By Ana Gonzales Flores
For Sydney-based Latin artists Jhoselyn Apaza and Lucerito Leon, music is about more than performing. It is a way to connect people, celebrate culture and create a sense of community in a city thousands of kilometres from Latin America.
Both Peruvian-born artists have built their careers in Sydney while using music and events to connect with the city’s Latin American community.
For Apaza, who is a singer and event producer and performs with Latin band Kachimbaz, music was one of the ways she became involved in Sydney’s Latin American community.
Through performing and organising events, she has seen the community continue to develop but believes there are still challenges for Latin artists trying to establish themselves.
“Right now, live music is dying, especially for Latin music,” Apaza said.
She said live bands face challenges including organising rehearsals, bringing musicians together, managing finances and finding enough opportunities to perform.
Apaza wants to see more opportunities for all Latin artists to perform, develop their audiences and grow within Australia’s music industry.
For Leon, also a singer and event producer, music provides something that extends beyond the stage.
“For me, music is like love, it’s like connection,” Leon said.
She said collaboration and mutual support are important to the growth of Sydney’s Latin music community. Rather than artists working separately, she believes musicians and creatives can help one another create more opportunities and strengthen the community.
“We have to keep working together,” Leon said.
For both artists, representing Latin American culture in Australia is also about maintaining a connection to their heritage while sharing it with a wider audience.
Their work reflects a growing Latin American presence in Sydney, where music can provide a space for people to come together, celebrate their culture and feel a sense of belonging.
Apaza and Leon are also part of a wider network of Latin artists and organisers creating spaces for this community through live performances and events.
For them, the future of Sydney’s Latin music scene depends on continuing that sense of connection.
That connection extends beyond music venues. Carla, a staff member at La Hacienda, has seen firsthand how widespread the Latin American community is across Sydney, with events organised by artists and curators such as Lina Zabaleta, founder of Chuleo Club, creating more opportunities for the community to connect.
“Although Australia is far, we Latinos are all over the place; we are everywhere,” she said.
As Latin artists continue to create, perform and collaborate across Sydney, their work demonstrates that music can be more than entertainment — it can be a way of building community, preserving culture and creating a place of belonging.
Featured image: Lina Zabaleta, founder of Chuleo Club. Photo: Supplied
