LEILA COBO

 

A Fulbright scholar from Cali, Colombia, Leila Cobo is a classical pianist, novelist, TV host  and Chief Content Officer for Latin and Español for Billboard, supervising all content and coverage of Latin music both in print and digital, and overseeing programming of Billboard’s Latin events, including the Billboard Latin Music Awards and the newly-launched Billboard Latin Women In Music.

 

One of the world’s leading experts in Latin music, Leila has been instrumental in transforming the coverage and perception of Latin music for the industry at large. Under her direction, Billboard is the only mainstream publication with daily, in-depth coverage of Latin music, garnering close to 2.5 million unique visits per month Billboard’s Latin content in English and Spanish on Billboard.com. Most recently, Leila launched Billboard Español, the only music site belonging to a mainstream U.S. media company that produces daily original content in Spanish.

 

Leila also programs Billboard’s prestigious Latin Music Week, the most sought after and longest-running gathering for the Latin music industry.  

 

A Fulbright scholar from Cali, Colombia, Leila holds a degree in Piano Performance from the Manhattan School of Music, as well as degrees in Journalism from Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá and a Master’s in Communication from The Annenberg School at USC. A published author and recipient of the 2020 “Wonder Women of Latin Music” award from the LAMC, the “Music Industry Trailblazer” award from the TJ Martell foundation in 2019, and a chosen inaugural “Leading Latin Lady” by the Latin Grammys in 2017, Leila has published six books, including two acclaimed novels and three music books. Her most recent, Decoding Despacito (Penguin), was named to the New York Times 2022 summer reading list.     

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Leila has published two novels with Grand Central Publishing/Hatchette which have been translated to German and Italian and have won multiple awards, leading Ms. Cobo to be named one of the Top Latino Writers to Watch in the United States.

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