Orfeón, one of the longest-running independent labels in Latin America, announced on Thursday (May 22) a strategic partnership with record label and distributor ONErpm. The collaboration aims to strengthen the digital presence of Orfeón’s music catalog, which spans seven decades of recordings, over 900 artists, and 150,000 songs in genres including bolero, ranchera, danzón, mambo, tropical pop, and rock & roll. Orfeón, previously distributed by Warner Music, has been home to legendary artists such as Pedro Infante, Celia Cruz, Agustín Lara, Chavela Vargas, Javier Solís, Lola Beltrán, and Toña la Negra, among others.
“In this new restructuring, we have sought out the best ally for digital distribution,” says Edmundo Monroy, CEO of Fórmula Music Group, to Billboard. “ONErpm is, for us, the leader in the region for Spanish-language music and has presented us with the best option in technology, the best option in development with platforms, the best analytics, and today it seems to us the best company to distribute music globally. We have been in talks for months and we are starting this new stage with the best perspective to maximize Latin American music worldwide.”
The alliance goes beyond a distribution agreement and includes marketing plans to expand Orfeón’s catalog to new markets and a new generation of music fans, adds Adriaan Glastra, general manager of ONErpm Mexico.
“Orfeón has a historic catalog, and being part of Grupo Fórmula they have a huge reach and are also launching new artists,” says Glastra to Billboard. “Obviously, we were pursuing this. There is a very obvious synergy that we can have with them and growth on both sides. We have many plans to bring the new generations the historic catalog they have and everything new they are starting to release.”
The first release under this new alliance will be an album by Lupita D’Alessio recorded with a live symphony orchestra from the Arena Ciudad de México. It will be released on Friday, May 23, with a vinyl component to be released shortly after.