TMA’s Lonnie Limon, VP/multicultural, was a panelist at the sixth annual LatinMixx Conference + Awards in New York. The panel — “Utilizing Your Social and Cultural Capital” — was aimed at educating Latino DJ’s, a highly-connected group, on how to leverage their network to connect with brand s via marketers and agencies. Panelists included Carolyn “C.C.” Concepcion, brand manager at Heineken, who provided a client’s perspective of what lifestyle brand s were looking for in partnerships with key influencers that hold such heavy “social and cultural capital.” Here are some of the things Lonnie spoke to on the panel:
When a marketer looks to engage Latino millennials, they normally look to the traditional mass outlets. However, they rarely think that an outlet with 5,000 followers is significant enough. Herein lies the power of the Latino DJ. Latin DJ’s are unifiers in their communities, playing off the Hip-Hop music of their youth, the Latin music of their heritage and the trendy sounds of everything from tribal to techno-cumbia. They play in New York, LA, Chicago, Houston…and have now moved on to the global stage with such stars as Tony Touch, Little Louie Vega and DJ Eddie One. While their following might number in the thousand s, these followers will buy every mix tape, follow every tweet and attend every set when these high energy DJ’s roll through town.
Living in multiple cultural worlds, I explained that these connectors had a great opportunity to engage their audiences with unique brand experiences that only they can deliver. Many of my peers on the panel also imparted their wisdom on how to develop strong relationships with brand s based on trusted and positive partnerships.
To see a little behind the scenes of the Hennessy DJ Collective, check out Laura Stylez and legendary DJ Laz of Miami.