We had the good fortune of connecting with Reyna Figueroa and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Reyna, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of becoming a journalist, and since my freshman year in high school I have been working hard to make it happen. At first, I just started writing articles about what’s happening in my community as a way to gain experience. Then over time, I got more involved in the entertainment industry and noticed that there was a need to have a platform where up and coming Latino artists can tell their story and share their latest music. And that’s how The Latino Wave was born. Over the last year we’ve worked with music labels such as Sony Music, Warner Music, Spinning Records, among others, and have published +300 interviews with their artists.

As interview requests poured in, it was becoming overwhelming to handle the research, interview, and post-production all by myself so recently I’ve added three interns that are currently studying journalism at Florida International University (also my alma matter). The goal this year is to scale the project to be able to publish [3-4] interviews per week, attend more exclusive events such as Premio Lo Nuestro and Premios Juventud and improve our social media strategy by optimizing our YouTube channel and expanding into short-form video content such as Tik Tok and Instagram Reels.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Like I was saying before, The Latino Wave is a platform focused on emerging Latin American artists so we would encourage anyone that’s interested in that kind of music to check us out on YouTube and Instagram. We post new interviews 2x a week and some of the artists we’ve interviewed include Blessd, Sebastian Yatra, Dylan Fuentes, Vanesa Martín, among others.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Assuming that was a two-day weekend trip, I’d probably take her to Miami Beach during the day. We could either grab tacos from Taquiza or a bowl from Pura Vida. At night, I’d recommend going to Wynwood. Usually, I would say El Patio is the go to, but it’s still under renovation so the next one that I like is right next door, called Mayami. On Sunday, we would explore the other side of Miami, which is it’s great nature, and go for a tour in the Everglades.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to give a shout out to someone that gave me an opportunity to learn about the media industry and someone that I consider my mentor. Her name is Jessica Roiz and she is the Founder of PulsoPOP and Assistant Editor in Billboard. I was 18 years old when she first brought me on to help her grow her own channel and that’s what really helped me develop professionally and learn the skills that I use every day. I would also love to give a huge shoutout to my family and boyfriend, because nothing wouldn’t be possible without their help, love and support.

Website: https://thelatinowave.wordpress.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelatinowave/ https://www.instagram.com/figueroareynam/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC98xoiKeV9Z0eyJYyUpSzCQ

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