OCESA launches all-female festival in Mexico

Mexican promoter OCESA has announced plans to launch a new festival called Hera HSBC, exclusively featuring female talent.

The event is set to take place on 24 August at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez racetrack in Mexico City, with a mix of international and domestic artists.

Camila Cabello, Demi Lovato, Kesha, Tasha Sultana and Evanescence are set to perform at the two-stage event, which is expected to draw between 50,000 and 60,000 people.

Mexican singer-songwriter Ximena Sariñana is also slated to perform, and has spearheaded the all-female industry committee driving the event.

Female technicians, promoters, audio engineers, managers, cultural managers and more specialists from the music industry and live shows will also participate in the first edition of Hera HSBC, according to OCESA.

“I think that for us it was also very important that the festival felt different, being such a unique festival in its creation and what it represents, it was very important that this sisterhood that exists between women was felt from the origin of the festival,” Sariñana told Billboard Español.

“The Hera Festival responds to the social moment we are experiencing in Mexico, and also responds to public demand”

Itzel González, promoter of the festival, added “The Hera Festival responds to the social moment we are experiencing in Mexico, and also responds to public demand. It is true that in the past girl bands were very striking, but they were very few. But now the number of female singers and of all regional genres, rock, pop, hip hop is tremendous! Since we designed this festival, there was talk that we wanted something very multi-genre, and that it would sound regional Mexican, trap, hip-hop, not just be governed by a genre like rock and pop.”

González went on to say a festival entirely carried out by women “will give a very good feeling to society” that there are changes, and that people have also been modifying their ideology around different issues. Mexico has been leading the way on feminist issues in Latin America, in recent years winning battles on issues such as the decriminalisation of abortion at the national level.

The Hera HSBC lineup also includes Danna Paola, Maria Becerra, Yahritza y Su Esencia, Bomba Estéreo, Ely Guerra, Daniela Spalla, Francisca Valenzuela and Ladytron.

Linda Perry, Hello Seahorse!, Rubio, Juliana, Kaia Lana, Las Villa, Lido Pimienta, Natalia Lacunza, Villano Antillano, Yami Safdie and the Regional Women’s Band Mujeres del Viento Florido are also featured.

OCESA, which is backed by Live Nation, recently announced the reopening of the 65,000-capacity Mexico’s Foro Sol (now GNP Seguros Stadium after renovation).

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