(TOP) TEGO CALDERÓN’S THE UNDERDOG CD IS A BLEND OF CARIBBEAN ROOTS, REGGAETÓN AND HIP HOP MUSIC. ELASTIC PEOPLE CAPTURED THIS ESSENCE IN A PHOTO SHOOT OF THE PERFORMER STAGED IN HIS OLD BARRIO IN PUERTO RICO. THE COMPANION WEBSITE FOR THE ALBUM SHOWS A DIFFERENT SIDE OF CALDERÓN. THE UNDERDOG IS HIS FOLLOWUP TO EL ABAYARDE, THE FIRST REGGAETÓN ALBUM TO BREAK INTO ANGLO RADIO STATIONS. CALDERÓN WAS ALSO THE FIRST IN THIS MUSICAL GENRE TO RECEIVE A DEAL WITH A MAJOR ANGLO LABEL, ATLANTIC.

“The Hispanic audience is not a boutique audience. It’s big,” says Carlos Pérez, creative director of Elastic People, Inc. It is also something that non-Spanish speakers sometimes forget. “In the past, people have often thought, ‘oh they’re the minority that likes tacky or fruity things,’” explains Pérez. “Hispanics are increasingly a sophisticated audience. And we’re not all the same—Puerto Ricans are different from Argentineans from Mexicans from Cubans and Dominicans. People should know that. Every Latin country has its unique characteristics.”

La Opinión, the largest Spanish-language daily newspaper in the U.S., reports that Hispanic buying power is projected to be $260 billion in 2007. That’s a significant consumer base, and one that Elastic People, a multidisciplinary creative agency, is well versed in speaking to. “The number one key to the Latin Market is not to underestimate it,” states Pérez.

Carlos Pérez founded Elastic People in 2003 after years of working for design firms that focused predominantly on corporate work including The Designory in Long Beach, Calif., and Pinkhaus in Miami. Pérez had a vision for a multicultural, bilingual collective of creative talent, under one roof, that could serve clients in any medium and either language. From brand development to dynamic media, the firm challenges conventions. Elastic People leverages Pérez’s experience with major brands like Mercedes-Benz, Oldsmobile and Bacardi, but currently applies it primarily to branding projects for the entertainment business. The firm takes on everything for a performing artist, including designing CD/DVD packaging, principal photography and key art, logo, website, point of sale materials, tour concept and stage design, as well as music videos and documentaries. In short, they brand the total package. Their formula is apparently effective: The firm has worked with most of the top Latin Grammy winners, and the MTV Music Video Awards has nominated Elastic People’s videos— both of which are in Spanish—two years in a row.

NEGOCIO LATINOS
This journey from Corporate America to branding Hispanic musical artists has been an interesting one for Pérez, who was born and raised in Puerto Rico. His firm’s work with a variety of contemporary Latino artists has been a kind of return to his roots. He was quick to recognize an opportunity in focusing Elastic People on this music. “For us, Latin music was an open door,” explains Pérez. “Hispanic music lacked a certain level of creativity in terms of branding and graphics. Plus, Miami is an emerging music scene. We were emerging as an agency. Doing design for Hispanic music was a chance to get exposure. There was a lot of potential there.” Clients now include reggaetón superstar Daddy Yankee, Puerto Rican rapper Tego Calderón, pop crossover star Ricky Martin, Dominican bachata singer Juan Luis Guerra, Mexican rock band Maná, which has been called Latin America’s U2, and the smokyvoiced queen of Puerto Rican merengue, Olga Tañón.

DADDY YANKEE’S CORAZONES MUSIC VIDEO INTRODUCED THE SUPERSTAR TO U.S. AUDIENCES. IT’S A POWERFUL PROTEST AGAINST GOVERNMENTAL CENSORSHIP OF RAP MUSIC AND CALLS OUT INSTEAD FOR ATTENTION TO THE POVERTY THAT CAUSES MANY MORE PROBLEMS IN SOCIETY THAN MUSIC EVER COULD.

