How Karol G’s Sister & Co-Manager Jessica Giraldo Balances the Personal & Professional: ‘I’m Looking Out for Her

Just a few days after kicking off her second global stadium tour, Viajando Por El Mundo Tropitour, in July, Karol G surprised her fans with the announcement of a new album: No Me Arrepiento de Sentir Tanto . The 14-track set — which features standout collaborations with Drake and Bruno Mars — was released on Aug. 7 and debuted at No. 1 on Billboard ‘s Top Latin Albums chart as well as in the top 10 of the all-genre Billboard 200 (No. 8).

It also flooded Hot Latin Songs with 13 entries, led by “Ahí” with Drake, which debuted at No. 1 and was replaced a week later by another hit from the LP , “BbY WOW,” featuring Judeline and Rusowsky. Meanwhile, Karol pledged to donate $1.2 million to relief efforts for communities affected by the Aug. 10 earthquake in Colombia through her Con Cora Foundation.

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Behind all these achievements is Jessica Giraldo Navarro , CEO of Bichota Records and Karol G’s co-manager and sister. Giraldo Navarro — who leads the label’s global strategy alongside marketing director Luis Mesa , and plays a key role in managing Karol’s career — was named Billboard Español ‘s Executive of the Month for August.

As part of her responsibilities, Giraldo Navarro oversees musical, creative, commercial and entertainment projects from planning to execution; coordinates and aligns internal teams, labels, agencies, partners, creatives and other strategic allies; participates in decisions about releases, collaborations, tours, content, marketing, communications and brand partnerships; evaluates new business, investment and growth opportunities; manages budgets; and takes part in key commercial negotiations and decisions. She also ensures that the image, positioning and long-term vision of both Karol and Bichota Records are upheld, turning artistic vision into strategy, business and execution.

Billboard Español spoke with Giraldo Navaroo about Karol G’s most recent achievements and initiatives.

As CEO of Bichota Records and Karol’s co-manager, how would you sum up this past August?

It’s been, literally, a rollercoaster. I’d say that, beyond just August, the last three months have been non-stop work: starting the tour, aligning all the creative elements that are part of the tour — figuring out what works, making adjustments, because the first few shows are about fine-tuning until the tour gets to a point where it runs like clockwork. All of that, in addition to the strategy for the album, which was almost a surprise album that Karol wanted to release that way, without much buildup or pre-launch strategy.

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As a label and team, we were telling her, “No, we need to start pre-sales three months in advance, we need to release physical albums.” But the way she wanted to release it was very much tied to the album’s concept: like, “I don’t regret feeling so much, and I want to drop this album tomorrow, so I’m dropping it tomorrow.” And it’s been a wonderful surprise: The album is very personal to Karol and has really connected with people. We’re super happy.

How have you used the tour to amplify the album release?

Obviously, the work has been ongoing: How do we take advantage of the platform we have in all these stadiums, where we’re reaching around 45,000 people every night? How do we use that platform to keep promoting the album? It’s not just about the new segment Karol has created to promote the album, but also about what we can do with the screens, with brand activations. And as we see which songs are connecting with the audience, we go in that direction too. It’s been a great way to measure.

You’ve also used the tour to promote the work of the Con Cora Foundation, even before the earthquake in Colombia. Can you tell us about that?

Con Cora does an activation at each venue called Mujer Segura (Safe Woman). It’s a space where we provide support and guidance to women on what to do if they feel they’re being harassed or are in danger: which hotlines to call, who to turn to, how to act. It’s a fan activation that connects you to Con Cora on an emotional level. You can leave notes about how you feel, receive guidance, learn about Con Cora and the Mujer Segura program, and find out what to do if something happens during the show — sometimes incidents occur due to alcohol. We make sure they know where to go for help and where our Con Cora staff, who wear identifiable vests, are stationed.

In every location, we also take action like visiting a hospital or a shelter for women who’ve been victims of violence, abuse or other trauma. That’s how we’ve integrated our foundation into the tour. But since [the double earthquake of June 24] in Venezuela — which happened near the start of the tour — we’ve been working nonstop. We showed a video about the foundation on the screens, explaining that everything we raised would go to [The House Project], Ricardo Montaner ’s foundation. Karol matched all donations we received, including from shows and other donors, and we ended up donating around $400,000 to Venezuela.

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Karol G Donates $1.2 Million to Earthquake Victims in Colombia Through Her Foundation

Then the earthquake in Colombia happened, where the Fundación Con Cora is based.

As soon as the tragedy struck, we mobilized our team in Colombia. They went to the most affected areas — we have partner foundations in almost every region of Colombia — to provide on-the-ground support. We delivered essential supplies: food, water, medicine, etc. We know that this stage of the emergency sees a lot of solidarity, but when the news stops being news, the most important phase begins: reconstruction. That’s when many people forget it ...