Ryan Castro Acquires Equity Stake in Paisas Basketball, Making Him the First Colombian Artist to Own a Basketball Team

Miami, FL (January 14, 2025) – Colombian reggaeton sensation Ryan Castro has announced that, through his company AWOO Team, he has acquired an equity stake in Paisas Basketball club, a professional basketball team based in his hometown of Medellín. As the first Colombian artist to own a basketball team, this partnership reflects Ryan’s ongoing commitment to uplifting his community and expanding his influence beyond music.

The strategic alliance coincides as Paisas Basketball makes its debut in the prestigious Basketball Champions League Americas (BCLA), the premier men’s basketball league in the Americas, featuring top teams from across the continent. The team also competes in the Betplay professional league in Colombia, managing to consolidate a great team with national and foreign players under the guidance of Venezuelan coach Daniel Seoane.

“From a business standpoint, I am proud to support my hometown team to push basketball in Colombia, give it more exposure and motivate the youth to dream big. Many dream of succeeding through sports, and my goal is to inspire them to work for their dreams, just as I did with music.” – Ryan Castro

Parallel to acquiring an equity stake in Paisas Basketball, Castro will release his first single of the year, “NI X EL PUTXS”, featuring Colombian trap star Kris R tonight at 7pm EST. The song revisits his signature romantic style, reminiscent of earlier hits like “Lejanía”, which helped establish him as a household name in the urban genre. Accompanying the release, Ryan debuts a bold new look, cutting off his signature braids and embracing a fresh style for the 2025 music season.

Uniting sports and music has always been part of Ryan’s identity. Last year, he released his global hit “El Ritmo Que Nos Une”, the official anthem for Colombia’s national soccer team during the Copa América. The song went viral, breaking the record for the most-streamed song in a single day in Colombia. It also debuted at #37 on Spotify’s global chart, further cementing Ryan’s role as a leader in bridging music and sports. Now, as an equity stakeholder in Paisas Basketball, Castro continues to build bridges between his two greatest passions: music and sports.

ABOUT RYAN CASTRO:

RYAN CASTRO, dubbed as “El Cantante Del Ghetto” is an artist who has become the definition of overcoming challenges since his upbringing in the Pedregal neighborhood of Medellín, Colombia, where he would rap in public buses in order to help his family economically. Ryan Castro made his break in the music industry with his single “Morena” in 2017, followed by catapulting to international fame in 2021 with his hit single, “Mujeriego,” and later “Jordan,” which both entered the Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts in addition to placing on Spotify’s Top 50 Global for several weeks.

In 2023, the leader of the new generation of Reggeaton in Colombia, Ryan Castro, kept up a prolific barrage of singles and collaborations that include “Una Noche En Medellín Remix” with Karol G, “Ritmo De Medallo” with Feid, “Ghetto Star,” “X 1 Beso” with De La Ghetto, “14/20” alongside Piso 21, “Corazón Roto (Remix)” with Jhayco and Brray, and his biggest hit thus far being “QUEMA” with Peso Pluma and SOG. This 2024, Ryan Castro continues to cement his status as the leader of the new generation of Reggeaton. Earlier in the year Castro released his platinum certified debut album “EL CANTANTE DEL GHETTO”, a viral anthem titled “El Ritmo Que Nos Une”, made for Colombia’s national soccer team, and was highlighted as one of the artists shaping the future of Latin music by Rolling Stone on their 2024 Future of Music issue.