Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Cristina Esteban. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Cristina, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

When I graduated University, I was one of the lucky few who actually managed to score a job right away. It wasn’t in the Industry I saw myself in longterm, but it was a great job nonetheless, although I wasn’t truly happy.
I had interned at a record label when I was 18 years old (my first ever internship) and in the back of my mind I kept going back to that. I kept thinking about how important music had been in my life, and that what I truly wanted was to work in the music industry. It was important to me that the job I had was something I truly enjoyed and was passionate about. And for me that was music. So when I was 25 years old, I decided to leave my job, and my hometown in Spain, and move to Los Angeles.
I had never been to LA before, but I figured, if I wanted to make it in the music industry, that would be the best place to start.
When I got there, I studied at UCLA Extension, on their Business & Management of Entertainment Certificate, and while I was studying, I started interning again. It was important to me to start working as soon as I could, get involved in the industry and start from the bottom in order to make my way up.
I was lucky enough to get an internship at Warner Records, in their International Marketing Department, and that’s where it all started happening for me. After my internship, I continued working at Warner for a while until I eventually moved to London to work at BMG in their Catalog department, where I have been working for over 5 years now and where, after a lot of hard work, I am now a Senior Marketing Manager and back in Los Angeles.
Moving to LA 8 years ago was the biggest risk i’ve ever taken, but it also yielded the highest reward. Not only did I make it into the industry I had always dreamed of, where I am lucky enough to still be working in to this day, but I also discovered a brand new city which I am so happy to call home now.

Cristina, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a Senior Marketing Manager at the record label BMG, and I work with Catalog recordings. These are traditionally identified as anything that’s 18 months or older.
I mainly specialize in the Hard Rock and Metal genres, and have been incredibly lucky to work with some of my longtime heroes in the industry, from Black Sabbath to Iron Maiden to Mötley Crüe and so many more.
When it comes to a specific release, I look after it from start to finish. That means, coming up with a concept, discussing all the details with the artist, creating artwork, getting audio, deciding what cool new formats it’s going to be released in, coming up with a compelling marketing campaign and executing it.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

As the great Charles Bukowski once said “Find what you love and let it kill you” and these are the words I live by.
I am lucky enough to have found that out early on in my career, and made every effort to pursue it.
While it hasn’t been easy, the efforts have truly paid off and I can happily say that I am exactly where i’m supposed to be.
The passion that I have for this industry and the admiration I have for the artists I work with is what motivates me to be better at my job every day and give it my all.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Moving to a foreign country, to a city I didn’t know, with no real plan, just hoping that my hard work and dedication would help me get into the industry was not an easy decision to make.
I was leaving behind a stable, and well-paying job to move to LA and try to change careers completely. There were a lot of people who called me crazy and told me that it wouldn’t work out, but I stuck by my decision, determined to at least try.
I had to start all over in life, going back to studying and interning at the age of 25, but I was willing to do whatever it took to get me where I wanted to be. I took every opportunity I could and eventually landed the internship that would kickstart my entire career. Despite it not being an easy journey, sticking to my decision and knowing that I was on the right path, led me to where I am today.

• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cristinaepn/