When brothers Oscar and Jesus Flores first launched Pa'l Norte in 2012 in Monterrey, Nuevo León — under Apodaca Group, their parent Oscar Flores Elizondoof the entertainment and promotions company — they thought it would be a one-off.
“We thought it would happen once and then we'd move on to our other projects,” says Oscar. He, along with Jesus and their sister Blanca, are the leadership of Apodaca together with their dad, who founded the company in 1978 as Representaciones Artísticas Apodaca. Back then, the brothers were new executives and, as much as they liked their dad's business, they wanted to put their own stamp on it. “My brother and I had never done a festival when we decided to start Pa'l Norte. fun fact, we'd never even been to a festival in our lives,” Oscar says with a laugh.
But even if it was a one-hit wonder, they wanted to give it a shot in hopes of diversifying the company's catalog of live music events. Apodaca was, and still is, a leader in the Mexican regional scene, producing several shows and concerts for this genre in Monterrey, where the company is based. So the brothers – drawing on the years of experience they already had working under their father – decided that the company's first festival would be an all-rock lineup. The first edition, the Pa'l Norte Rock Festival, a one-day event, featured artists such as Calle 13, Carla Morrison, Kinky and Zoé.
Even with hiccups along the way, including a lack of staff and a hailstorm the day before that they thought would cancel the event, they pulled it off. And, unlike today, the event didn't have much sponsor support, even with the Apodaca name attached to the festival. It was also at a time when the city, located in a state bordering Texas, was recovering from a brutal spate of murders linked to organized crime. Which isn't to say that Monterey is a crime-free city today — but even though organized crime is still a major concern in the city, it hasn't affected the festival in its 12 years of operation. Its security plan includes city and state police (Fuerza Civil) inside and outside the festival, as well as private security.
When Pa'l Norte first launched, Monterrey—a major commercial port of entry between the northeastern region of Mexico and the United States—was also on its way to becoming a modern economic district exploding with technological innovation. “It was like the perfect musical symphony,” he says Francisco Orozco, professor at the business school at the prestigious Tecnológico de Monterrey. “There was a political change in the city that opened the doors for these kinds of events to happen and people gained the confidence and courage to leave their homes again. We proved we're not just bullets.”
Three years into the festival, Oscar and his brother left the rock-only label because “we wanted to grow and bring in more commercial artists,” says Oscar (the festival also adopted the slogan “Siempre Poderoso y Ascendente,” or “Always Powerful and Ascendant”). They also partnered with concert promoter OCESA, which Live Nation acquired in 2021 for $416 million, doubling down on their efforts to expand their reach. “OCESA has been a great ally who has been very supportive,” says Oscar. “We are partners in many festivals, but this partnership was decisive for Pa'l Norte because with them we were able to grow in many areas, such as sponsorships, international artists.”
The now renamed Tecate Pa'l Norte – following a major sponsorship deal with the beer giant – has undergone massive changes, leading to its global appeal. “Apodaca has been very thorough with its alliances, from the beer industry to working with the Ministry of Tourism to provide hotels and transportation when the festival takes place, [and] also partners with the airline Viva Aerobus for sponsorship,” says Orozco. “It's a business model that works. They know the importance of allies and that's why the festival has grown as it has.”
Today, it is the “most important musical event in Northern Mexico,” according to the Nuevo León Ministry of Tourism. “Every year we talk about more than 75% hotel occupancy coming from Pa'l Norte, but this year it will be much more special because it coincides with Easter,” the government agency said. Advertising sign in a statement. “During these 12 years, it has positioned itself not only to influence the creative industries in Nuevo León, but also as one of our most important economic and tourism engines. This year we estimate revenues close to 750 million pesos (about 46 million US dollars).”
Pa'l Norte's three-day event now has nine stages that gather 100,000 people a day in the iconic Parque Fundidora (previously the capacity was 37,000 when it started in Parque Diego Rivera). His line-up has evolved from genre specific to super eclectic with past pioneers such as Billie Eilish, Foo Fighters, Caifanes, Maná, Tame Impala, The Killers, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs and 50 Cent. This year's edition was headlined by Peso Pluma, Blink-182, Imagine Dragons, Maná and Fuerza Regida.
“At the end of the day, promoters are looking to have the most popular acts in their lineup,” he says Alan David Robles-Soto, director of the music production program at Tecnólogico de Monterrey. He is also a guitarist who has played alongside Mexican bands such as Jumbo and División Minúscula. “It's the same case with Coachella: it was a rock festival and then it wasn't. It's in the promoter's interest, they want to push sales and the ones that will sell are bands like Blink-182.”
Pa'l Norte is perhaps Mexico's largest and most diverse music festival, although other major events such as Vive Latino and EDC Mexico (both produced by OCESA in Mexico City) are also big-ticket events: The first had a total of 160,000 attendees this year, while EDC Mexico had 200,000 in attendance for its 2023 edition. Meanwhile, the Machaca festival, also in Monterrey, drew 65,000 last year, according to local reports, and the Baja Beach Fest in Baja California (which went from six days to three) draws with a daily capacity of 35,000 people.
“The importance that Mexico has in Latin America in terms of income in the live music subsector is remarkable,” says Orozco. “The artists are not only performing in Mexico City or Monterrey but also in other states where we didn't imagine artists would go. They understood that people are willing to spend a lot of money for these experiences. Geographically and logistically, the country, which borders the US, is at a very important point for them as well.”
Producing more than 600 shows annually, including 15 festivals across the country, Apodaca now has several departments under its umbrella, including booking, distribution and management. With Pa'l Norte, the goal is only to go more global, and in the future Oscar hopes to add a streaming option to expand its reach and potentially turn it into a two-weekend event, à la Coachella. For now, he is happy with the growth of the festival over the past 12 years and the impact it has had on the state of Mexico.
“As citizens of Nuevo León, we are very proud that Pa'l Norte is a source of work for restaurants, hotels, taxi drivers during this week,” says Oscar. “At the festival, we have more than 10,500 people working a day. The creation of this number of jobs fills us with pride. We want to continue to make an impact. The slogan says it all [always powerful and ascending].”
