Latin Heritage Month celebrates the wide array of identities and cultures hailing from Latin American communities. And TikToktakes this opportunity to recognize and celebrate the Latin creators and community leaders who are breaking boundaries, inspiring others, and creating space for diverse voices.

The Latin and Hispanic communities on TikTok will be celebrated with the debut of the first-ever Latin Visionary Voices list, reinforcing the commitment to recognizing  the year-round impact and influence of the #CasaTikTok community!

TikTok is not only  announcing their Latin Visionary Voices List, they are also presenting a lineup of special in-app programming initiatives that will honor the cultural impact and influence of TikTok’s Latin and Hispanic communities.

The #CasaTikTok community is full of industry-shifting creatives, business owners, and cultural changemakers who are impacting their communities. This Latin Heritage Month and year-round, we are proud to recognize and celebrate Visionary Latin and Hispanic voices who continue to inspire and shape their communities for the better. We couldn’t be more proud to introduce our first-ever Latin Visionary Voices List. This year’s Latin Heritage Month honorees are the next-gen creators and industry disruptors making waves in their communities and industries, recognized across three categories — Creators, Small Owned Businesses, and Industry Disruptors. Read more about our Latin Heritage Month Visionary Voices below:

Creators
@adamtheflop (Los Angeles, CA) – Adam Barrera uses his platform to share engaging, entertaining content about the music industry. With a master’s degree in Social & Emerging Media, Adam blends his love of internet culture and music to create insightful commentary about songs, charts, artists’ careers, and timely pop news.

@enashaolivia (Chicago, IL) – Enasha Bondurant is a creator from Chicago who creates content that focuses on self-care and the beauty of living a soft life. She shares vlog-style videos on her platform in hopes of inspiring and elevating other individuals to love themselves to the fullest and step into the best version of themselves.

@jesusnalgas (Los Angeles, CA) – Hailing from South Los Angeles, Jesus Nalgas has built a devoted fan base online who all enjoy his hilarious POV skits, relatable story-telling, and intimate livestreams that showcase moments of community. He is passionate about being in front of the camera and loves creating content that makes people laugh and feel confident, reminding them to never give up and follow their dreams.

@misslegarda (Los Angeles, CA) – Maria Legarda is Colombian actress and content creator. An immigrant to the U.S., Maria stays connected to her Colombian roots through cultural exchange and entertaining food content, enhanced by her vivacious personality and witty sense of humor. Whether she is trying food from different parts of the world, creating delicious and unique recipes, or opening up about mental health, Maria is passionate about showing her audience her authentic self and empowering Latinas worldwide.

@redleafranch (Morrison, TN) – Brian Brigantti is a gardener and creator based in Morrison, Tennessee. He recently began his journey back to Mother Nature and now shares his love for gardening, cooking, and leading a life full of abundance with his followers.

Industry Disruptors
@alexojeda (Austin, TX) – Alex Ojeda is a Mexican-American creator who shares captivating content spotlighting the world’s most thrilling travel experiences. Born in Mexico City and now based in Austin, Texas, he is passionate about inspiring others to live a life of adventure.

@eslabonarmadooficial (Los Angeles, CA)- Eslabon Armado is a Mexican music group from Los Angeles known for their global hits, “Ella Baila Sola,” “Con Tus Beso,” and more. The group is signed to independent label DEL Records and includes Pedro Tovar (lead singer/composer), Brian Tovar (bass), Ulises Gonzalez (2nd voice/guitar), and Damian Pacheco (lead guitar). They use their platform on TikTok to connect with fans, share new music, and share their daily lives.

@glamzilla (Toronto, Canada) – Stephanie Valentine is a Filipino-Hispanic Canadian content creator who has turned her love for beauty into an online movement. Her mission is to promote fearlessness and confidence as a plus-size beauty creator, while showcasing her passion and expertise in raw, unedited, and unfiltered content.

@myketowersmtyk (San Juan, Puerto Rico) – Four-time Latin GRAMMY® Award-nominated rapper and singer Myke Towers has grown into one of Puerto Rico’s top lyricists, melding streetwise storytelling and massive pop hooks into a career filled with chart-topping anthems. His latest hit “LALA” became a global top-charting song on all platforms and the sound of the summer on TikTok.

@vrywvy (Dallas, TX) – VRYWVY is a Dallas-based DJ and Event Producer from Mexico City whose mission is to inspire the next generation of DJs and creatives, bringing cultures together through the sounds of music. Blending Reggaeton, Hip-Hop, R&B and House, VRYWVY showcases her vast musical taste through her mixes. Her growing online presence has translated that into sold out solo shows in the US as an independent artist and has led to partnerships with brands like Netflix, Genius, Billboard, Sony Music, and more.

Small Owned Businesses
@aztaco.king (Phoenix , AZ) – Jazz and Sam Sears are creators from Phoenix, Arizona who showcase their growing business, AZ Taco King, on TikTok. They utilize their platform to highlight their famous dishes, often selling out of food at all four of their restaurant locations due to their videos.

