Carín León Partners With Virgin Music Group and Island Records in Double Whammy Deal
The Regional Mexican music star signed a global deal via his label, Socios Music.
Carín León, the soulful yet big-voiced regional Mexican singer who ended 2023 as the 10th highest-grossing Latin touring act of the year on Billboard’s Boxscore charts, has announced a new partnership between his label, Socios Music, and Virgin Music Group and Island Records.
The deal is unique in that both Virgin and Island will distribute and market León’s product under Socios Music, the label León formed in partnership with his manager, Jorge Juárez. Virgin will distribute and market everywhere for the U.S. Latin market as well as global markets, while Island will work the U.S. mainstream market. The agreement encompasses parts of León’s back catalog as well as new material, including León’s most recent album, Boca Chueca, Vol. 1 (released May 30), which debuted at No. 5 on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Albums chart and No. 8 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart.
To date, León has placed 16 songs on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart, including three in the top 10, and six No. 1s on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Airplay chart. The hits include numerous collaborations with major Mexican music acts like Grupo Firme, as well as pop acts like Maluma, Camilo and Kany García. León has also raised eyebrows (in a good way) with his forays into the country music market. “The One (Pero No Como Yo),” his bilingual collab with country star Kane Brown, peaked at No. 46 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, and he played Stagecoach this spring in addition to making his debut at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.
“Carín León has established himself as one of the most exciting and creative artists in the world today,” said JT Myers and Nat Pastor, co-CEOs of Virgin Music Group, in a statement. “He has also assembled around him a world-class team and together we are already building upon the amazing work they’ve done throughout Carín’s incredible career.”
“Carín León is a true outlier,” said Justin Eshak and Imran Majid, Co-CEOs of Island Records. “He transcends not only stylistic and sonic boundaries, but also cultural boundaries. We’re thrilled to work with Carín and manager Jorge Juarez via this new partnership with Virgin Music Group and Socios Music.”
León first appeared on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Airplay chart as a soloist in 2019 with “Me la aventé” and, during the pandemic, scored a major hit with his cover of Latin pop song “Tu,” recorded as a live session during lockdown. Initially signed to indie Tamarindo Rekordsz, in December 2022 he began working with Juárez, a veteran concert promoter and manager.
Juárez negotiated last year’s tour with AEG Live and León’s publishing deal with Universal Music Publishing Group (he was signed by Yadira Moreno, MD of Universal Music Publishing Mexico with support from UMPG’s global team), as well as the new deal with Virgin and Island.
“We are proud to have assembled an incredibly collaborative team at both Virgin Music Group and Island Records to work alongside us to take Carín’s career to even greater heights,” said Jorge Juarez, Leon’s manager and business partner at Socios Music. “We are already seeing huge benefits from this new partnership and are excited for the future.”
In support of the new music, Carín’s forthcoming Boca Chueca Tour 2024 kicks off July 22 in Paso Robles, California, with stops in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Nashville, Houston and Toronto, as well as a landmark performance at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. See the complete list of dates and tickets here.
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