At just twenty-seven, Alejandra has earned the distinct recognition of being a “mover and shaker” in the music industry. She is a passionate, music-driven individual who has been in the Latin music business for over seven years. Alejandra started her career as an intern in the A&R department at Universal Music Latin America. Driven by curiosity and an eagerness to keep learning, she explored other areas of the music and entertainment industry and graduated FIU in 2013.
Alejandra soon landed a job at NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises heading the music section of their digital department. After three successful years, she leveraged her knowledge and experience into more passionate endeavors by moving to a record label where she felt the “magic” truly happened. Alejandra is now the head of publicity and promotions for all artists at Warner Music Latina where she is responsible for the evolution of artists ranging from Sofia Reyes to artists like Zion & Lennox and Jesse & Joy. A few months ago, Billboard released an article highlighting a few top PR women executives and Alejandra was one of the few women that were fortunate enough to be featured in the prestigious publication.
We sat down with Alejandra to learn more about her career and what it took for her to become a mover and shaker in the music industry.
MIW: What exactly do you do in your current position at Warner Music Latina?
Alejandra: I currently lead publicity and promotions which ultimately means that I seek different opportunities to generate maximum exposure for our artists in the U.S. This varies from creating and executing extensive promotional plans, to building and cultivating relationships with key media and decision makers in the industry. I write and distribute all press releases and make sure that I am included in every meeting, both internally and with each artist’s team, to strategize innovative ideas to generate successful releases. Most importantly, I have the responsibility for the evolution of many artists such as Anitta, Sofia Reyes, Piso 21, Jesse & Joy, Zion & Lennox, among others.
MIW: What was the biggest challenge you faced in your career and how did you overcome it?
Alejandra: I started my career at a very young age and, at first, it was very challenging to make management teams or colleagues respect and trust my judgment and knowledge in strategic decisions. As time went by, as a result of my self-confidence and expertise, I started gaining credibility in the industry and started showing successful results in all key aspects of my job.
MIW: What piece of advice do you wish someone would have given you at the start of your career?
Alejandra: To always find a balance between work and your personal life. As they say, balance is key. It is extremely easy to get caught up with the glitz and glam of the industry, but it’s extremely important to focus and never lose sight of who you really are. I was luckily able to learn this pretty early on in my career and definitely live by it.
MIW: Who are your biggest influences and people you admire and why?
Alejandra: It’s hard to argue that Julie Greenwald, the chairman/COO of Atlantic Records, isn’t one of the most accomplished and respected executives in the music industry. I definitely admire her because setting aside the fact that she has helped play a key role in the careers of superstar artists Bruno Mars, Cardi B, Portugal The Man, Ed Sheeran and so many others, she has demonstrated that a woman can be a leader and someone that inspires and helps make a change in a male-dominated industry.
MIW: Is there a particular person or people who you are grateful towards who helped you get to where you are today?
Alejandra: A person that I will forever be grateful for helping me get to where I am today is Carlos Pérez. Once my A&R internship at Universal Music ended, because I was curious to see what really happened behind that closed marketing door, I had the opportunity to extend my internship and start in the marketing department. There I met Charly, National Senior Director of Publicity, a true mastermind of his craft. He believed in me from the very first moment and pushed me professionally to levels that I would have never thought I would reach. The things he taught me as an intern are still very much present in a lot of decisions that I make today.
MIW: What advice do you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
Alejandra: I would tell them to do as many internships as possible. They definitely help put your foot in the door and give you a feel to see if what you always envisioned is, actually, what you really see yourself doing in the future.
MIW: What are you most excited about in your career right now?
Alejandra: I’m extremely excited to be able to be working in the Latin industry, in charge of searching for different opportunities for artists, at a time where Latin music is truly becoming universal and being talked about worldwide. Daily, we are seeing how musical borders are being broken down with different collaborations that are happening or by seeing how the top positions on global charts are being dominated by Latin artists. It’s exciting to be able to explore different mainstream platforms for Latin artists and start moving away from traditional ones.
MIW: Do you have a favorite Artist or Band that you’ve worked with? If so, why?
Alejandra: As cliché as it may sound, I genuinely like working every single artist that is on our roster. I’ve learned to appreciate the fact that every artist is a completely different world— with different upbringings, likes, dislikes, passion points— but they all share the same objective which is that they make music with the ultimate goal of making someone feel some sort of way, and that, alone, is incredible.
MIW: How does it make you feel to have accomplished so much at such a young age?
Alejandra: I feel very proud to be a young, Hispanic woman working in the Latin music industry at a time like today. Latin music is being consumed all over the world, dominating global charts and breaking all types of musical boundaries.
MIW: How do you feel about the future of the music industry?
Alejandra: There is no arguing that the music industry is extremely fast-paced and ever-changing but that, precisely, is the fascinating thing about it. Within my seven years in the industry, I have witnessed so many different streaming trends, user consumption patterns but, most amazingly, I’ve seen how Latin music has obtained a whole new meaning and is now breaking all types of boundaries. I don’t know what the future holds for the music industry but there is no doubt that what’s to come is very exciting.
MIW: How can our readers connect with you on social media or learn more about you?
Alejandra: They can connect with me via LinkedIn – I always answer all of the messages I receive! https://www.linkedin.com/in/alegarcia/
They can also learn a bit more of what I do by reading the Billboard article I was featured in along with other great women of the Latin music industry: https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/latin/8501663/international-womens-day-pr-ladies-behind-latin-superstars