@ilovesainthonore (Las Vegas, NV) – Alexandra Lourdes, Ph.D is an entrepreneur and the co-founder of Refined Hospitality Group, which has opened over seven successful restaurants, including Saint Honoré Doughnuts & Beignets in Las Vegas. A mom of two daughters, Alexandra has amassed a following on TikTok by sharing her working mom life, behind-the-scenes of creating celebrity donuts, healthy recipes, and more. Fans travel from all over the world to meet Alexandra at her restaurants, and she has received several accolades for her work, including a commendation from Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, and a spot on VEGAS INC’s 40 Under 40 list.

@millennialloteria (Los Angeles, CA) – Mike Alfaro is a content creator, successful entrepreneur, and proud Guatemalan immigrant who created the wildly popular game Millennial Lotería to represent a new generation of Latin American youth.

@pinoleblue (Wichita, KS) – Eddie Sandoval began the Pinole Blue journey in a dorm room while pursuing a business degree at Wichita State University. Inspired by his own family and the Tarahumara community — who consumed pinole with water and were renowned for their long-distance running in the mountains — he created Pinole Blue to reintroduce the ancient recipe of dry roasted organic blue corn to the U.S. Market, while also giving back to the Tarahumara community in Chihuahua, Mexico.

@rizoscurlshair (Los Angeles, CA) – Born and raised in Los Angeles, Julissa Prado is a cultural changemaker and the Founder/CEO of Rizos Curls, a clean hair care line available in over 4,000 locations at ULTA Beauty, Target and Sally Beauty Mexico, that celebrates the beauty of curls, coils, and waves through high quality products. Julissa is paving the way in modern entrepreneurship, having been recently named “Entrepreneur of the Year” by Beauty Independent’s Beacon Awards and one of the “New C-Suite Women of Color Who Are Changing Corporate Culture” by Cosmopolitan.

#CreciendoconTikTok: Partnering with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation to Deliver SMB Grants
TikTok is committed to supporting the growth of Latin-owned small businesses and creators by giving them a platform to build brand presence and audiences and setting them up for success. In 2021, in partnership with The Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF), TikTok created #CreciendoconTikTok, a grant fund aimed at expanding and elevating Latino small businesses across the U.S. As the second iteration of Creciendo Con TikTok, this year’s updated grant program will include a grant of $200,000, where TikTok will award individual cash awards of $5,000 to 40 Latino small business owners who have championed perseverance, resilience, and entrepreneurship in their communities.

“TikTok creates a space for Latino business owners and creators to thrive and have a positive impact on their communities. HHF and TikTok share a joint mission to promote cultural pride and economic opportunities for Latino entrepreneurs and leaders.” – Antonio Tijerino, Hispanic Heritage Fund President and CEO

To date, TikTok has invested $1M into the Hispanic Heritage Foundation‘s programs to support their work in elevating the Latino community through culture, education, and economic development. By partnering with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation, TikTok is strengthening our commitment to build an inclusive and supportive platform where small business owners and entrepreneurs can share their story, find their audience, and drive real business results. TikTok is proud to continue to invest in the Latino community and provide Latino-owned businesses with much-needed funding through Creciendo Con TikTok. In addition to launching the Creciendo con TikTok program, TikTok will partner with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation to conduct research on SMB topics affecting the Latino community, and a coding program called Code as a Second Language (CSL), which will introduce computer programming and provide tech career paths to Latino youth.

Celebrating Latin Music on TikTok Latin music and culture are an integral part of the TikTok ecosystem. TikTok’s Spanish Sounds Page is dedicated to Spanish-speaking users in the US, to further affirm our continued commitment to Latin music, culture, artists, creators, and community. This library is a premier destination for Latin music and artists on TikTok to reach Spanish-speaking users in the US in a meaningful way. This Latin Heritage Month TikTok will continue supporting #MusicaLatina throughout by celebrating Latin Music with a suite of genre playlists on our English and Spanish Sounds pages featuring trending tracks across Reggaetón, Regional Mexicano, and Latin Love songs about amor and heartbreak. There will also be special playlists curated by Latin music artists, including one from Fuerza Regida, appearing throughout the celebration.

Recognizing TikTok’s Internal Latin Community with SOMOS
In addition to celebrating our Latin community on TikTok, we’re honored to recognize our own community of Latin employees who are industry leaders and celebrate the everlasting impact of the Latin community year-round. SOMOS, TikTok’s employee resource group (ERG), empowers our very own internal Latin and Hispanic community through regular internal company initiatives and supporting causes that foster inclusion and community-first allyship across TikTok’s employee base.

Get involved
We’re putting the spotlight on our community of incredible Latin creators on TikTok this month and every month. Keep an eye out for our Latin Heritage Month Kick-off video, Visionary Voices announcement and creator spotlights with @TikTokCreators and @CasaTikTok. Stay up-to-date on our Latin Heritage Month programming and the #CasaTikTok community, follow @casatiktok and @tiktok.