Enrique Iglesias Songs & Tour 2014 Dates & Tickets: Pitbull Partnership Boosted by Latino Buying Power
What connects Latinos more than anything? La musica of course!
Whether you're from the U.S., Spain, Mexico, Central or South America or beyond, music tends to be the common denominator when it comes to Latin culture. A passion and love for music is something that binds us together -- let's face it, Latinos have a love affair with music. It's a part of our essence, and a recent Nielsen study further reiterated this point.
"The average Hispanic spends $135 per year on music, considerably more than the average consumer, who spends $105 per year," according to Nielsen. "Much of this difference is explained by Hispanics' love of live music and a cultural tradition that values communal celebration."
The bulk of Latinos' music spending breaks down as follows -- $72 for live music, $14 for CDs, $13 for digital albums, and $8 for satellite radio.
"Music is a key component of Hispanic life and Hispanics are among the most enthusiastic consumers of music across a variety of genres regardless of acculturation level. Having roots in Mexico and various countries across Central America, South America and the Caribbean, Hispanics are diverse, speak multiple languages, and straddle multiple cultures," Nielsen adds.
"There is no single narrative that applies to those who identify themselves as Hispanic. Some are recent immigrants who speak only Spanish, some are descendants of families who immigrated generations ago and speak only English, and some speak Spanish and English with equal ease."
The Nielsen report's highlighting of Latinos love for live music comes at a time when two mega chart-toppers, Spanish crooner Enrique Igelsias and Pitbull have embarked on a 15-city U.S. tour, produced by AEG, that kicked off on Friday Sept. 12 in Newark, New Jersey. They are scheduled to perform in New York City on Sept. 25 at Madison Square Garden. The tour will run through Saturday, Oct. 22, in Hollywood, Florida. Colombian singer J Balvin will join the duo as support on all dates.
"The tour marks the second joint outing for Iglesias and Pitbull, who last hit the road on Iglesias' Euphoria Tour in 2011. That tour grossed $30.8 million in Boxscore receipts, and helped re-establish Iglesias as one of the industry's top money-makers that year," according to Billboard.
Iglesias and Pitbull first collaborated on 2010's "I Like It" -- a tune that was originally intended to feature a guest rap from T.I., as Iglesias told Billboard in an earlier interview.
"I didn't have a hit record in the Anglo world at the time, so when I met Pit I told him, 'There's somebody else on the track but it's not getting approval from his record company,'" Iglesias told Billboard.
Yet Pitbull forged ahead with reportedly no qualms and brought the money-making raps to the table. "I Like It" went on to be Iglesias' biggest hit in nearly a decade, peaking at No. 4 on the Hot 100.
Since the success of "I Like It," the two musical trailblazers have since gone on to record nearly a half-dozen tracks together, including Iglesias' singles "I'm A Freak" and "I Like How It Feels," Pitbull's album tracks "Tchu Tchu Tcha" (from 2012's "Global Warming") and "Come N Go" (from 2011's "Planet Pit").
Iglesias and Pitbull, who already have a huge following on social media, "enlisted some of their biggest fans on Twitter to help announce each date by tweeting their excitement for the tour, in exchange for a follow-back and private direct-message from Iglesias or Pitbull with details of the next gig," according to Billboard. Within minutes, the social-media activity made the tour's hashtag #EnriquePitbullTour a top trending topic both in the U.S. and around the world.
While busy on tour, Pitbull, a.k.a. "Mr. Worldwide," who also performed at the 2014 FIFA World Cup alongside Jennifer Lopez and Brazilian singer Claudia Leitte, managed to find the time to appear on NBC's "America's Got Talent" Season 9 Finale on Sept. 17. The show featured a star-studded line-up including: Ed Sheeran, Jennifer Hudson, Lenny Kravitz, Pitbull, Train and The Rockettes.
For more information and the latest dates for the Iglesias and Pitbull tour, click here.
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