Doing business in the Spanish-speaking music industry is a bit different from the English-speaking one. “There’s something less structured and more organic about it. Hispanics are very loyal and warm. There’s lots of servicing and schmoozing in Hispanic business, but once you’re in, you’re in with these clients,” says Pérez. “They are more loyal. When a Hispanic does business with another Hispanic person, it’s often just a handshake deal. We do business differently. A man’s word is often more valued than a written contract.”

By handling all aspects of the creative, Elastic People makes things simpler and ensures image consistency. That’s an idea that works well for both Spanish- and English-speaking businesses. However, Pérez has found that many executives on the Anglo side of the music business have never seen a single shop do this. Elastic People’s integrated approach is all about creatively branding an artist from the beginning. “Elastic People will crossover to Anglo artists, it’s just a matter of time,” he notes; yet remembers, “In 2003, my first pitch to Warner Bros. was the ‘one voice’ concept where everything is integrated. People looked at me like, ‘What the fuck are you thinking?’ It was because they had at least eight vendors working on an album launch to create all the different materials needed. I said, ‘Focus on the work and forget about the politics.’”

There is huge potential with the Anglo side of the business, but acceptance of this work model won’t come easy. “He is really able to translate the artist’s concept—graphically,” said Elastic People client Gabriela Martinez, vice president of Marketing for Warner Music International, in a recent Miami Herald article about Elastic People. “He does it in a very unique and modern way which is normally very hard to do.”

LOS CLIENTES CORRECTOS
No matter who they’re working for, Elastic People designs to attract attention. “Our design philosophy is to treat audiences with respect, but to push it, and don’t give into the mundane or cliché,” Pérez adds. The firm boldly advertises for the kind of clients that they work best with right on the company website with these words: “Elastic People seeks clients ready to challenge industry conventions, consumer mindsets and their own corporate culture.” It’s part of Elastic People’s desire to weed out clients that are a bad fit and will never be happy with them. “We want to attract clients that want a revolution,” Pérez states. “If you’re conservative you probably won’t be comfortable with us. We can’t do bland.” Since business is exploding, it seems that Elastic People is finding those clients.

Daddy Yankee is surely one of Elastic People’s most successful client relationships. In 2004, Puerto Rican-born Ramon Ayala, a.k.a. Daddy Yankee, single-handedly ushered a once underground genre into the mainstream to become the first reggaetón artist to go platinum, as well as stage an international arena tour. Time magazine put him on its May 8, 2006, cover and called Daddy Yankee one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Elastic People has been right alongside, doing all the image work for the artist and his El Cartel Records label: logos, CDs, DVDs, websites, merchandising materials and several award-wining music videos including Gasolina and Rompe. Daddy Yankee told the Miami Herald, “I’m always looking to be a leader, and Perez knows how to stay on the forefront and create things that have never been launched before. Fans have a lot of options, and we need to stay on top with unique ideas.”

“ROMPE,” WHICH TRANSLATES TO “BREAK IT DOWN,” WAS NOMINATED FOR AN MTV 2006 VMA FOR BEST HIP HOP VIDEO. IN IT, DADDY YANKEE’S MUSIC UNIFIES KRUMP, ROCK STEADY AND REGGAETÓN DANCERS IN A EAST/WEST MEETS CARIBBEAN JUNKYARD DANCE-OFF.

Elastic People sees itself as a creative facilitator, but Pérez freely acknowledges the talent and vision of his client, and not just in terms of music. Citing the phenomenal success of Daddy Yankee and other reggaetón artists who have redefined the way Latin music is marketed, Perez told Billboard magazine, “As independents, these guys were pushing serious marketing initiatives, whether they understood that or not. I think a lot of major labels are looking at and analyzing how they accomplished that in such a short time.”

