A watershed moment for local Latino entertainment

The Star-Telegram reporting on the investigation into illegal activity at the OK Corral and Far West nightclubs has astonished many.

I won’t go into the details of the reports, since nightclubs of any music genre can be home to similar activities. In fact, the entertainment industry is unfortunately linked to such actions and it’s not exclusive of nightclubs that play regional Mexican music. These activities in many clubs are a well-known secret.

The company that owns the OK Corral, Multi-Events Arena, Ltd., started in the mid-1990s with only one club and soon expanded rapidly not only in North Texas, but all over the state and Oklahoma.

Immigration growth from Mexico increased the demand for these types of nightclubs and its managers knew how to take advantage of this moment — turning them into an empire.

The empire includes dozens of nightclubs, the creation and support of singers and music groups. Managers also launched their own record company, Azteca Music, that includes some of the most popular groups of Regional Mexican music, including La Maquinaria Norteña, Energía Norteña, La Reunión Norteña and many more.

Like any other large and powerful company, this one developed monopolistic practices. The nightclubs would secure artists and groups to play on a weekend at one of its locations and even though it was an unwritten agreement, to play at a competing nightclub in some of the cities where they operated putting the artists or groups at risk of being blacklisted.

Banda El Recodo, Banda MS, Calibre 50, Banda Carnaval, Gerardo Ortiz — all these music stars have played at these nightclubs, and it has even included pop, salsa and Rock en Español singers and bands.

For a while, other companies tried to take a piece of the market share, but their efforts didn’t prosper. The Escapade nightclubs tried by bringing in artists and bands, but now their concerts are sporadic and some of those venues have hosted low or mid-profile musicians.

The Latino entertainment industry is a money-making machine. And this is even more clear in the case of regional Mexican music, with revenue in the millions of dollars. For many immigrants who work hard and are unable to visit their countries, these nightclubs become a way to let off some steam, maybe go out to dance on the weekend and get a chance to see their favorite singers or bands.

Yes, maybe this is part romanticism, nostalgia or merely entertainment, but whatever it is, it’s a profitable business that generates millions of dollars and employs hundreds of people.

The consequences of the legal action against the nightclubs remain to be seen. Until now, they continue to operate as usual. Social media pages continue to offer information on upcoming events.

But maybe this becomes a watershed moment in the Latino nightlife entertainment industry in DFW. Perhaps this will open the market for more options as well as entrepreneurs who will take advantage of the vacuum generated by a blow to the OK Corral/Far West empire.

This story was originally published December 11, 2017 at 5:50 PM with the headline "A watershed moment for local Latino entertainment."