeton trails, as in 2019 he played at Lollapalooza, Coachella, Coca-Cola Flow Fest, Tomorrowland, Open’er Festival, Primavera Sound, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Something In The Water, Tomorrowland, Tinderbox, Hellow Fest and Baja Beach Fest.

While the COVID-19 pandemic casts a dark cloud over any possible business in 2021, Richard Lom of WME, part of his agent team, told Pollstar, “We’re soon to announce a number of culture-shaking bookings that will take us through 2021.”

At this stage of superstardom, Rob Markus of WME told Pollstar J Balvin is in prime position to expand his touring internationally and further push reggaeton to new heights, whenever touring can resume.

“José has huge global potential,” Markus told Pollstar. “He made some very smart moves early in his career to help build his non-Spanish speaking audience. He played Summer Sonic in Japan and was a big surprise hit, ensuring a return visit when possible to Japan. Similarly, he has performed in some 20+ other non-Spanish speaking markets including England, Germany, Sweden, Hungary, Belgium, France, Italy, Denmark, Israel, Turkey, Greece, Morocco, Switzerland, Holland, Poland, Finland, Portugal. There have been opportunities in Australia and other parts of Asia, but unfortunately the pandemic has forced these to be canceled for now.”

Balvin is already scheduled to play at Baja Beach Fest again in 2021, and the organizers previously told Pollstar that they felt he truly cared about the success of the event and growth of the genre.

“Many of the artists have become more than just an act that we hire for the festival,” Baja Beach Fest co-founder Chris Den Uijl told Pollstar. “The artists and their teams such as J Balvin are collaborating with us on how we can work together to elevate the Latin movement as a whole. We curate a festival at BBF that represents the collective vision for what this culture represents and what we see it growing in too. It’s exciting to see that collaboration between promoters and artists come to life so authentically.”

And artists like La Gabi and Matt Paris, who are scheduled to play Baja Beach Fest in 2021 are also some of those Acosta said he is most excited for in 2021. Lom told Pollstar Balvin has made supporting rising artists one of his calling cards and it’s something he has no doubt will continue.

“J Balvin thus far in his career has sought to use his platform to continue to elevate Latin music’s next stars,” Lom said. “Becky G was on his first solo U.S. run, the “La Familia Tour.” Jhay Cortez was on the “Vibras Tour” and most recently Lyanno and Eladio Carrion were on the “Arcoíris Tour.” Pandemic or not, it’s important for today global stars to continue to share their stage with the next generation.”

Reggaeton artists frequently collaborate with and support one another, but Universal Music Latin Entertainment’s EVP of Latin America & Iberian Peninsula Angel Kaminski told Pollstar the label very much views J Balvin as a leader within the genre.

“As a leader and creative visionary, J Balvin offers a glimpse into the evolution of reggaeton with each album, single, video, tour and merch item he releases,” Kaminski told Pollstar. “As the current No. 1 Latin Global artist J Balvin always stays ahead of the curve by creating new musical trends and remaining loyal to his Latin culture, roots and personal values.”

J Balvin has his own hopes for the genre of reggaeton, and Latin culture as a whole, saying, “I hope that Reggaeton continues to evolve and grow. Of course I’m focused on Latin music as a whole, but more importantly I think about Latin CULTURE as a whole – music, art, fashion, etc. We have so much to offer to the rest of the world when it comes to creativity and style.”

UMLE’s goal, moving forward, Kaminski says, is to continue “globalization of J Balvin’s brand to reach every corner of the world through great music, future tours and strategic partnerships.” And his brand is growing.

Nelson Albareda, founder and CEO of Loud And Live, told Pollstar the story of how J Balvin’s deal with McDonalds arose (see page 8).

Orli Arias – El Rey De Spotify
J Balvin accepts the Spotify Award for Most Shared Artist at Auditorio Nacional on March 5 in Mexico City.

And his presence is also extending into the digital space, as he has been featured on livestreams including “Behind the Colores: The Live Experience,” a 1-hour livestream special on YouTube; “The One World: Together At Home” fundraising concert and the subsequent “Global Goal: Unite For Our Future”; and, most recently, a special performance in the video game Fortnite that Epic Games told Billboard led to the generation of 4,000 videos and connected the artist with much of the game’s 350-million person user base.

It takes a village to build a career, and team J Balvin is a broad group including Vibras Lab, UMLE, WME and Scooter Braun and Allison Kaye – who are partnered with Acosta as Balvin’s managers . Until 2019 J Balvin was also represented by Rebeca Leon and Lionfish Entertainment.

During that period Leon – who previously worked with AEG and Sony Music – helped him navigate the early stages of his career, from opening for Enrique Iglesias and Pitbull, to major headlining tours and big festival looks and helped him score chart-topping global hits.

“José’s always pushing himself to deliver an incredible show for his fans,” Leon told Pollstar. “Since the day we started working together, it was a clear and important objective to push the boundaries of Latin music show production as far as they could go, and I think he’s definitely achieved that. He’s a visionary and he puts his dreams into action.”

Despite the incredible work of his team though, Acosta credits J Balvin as an artist and worker for the incredible success he now enjoys.

“I have always said that José is the driving force for the success of his career,” Acosta said. “Being humble, listening and getting involved in each of the decisions in his career has made him a very smart artist. He also has such clear conceptual vision – every album and every tour that he does has a clear creative that is different from what he has done before and fans respond to the worlds he builds for them. His drive, vision and creativity have taken him to where he is today.”

The word “creativity” must be given special weight when discussing J Balvin. Looking at his shows or any of his content, one can’t help but be drawn in by his use of colors, mascots, and the aesthetic of his art. Balvin said this is a component of his work he looks forward to expanding on in 2021.

“I’m excited to continue to push the limits of what I can do musically, but also visually. I look forward to working in fashion more in the future and continuing to find ways to impact the culture on behalf of the Latino Gang.”

The value of this current success is not lost on J Balvin. Earlier this year he contracted COVID-19, a disease he urges everyone to take seriously.

When asked what he has learned from the experience, he responded: “That family, loved ones, health and community are the most important things life has to offer. I learned to not take my success for granted and to appreciate the small things in life. When I was down with COVID, it put so much into perspective for me that I’ll never forget.”