Tag Archives: WK Records

Ryan Castro Makes History with Acquisition of Significant Equity Stake in Paisas Basketball Club

Posted on by
Reply

Ryan Castro is getting in the game…

The 31-year-old Colombian rapper, singer and songwriter has announced that through his company AWOO Team, he has acquired a significant equity stake in Paisas Basketball club, a professional team in his hometown of Medellín.

Ryan CastroThe acquisition makes Castro the first Colombian music artist to own a stake in a basketball team, and also makes him one of only a handful of Colombian artists vested economically in sports.

“It’s another facet for us as entrepreneurs. Supporting sports, because the kids in the barrios have the same dreams as us, the artists,” said Castro, who rose to stardom from the slums of Medellín. 

The Paisas, he adds are from his hometown, plus, “I love basketball. Every time I go to the U.S., I like to go to NBA games. So, it all came together and the opportunity arose to support a team from my city to continue growing the basketball movement, generate more activity and support young people who are into sports.”00:00

While basketball is not nearly as prominent as soccer in Colombia, it’s on the rise. Castro’s acquisition coincides with Paisas Basketball debut in the Basketball Champions League Americas (BCLA), which includes top teams from across the continent). The team also competes in the Betplay professional league in Colombia under Venezuelan coach Daniel Seoane.

On his end, Castro is no stranger to sports.

Last year, he released “El Ritmo Que Nos Une,” the official anthem for Colombia’s national soccer team during Copa América. The video, which has been viewed more than 110 million times on YouTube, shows Castro hanging out and playing soccer with members of the Colombian squad.

However, Castro wasn’t actively looking to invest in sports. The opportunity came to him via a close associate who works actively with basketball and the NBA. “He told me this was a possibility and me and my team gathered all the information we could about Paisas,” says Castro.

Beyond investing in the team, partnering with Castro also gives the Paisas the opportunity to leverage the musician’s platform as a popular Colombian artists with millions of followers on social media (4.5 million on Instagram alone). Plus, he says, “Taking into my account my life story, also take that message of empowerment, of working for your dreams to other kids. That’s the intention. Many kids dream of basketball and sports as a way to get ahead and have a better life, and my story is similar, but with music. So it’s about also taking that motivation, and, as a businessman, I want to venture into sports.”

Castro officially announced his partnership on Tuesday, January 14 at a press conference in Medellín. At the same time, he’s releasing his first single of the year, “Ni x el Putxs,” featuring Colombian trap star Kris R.

Castro’s music is distributed by Sony Latin via his compay AWOO Corp. He also has a strategic partnership and label services deal with WK Records with Leo Arango as his manager.

Wisin Launches Own Record Label, La Base Music

Posted on by
Reply

Wisin is set to help new Latin artists… 

The 41-year-old Puerto Rican reggaeton rapper, singer and record producer, one half of the Wisin & Yandel, has launched his own record label, La Base Music, in an effort to support up-and-coming Latin talent.

Wisin

Wisin says he was inspired to become a resource for young talent and help foster their careers following his stints as a coach on reality television shows La Voz and La Banda.

“There is so much talent out on the streets and there are artists who don’t have the tools to achieve great things or don’t have any direction in their career,” says Wisin. “It was just a matter of time for me to do something like this and I have been working on creating a top-level studio that can compete with any other studio around the world.”

Headquartered in Wisin’s native Puerto Rico, La Base Music launches with new signees Chris Andrew and Abdiel Larralde, who will soon release new music under the label.

“Our new artists have potential and the hunger to grow,” adds Wisin. “That’s the most important thing for us here at La Base. Attitude is everything. I’m looking for people who want to grow but also listen. We are here with the intention of making good music. And it’s not just new artists we are collaborating with. We actually just finished Ozuna‘salbum at La Base and we’re almost done with Wisin & Yandel’sforthcoming album.”

La Base Music’s resident engineer and award-winning producers include Hyde Quimico and Los Legendarios who have worked with Latin superstars like Daddy Yankee, Ozuna and Reik.

Although La Base Music will be distributed by The Orchard via WK Records, Walter Kolm‘s recently-launched imprint (Kolm’s WK Entertainment manages Wisin), all artistic decisions will be taken independently.

“All the decisions and everything that has to do with our artists, I will be in charge of that,” Wisin explains.

Wisin says he doesn’t take this new venture lightly as it comes with great responsibility. “I’m grateful that life has given me the opportunity to become a resource for artists who maybe in three or four years will be great musicians. It’s very fulfilling and it makes me proud that I can still contribute to music in that way.