ACERCA DEL TRABAJO
Elastic People’s Hispanic music clients are chart-topping acts internationally, and Pérez finds inspiration for his firm’s work by immersing himself in their music. He hangs out with the performers, gets to know them and works hard to capture the essence of their style. “I look for ways to elevate what’s real. It’s like with the recent photo shoot of Ricky Martin for his Unplugged CD. I didn’t want hair, makeup, no stylist, just the guy in a house in his personal recording studio, barefoot, unshaved and in comfortable clothes, just being himself. The Unplugged album isn’t about a pretty face, it’s about the music,” says Pérez. Martin is a longtime client of Perez’ so there is a lot of trust in their relationship, but this particular photo session surprised Martin. “I had Ricky grab the microphone cord and wrap himself in it, and he was cool, but eventually asked, ‘What the fuck’s up with all these cables?’ It had been a kind of spontaneous thing that seemed right for the album. I answered, ‘Because you’re tied to your career.’ Ricky looked at me and said, ‘You know what? You can’t even imagine how tied. Whether I want to or not, I crave making music.’ That’s what I mean by finding what’s real and pushing it. That little bit of real that we can capture makes all the difference.”

RICKY MARTIN’S MTV UNPLUGGED CD SHOWS AUDIENCES A DIFFERENT, MORE SOULFUL SIDE OF THE FAMED POP SINGER. GRADUATED COLOR TINTS SOFTEN THE GRITTY BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY ON THE CD PACKAGE. THIS ALBUM DEBUTED AT #1 ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS.

Elastic People’s work stands out because they have a point of view and because they get personal with their projects. “We are tapping into a sensibility that no one has gotten out of an artist,” says Pérez. “If [someone’s] music has no point of view or substance, then it’s hard for me to work with them. It’s gotta be more. I’m into finding a deeper meaning.” Pérez and his team were able find what was real and authentic about the venerable Latino rock band Maná. Elastic People helped reintroduce the band to new and younger audiences with a new album, Amar Es Combatir. The package, like Ricky Martin’s, features bold graphics and striking black and white photography—all characteristic of Elastic People’s work. “I think I’ll always be a freak for black and white because it’s the purest,” explains Pérez. “It’s raw. It’s basic.”

Pérez knows how important his design choices are for his clients. “If you’re honest,” he notes, “the CD cover is like a tattoo for artists—they’ll look at that thing for the rest of their lives. So it’s gotta be right.” Like many designers who work in the music business, Hispanic or otherwise, Elastic People is dealing with the changes in the industry. “What used to be a 12 x 12-in. canvas of a vinyl record is now a tiny thing. Type and graphics have to be read on fucking iTunes menus and iPod screens and that makes designing a different kind of challenge,” he adds.

THIS BROCHURE DRAWS ATTENTION TO THE CASE OF PUERTO RICAN HIP HOP STAR TEMPO, WHOM MANY FANS CONSIDER TO BE FALSELY INCARCERATED ON DRUG CHARGES AS A MEANS OF CENSORING HIS INFLAMMATORY LYRICS THAT STRONGLY CRITICIZE THE GOVERNMENT. THE PIECE URGES PEOPLE TO GO TO THE WEBSITE (WWW.FREETEMPO.ORG) AND SIGN A PROTEST PETITION.

EL FUTURO
What are the limits for Elastic People? Pérez isn’t confining Elastic People to just Latin music. He plans to remain an exclusive boutique design firm that uses dynamic media to draw people, not just Spanish-speaking ones, into his clients’ world. “I named our company Elastic People because we’re adaptable thinkers. We stretch. We’re fl exible in the way we do business and the way we deliver creative,” says Pérez. Although music is a passion for him, and he is hard at work on Daddy Yankee’s next video Gangsta Zone, which features Snoop Dogg, Elastic People does work for a spectrum of mainstream clients, including Nike, Trump Towers, Terra Developers, Deutsche Bank NY and Miami Grand Prix. “My dream project would be to sign a whole city,” Pérez says. “I’d love to get involved more in redefining environmental graphics. I also want to do documentaries and eventually features.”

Whatever is next, Elastic People intends to expand its experience doing creative for Spanish-speaking audiences. “We don’t look down on or stereotype people,” says Pérez. “Corporate America has looked down on Hispanic audiences for years. They should wake up. They should recognize like we do that Hispanic customers are passionate and loyal about what they like. They spend big money, and that’s something no advertiser can ignore.”