Natalia Uribe - Talent Buyer

Natalia Uribe is a 44 year old Talent Buyer who has been working in the electronic nightlife scene in Miami for 15 years.

@p10promotions on Instagram

“I used to love electronic music when I was younger. I used to go to events every weekend with friends and I’d always end up meeting the artists and hanging out with them. I was born in New York, but lived in Colombia for 15 years, then came to Miami and have been living here since. When I moved [here], I started working as a promoter for Miami beach. I realized I didn’t just want to work in promoting, I wanted to work with the artist, so I got into talent buying. Talent buying is my passion—I [get to] work with agencies from all over the world, looking for promoters in South America. South America is my niche, my base. I work mostly with Colombia. For venues and parties they want to get artists. My job is to contact the agency, telling them I have someone important. I’m the person that deals with the bullshit in the middle (laughs). I take DJ’s from all over—Australia, Tokyo, New Zealand, Brazil, Serbie, Tel-Aviv, Slovenia, and book them for different events. It’s very cool, I’m very happy. I work with the underground scene, so the talent that I book is all lesser known artists. The people are very energized, it’s a very cool connection. Especially in South America, you know, people have a really cool connection with the artists there.”

What advice would you give to someone who wants to follow a similar career?

“To be very true to yourself. Any artists and music that you’re gonna move, don’t sell out for money, just be true to yourself. If you’re going to do this and make sure you’re doing it right, work with the correct people. Make sure the artists are in the right vibe and they’re taken care of. You have to be very cautious and careful because this can be very stressful and agitating. Sometimes things get cancelled. Things that maybe you’ve been working on for months suddenly don’t come through. Don’t ever get frustrated if things don’t work at the end of the day. Just keep going. And if you’re going to do this for money, don’t. Do it because you want to promote good music and good artists. Neil Evans showed me the ropes. He showed me how to work back in the UK, no bullshit. He’d bring all these talents and big labels. 13 years later and we’re still friends. He’s done Ibiza, events like that. I appreciate everything I learned from him.”

How do you take care of yourself? What helps you stay focused?

“Listening to music! I go out to see DJs, support my friends, sometimes I end up hosting the DJs—I just like the scene. I love live music. DJs that play live, the experience, the sound, the mix. Some people think electronic music is all about drugs—it’s not. It’s about you paying attention, being in the moment. Listening to the DJs transition, their mix, what they’re playing. Every artist is different. [My work] is stressful but I’m energized and I’m so grateful to work with this amazing talent. For me, that’s my thing, that’s my motive. It’s stressful but I figure it out. The music keeps me going. It’s not about money-making. If it was, I’d be booking David Guetta and people like that— I know their managers but I don’t want to be pushing this commercial mainstream stuff. I want to keep booking underground artists. I’ve been doing this for 10 years now and I work a lot with local artists. I always support the local scene. I book them to events here and some few events in Colombia to get exposure. I support the headline of the big people (headliners) but also the locals. Here in Miami there's a lot of good local talent. I like to support them. Always.”

To find out more about Natalia, go check out her music on Instagram!