After 20 years of assassinations, Mexico is today the most dangerous country for journalism according to latest RSF ranking. Corruption and drug trade inquiries have cost 150+ lives since 2002.

The Narco culture has deeply penetrated in Mexico, no wonder kids playing to be Narcos, while teenagers aim for a life full of luxury and easy money.

Narco culture numbers in entertainment are exponential: +100M fans (Mex+ US) and increasing.

Music has played an important cultural role “normalizing” crime and impunity.

Spotify and YT hold an overwhelming audience, mainly in Mexico and the US, attracted to the Narco-corridos genre.

Objectives:

• Hack the Narco culture from within by positioning the first Anti Narco-corrido

among the top songs in Narco-corrido's lists in Spotify and YT.

• Create awareness on how harmful normalizing Narco-culture could be.

• Bring media attention through RSF in both, local and global petition for justice.

To hack the Narco culture from within, we used the same ideological weapon: The Anti Narco-corrido.

For the first time ever, a woman is singing corridos, -commonly a male genre-. We asked the most famous singer-activist in Mexico, Vivir Quintana, to compose the Anti Narco-corrido, using the same musical genre the drug lords praise; this time, against them.

We created the first Anti Narco-corrido to position it as a new musical genre, changing the typical Narco lyrics of bazookas and and beheading to a new narrative about journalists feats, starting with Milo Vela's investigation on Narco criminals that led to his tragic murder.

Raising awareness in social media Spotify, YouTube and News media coverage our campaign aims for a radical cultural shift through music.

Fight “normalization” of violence and journalist murders, awake awareness of local and international press, Mexican society and Narco music listeners in Mexico and the US.

We wanted to give voice to journalists who were silenced, responding to the RSF urging concern on Mexico’s situation.

We created this initiative to hack the Narco culture in a disruptive way, turning the first Anti Narco-corrido in more than a song or a campaign, a breakthrough cultural paradigm.

Narco culture numbers in entertainment are exponential: more than 70M Youtube and almost 30M Spotify listeners. Netflix research draws +180 results related to Narcos. Spotify reports an overwhelming audience attracted to this Narco-corridos genre in Mexico and the US. It was key to position our Anti Narco-corrido in the top Spotify and YouTube lists.

The call to action to society is to be aware and participate in creating a new cultural stand point through music.

Timeline

• We approached the most prominent journalists in Mexico and engage them to promote a new music genre designed to hack the Narco culture from within:

The Anti Narco-corrido

• April 25th 2022 kick-off: The first Anti Narco-corrido was launched on national and international news media, with Vivir Quintana playing live.

• It was also premiered in a live event gathering most of those journalists with Milo Vela’s surviving family

• Concerts of Vivir Quintana scheduled for summer 2022, amplifying the campaign and inspiring others voices to join the initiative.

Placement

• Main national news media (TV/radio/digital).

• Hack the existing corrido’s lists on Spotify and YT positioning the

Anti Narco-corrido at the top of the lists

• Vivir Quintana’s social platforms: IG, YT and Spotify channels.

Scale

We succeeded to hack Narco-corridos lists by partnering with Spotify to position the first Anti Narco-Corrido on the top reproduction lists.

Social impact

- Our Anti Narco-corrido gathered +30k reproductions the first week in Social Media

- It showed a tendency of 10% growth day by day, as music evolves and adapts quickly

- It was present and added to 44 Spotify lists on the first week

- It quickly transcended Mexican borders with 25% more reproductions in USA and Latam

We hacked corridos playlists, so we could deliver 80% of Spotify reproductions in the most famous Narco corridos lists.

Response Rate

-Impressions: 1.031.480

-Digital Reach in 9 days: 577.160

-Reproductions in a week: 30.000

- Free Press coverage: +150 national and international key news media

Change in Behavior

• The first Anti Narco-corrido remains as a milestone on social awareness towards impunity and journalist murders.

• Starting a new music genre that fights Narco culture with its same ideological weapon offers the Narco Corrido’s fandom healthier music content consumption habits.