last November, HYBE is expanding its global entertainment empire in Latin America, launching new offices in Mexico City, Miami and Los Angeles and introducing new properties to its Latin-focused operation.
The move includes the introduction of a new label, Docemil Music, and the rebranding of Exile Music as Zarpazo. Another Exile division, Exile podcasts, will be rebranded as Ajá Podcasts. , CEO of HYBE Latin America. “Additionally, there are very nimble and smart independent local music companies that aim to change the status quo by developing new acts and really sticking with them.
In expanding in Latin America, HYBE is looking to tap into a burgeoning market with no genre borders, says Kah. “We see a lot of diversity in Latin music, and we are not bound to any particular genre. As K-pop can encompass many different genres of music, I believe Latin music can be more diverse in many ways,” he says. “As music transcends boundaries, our targets cannot be confined to geographical borders. Mexico is the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world, which is why we are headquartered in CDMX. Nonetheless, the U.S. Hispanic market is just as big or perhaps even bigger than Mexico.
That said, Kah adds that HYBE Latin America “won’t just be replicating our practices from Korea, or from the U.S.” Rather, he says, “our system will try to seek the best of both worlds. The Korean approach is highly exclusive, and the initial costs are extremely high. In Latin America, we want to revamp our model, we want to plant seeds and see how they grow. It took K-pop more than a decade to get to where it is.