What every musician can learn from Peso Pluma’s ‘overnight’ success

CD Baby’s Chris Robley explores what musicians can learn from the breakout success of Mexican artist Peso Pluma.

by CHRIS ROBLEY from CD Baby’s DIY Musician [Video Below]

In the music and career of Mexican artist Peso Pluma, “old & new walk hand-in-hand.”

That’s how Erika Parr (CD Baby’s International Content Marketing Manager) describes it in the THE WORLD, an ongoing segment from our podcast that brings lessons from non-English-language music scenes to the DIY Musician community.

Peso seemingly came out of nowhere. One day he’s working at a restaurant, the next he’s conquered global music charts, late night TV, and Coachella!

But like most “overnight” success stories, there are years of work behind the scenes, dialing in a unique sound, smart branding, building the right team, and much more.

Check out the video above to hear how Peso Pluma:

• Blended the familiar styles of home (in the form regional Mexican music influences) with a modern, joyous, urban, social-media sensibility
• Built a team around his music that propelled him towards success
• Stayed true to himself while reaching a global audience of millions

Peso continues the trend of non-English-language musicians dominating the charts, and we’re going to hear many more of these stories in the coming years. Stay tuned!

Chris Robley is the Editor of CD Baby’s DIY Musician Blog. I write Beatlesque indie-pop songsthat’ve been praised by No Depression, KCRW, The LA Times, & others. My poems have appeared in Poetry Magazine, Prairie Schooner, The Poetry Review, & more. I live in Maine and like peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, a little too much.