Gineyda Cornelio knew from a young age that she was destined for a career in the music industry. Her passion for music led her to pursue a degree in Entertainment Business from FIU, and after graduation, she landed a job as a social media manager for an events marketing company. This opportunity allowed her to connect with other creatives and explore different aspects of the music industry, including music video production and styling.

Despite experiencing setbacks and moments of self-doubt, Cornelio’s path became clear when she was offered a position at Audiomack, a leading on-demand music streaming and audio discovery platform. As a Marketing & Latin Music Strategy Manager, she is finally living out her dream. “I feel like every day I achieve something notable,” Cornelio tells Remezcla.

Through her role at Audiomack, Cornelio can draw on her diverse musical background, which includes an exposure to Dominican & Puerto Rican sounds as an Afro-Caribeña growing up in Lawrence, Massachusetts, as well as southern hip-hop, pop, and rock from when she moved to Florida. She uses this wealth of experience to work with a range of artists, helping to program their songs and create content that showcases their unique talents. As she finally carves out her space in the music industry, we’re speaking with Cornelio about fulfilling her purpose, almost abandoning the industry, and more. Read the Major Mujer interview, below. 

This interview has been edited for clarity.

When was that one moment or turning point in which you felt you were in the right space?

I have my mentor, Max Escobar, to thank for giving me the opportunity to be a part of his team during his time at Audiomack. I met Max in New York at an event in 2019, and we started talking about what artists we felt were next up. We debated our choices, which later led to him offering me an opportunity at Audiomack in 2020. Once I became a part of the company and realized many of my values and goals aligned with theirs, I realized I was finally in the right direction. 

So often, we see people advancing in their careers or making “big moves” on social media, but it’s rare we hear or see those introspective moments in which a person considers quitting or transitioning — did you ever have a moment like that, and how did you overcome it? 

My role at Audiomack honestly saved my desire to work in the music industry. There was a time when I was feeling discouraged because I hadn’t found that opportunity in my career where I felt fulfilled even though I had done different things in the industry, such as social media management, music video production, and styling, but I didn’t feel complete even though I had a lot of epic moments in those roles such as meeting a lot of artists that I was a fan of growing up. Then, I went through a personal situation with a colleague in the industry. This made me want to abandon the music industry altogether and add that to the pandemic, where the industry took a halt. Right in the middle of feeling like I wanted to be done with music, I received this opportunity to be part of Audiomack, which changed everything.

Were there any mentors or other women that inspired or helped you get to where you are now? 

I have had many mentors who helped me along the way, starting with Max Escobar and my other mentor, Rosa Acosta, who played an essential part in my learning to navigate as a Caribbean woman in the entertainment industry. 

What’s one of the biggest hardships you’ve faced as a woman — or even as a Latina — in the music industry? 

As a woman in the music industry, one of my biggest challenges has been limiting my personal style to conform to respectability politics for survival and worrying a little bit more about my appearance and how I’m projecting myself because this can be weaponized against you. Also, having to put extra energy into my work and being about my business because, for women, there’s always this question of how we got to a certain place. 

What’s one of your favorite parts of where you are now in your journey? 

My favorite part of where I am now in my journey is that I feel I am fulfilling my purpose of helping creatives. Growing up, I always knew I wanted to work in the music industry, but when asked what I wanted to do exactly, I always answered, “I just want to help artists.” I feel like I am at a point in my life where I am finally doing just that.

We’re seeing more and more women artists and music creatives speak out about how their work went unprotected or their trust was abused in the industry — what has been your perspective on this, if any? Is this something you’ve seen happen? 

I haven’t witnessed this firsthand, but I have had women share their experiences, which is why I feel very passionate about showing up for each other and educating others about their rights. Having these conversations amongst each other is important and being aware of what we can do to change this narrative.  

What do you feel can be done to make the music industry feel more safe and collective for women?  

We are at a turning point in the music industry, where we are starting to see more women in important roles. 75% of the people in my team are women, and I am always trying to find ways to create opportunities for women in the industry in every role. It is important to create more opportunities for each other and show up for each other. 

We are at a turning point in the music industry where we are starting to see more women in important roles.

But it’s not just men, women can also affect each other’s journey or success. Can you explain why a crabs in a barrel mentality (“if I can’t have it, neither can you”) is harmful to women? 

I have been a victim of a woman with this mentality, and I feel that at the end of the day, those individuals only hurt themselves. I am a firm believer in paying it forward, and if you create those opportunities instead of blocking them one way or another, the universe will reward you for it. 

What do you hope to personally change about the music industry, especially for the next generation of women in this space? 

I revolve my journey around helping others in all aspects of life. I want to be an example of why inclusivity is important and how much further we can all go when we work together and show up for each other. As far as my legacy, I want to look back and know that I successfully created a safe space for creatives. When trying to figure out what career I wanted to pursue in the music industry, I felt my choices were limited because I wasn’t trying to be an artist; I wanted to help them. At the time, there wasn’t as much information about all these other roles that play a part in the success of an artist. Overall, I want to inspire more women to become executives and shed awareness on these roles and their importance.