Today we’d like to introduce you to Auggie Velarde.
Auggie, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I am a Peruvian-born artist who grew up in Miami, where I fell in love with the city’s mix of electronic energy, hip-hop, and the complete, vibrant blend of Latin culture. My journey started as a way to deal with childhood anxiety stemming from the immigrant experience. Moving to the U.S. at the age of six was a major transition, and music became my primary tool for processing that shift.
I spent years balancing a traditional career path with my passion, essentially acting as a hacker of my own life by using my experience in technology to fund and build my own music ecosystem. After running a digital agency for many years that focuses on the Latin music market, I reached a point where we had worked with major brands in tech and personal care, while also securing sync deals for movies and series on Netflix and Apple TV. Today, I embrace being an independent soul with the freedom to create whatever I please, focusing on a modern fusion of Latin music, hip-hop, and electronic production. My passion for music and the need to fund my projects led me directly to my business, and there is a nice synergy between the two that keeps me motivated
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s definitely been a rollercoaster of a ride. From the beginning, navigating the immigrant experience and the pressure to choose a safe career path was a constant uphill battle. Even as things stabilized, the internal struggle with perfectionism and the weight of my own expectations often made the road feel far from smooth.
Even to this day, the ride hasn’t leveled out. With the rapid changes in the music industry and the rise of AI, it is difficult to keep up and know what the right move is. As someone who deeply cares for art and the human experience, I want to be on the right side of history, but I’m also scared of a future where folks aren’t able to keep up with these new tools. It is a constant challenge to stay authentic while the landscape shifts so quickly under your feet. Balancing that care for the human element of music with the reality of where technology is heading is a heavy part of the journey now, but that uncertainty is also what makes the connection between my two worlds so vital.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I specialize in a constant experimental-alternative blend of melodic pop-leaning Latin music, hip-hop, and electronic production. My sound is built on wavy, atmospheric textures that allow me to jump between languages and genres. I’m simply trying to be true to my artistic voice; I am still on that path of discovery every day, building my own world and discovering who I am as an artist.
On the business side, I’ve built an agency that grew from the Latin music market to working with global tech and personal care brands, as well as influencers. We run digital marketing campaigns for other labels, and we also manage our own roster of artists, acting as both a label and a publisher for the releases in our catalog. We have been fortunate to secure sync in advertising for ads you see on platforms like YouTube and on live TV, as well as placements in documentaries on Amazon Prime Video. We also have a multi-year deal with Sony PlayStation’s MLB: The Show series that has been ongoing since 2021.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was incredibly curious and always wanted to understand how things worked under the hood. Music was a huge part of that curiosity. I remember spending hours at home with a Casio keyboard, trying to figure out my own way to save the ideas in my head. I’d take sheets of paper and create my own makeshift notation by writing down the notes and then using dots to represent the timing. It was definitely a poor system, but I was determined to document what I was hearing.
I also started carrying around a tape recorder, humming melodies into it as they came to me so I wouldn’t forget them. As I got older, that technical curiosity branched out into other areas. I got into jailbreaking devices and explored the world of cybersecurity for a bit. It was a fascinating world to me, and it naturally overlapped with the way I played around with computers to create and produce music. Looking back, that blend of wanting to deconstruct technology while trying to capture sound was really the foundation for everything I do now.
Pricing:
- Submissions to The Wave Cache – Free
- Guaranteed Feedback from TWC Team – Up to $5
- Music Marketing Campaigns – Start at $500
Contact Info:
- Website: https://auggievelarde.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/auggievelarde
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/AuggieVelarde
- Twitter: https://x.com/auggievelarde
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/auggievelarde
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/auggievelarde
- Other: https://thewavecache.com
Image Credits
All images are my own. Taken in home studio with delay timer and tripod. Edited by me as well.
