41 OctOber 2-8, 2025 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | NEWS | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | CAFE | MUSIC | Power Player Neon16’s Lex Borrero plots his next move. BY OSVALDO ESPINO I s there a bigger music mogul in Latin music than Neon16’s Lex Borrero? Prob- ably not. Since its inception in the late 2010s, Borrero — alongside co-founder and Latin superproducer Tainy — has built a multimedia empire that has reshaped the sound and business of música Latina. But while Neon16 continues to thrive, Borrero is looking inward, turning his focus to questions of fulfillment, identity, and purpose. After helping launch Neon16 into a cre- ative powerhouse — spearheading ground- breaking projects like Tainy’s Grammy-nominated Data, stepping into the role of Will Smith’s manager, and producing Netflix hits La Firma and Neon — Lex Bor- rero has turned his attention to a new fron- tier: podcasting. His latest venture, You vs. You, isn’t just an- other celebrity talk show. It’s a deeply intro- spective series where Borrero sits down with trailblazers across industries to explore the inner battles behind their success. So far, the guest list has spanned culture-shapers like YesJulz, Grammy-winning rapper Lecrae, ac- tor Oliver Trevena, and sports broadcaster Joy Taylor. Each conversation peels back layers of fame, fulfillment, and resilience. New Times hopped on the phone with the Latin wave maker to find out why he decided that podcasting was his next move. “Success brings an interesting challenge people don’t al- ways expect. The same feelings you have when you’re at rock bottom, uncertainty, questioning your purpose, you can also feel at the peak of success. You get to the “clifftop,” where you’ve traveled the world, stayed at the best places, bought what you wanted, and built the rela- tionships you dreamed of, but suddenly you ask yourself: Is this really fulfillment?” Borrero began to look inward, asking ques- tions such as: When is enough, enough? Is success being measured only by material things? Is peace the true sign of wealth? “I re- alized the biggest battle we face is always in- ternal, you versus you. Everything we need to be okay is already inside of us, but everything that can destroy us is also inside. The podcast became a way to explore that with other suc- cessful people: CEOs, artists, actors, spiritual leaders, and shows that even the ‘superheroes’ go through the same struggles,” says Borrero. For Borrero, the realization that success alone couldn’t deliver fulfillment didn’t ar- rive in a single epiphany — it was a gradual accumulation of moments. Despite checking off milestone after milestone, he often found himself staring at his accomplishments and wondering why a sense of emptiness lin- gered. Surrounded by artists and executives who had reached even greater heights, he noticed the same void reflected in them, a reminder that money, fame, and ac- claim could never mend what was unre- solved within. Fatherhood deepened that reflection. With the responsibility of shaping another life, Borrero began to wrestle with questions he had long avoided: What lessons would he pass down? What values truly mattered? In that shift, the pursuit of meaning became as urgent as the pursuit of success. The lessons he has gathered along the way form the backbone of You vs. You. Time and again, conversations return to a simple but transformative idea: that peace and fulfill- ment can only be found within. He often points to reality’s subjectivity, noting that each of us filters the world through our own beliefs. “We all share time and space, but we’re not living the same real- ity,” he explains. Your perspective is your be- liefs. So the question becomes: am I living my own beliefs, or am I living society’s, my par- ents’, or someone else’s?” This kind of introspection also sets the podcast apart in its commitment to represen- tation. For Borrero, including at least one Spanish-language episode each month is a deliberate effort to amplify voices too often excluded from mainstream platforms. “When you look at Latin television, it’s mostly nove- las and clickbait news,” he says. “But where is the show that interviews the most successful Latinos and lets them tell their stories? That’s the gap I wanted to fill.” Though he is widely recognized for his business acumen, Borrero resists labels like “executive” or “mogul.” At heart, he sees him- self as a creative driven by curiosity. “I think people like to put titles on you,” he says, “but at the core, I’m just a curious creative who doesn’t care about boundaries. I had never done TV before, then I produced two suc- cessful shows. The podcast is the same thing — it’s curiosity leading me to create some- thing good for the world.” Working closely with artists has also shaped his worldview. Watching global stars like J Balvin, Bad Bunny, and Will Smith navi- gate the highs and lows of fame has given him a new respect for their courage. “It takes a lot of courage to be an artist,” he says. “You’re exposing your emotions to the world, and that’s what makes great artists connect with millions. But it also comes with an insane amount of pressure. We, as con- sumers, don’t realize how much weight that puts on a person.” That realization has made him more com- passionate. “We don’t know what people are going through — whether it’s a superstar on stage or someone serving you coffee. Every- one’s carrying something,” he reflects. “See- ing what fame does to people taught me to stop judging so quickly.” That compassion feeds into Neon16’s next chapter. With Latin music now firmly en- trenched in the global mainstream, Borrero sees fresh opportunities in film and television, where Latino stories remain underrepre- sented. The company’s acquisition of the Nvi- sion Festival, now staged in Miami, reflects that pivot. “I feel like Latino-led film and tele- vision is the next big breakthrough,” he says. “Tyler Perry created a machine around telling Black stories — why can’t we do the same for Latinos? Nvision gives us that platform.” Yet even as the empire expands, Borrero’s personal focus has shifted from building out- ward to looking inward. He speaks of redis- covering “Alejandro,” the person behind the public figure, and of finding joy in creating without purpose or expectation. “Someone told me, ‘You’re a creative, but you only create with a purpose — you’re always waiting for a result,’” he recalls. “When was the last time you painted just to paint? Or drove just to drive? That really hit me. Now I’m learning the beauty of creat- ing for no reason other than joy.” For a man long defined by relentless ambi- tion, the lesson is surprisingly simple. “There’s also a beauty in doing nothing, in be- ing still,” Borrero says. “That’s where I’ve found the most peace.” It is a striking evolution for someone often described as Latin music’s ultimate disruptor. After conquering the industry’s outer worlds, Lex Borrero is finding his greatest challenge — and perhaps his greatest reward — lies within. [email protected] After helping launch Neon16 into a creative powerhouse, Lex Borrero has turned into podcasting. Photo by Neon16 “SEEING WHAT FAME DOES TO PEOPLE TAUGHT ME TO STOP JUDGING SO QUICKLY.” | CROSSFADE | t Music
