Podcast Title: Very Caliente Hosts: Pablo Alsina & Jennie López EP 035 - Don’t Contaminate Your Dream - Zumba, Patience & Legacy with Beto Pérez Summary Beto Pérez was fifteen when his mother got her chance to emigrate to the United States, and he talked her into going. He wanted to dance, and he knew that if she stayed he would end up studying law. So she set him a condition: prove you can pay your own bills, finish school and live on your own. He did. Messenger in the morning, dance classes in the afternoon, school at night. He did not see her again for ten years. By seventeen he had won a national dance contest and put the winnings into an apartment he slept in on an aerobics mat. In Miami he found what he had been looking for, an empty space nobody was occupying, and a class called Rumbacize that two men also named Alberto helped him turn into Zumba in 2001. Two decades on it is one of the biggest fitness brands on earth. His advice for anyone chasing something big has nothing to do with hustle: do not contaminate it. Main Topics Talking his mother into emigrating so he could stay behind and dance The deal she set him: pay your own bills at fifteen or she does not go Winning a national dance contest and buying an apartment at seventeen The dance academy that shut its curtains on him, then hired him Racial discrimination in Bogotá as the skinny kid nobody would book Choreographing for Shakira through Sony Music Rumbacize, the three Albertos, and the birth of Zumba in 2001 Closing the Ohio infomercial deal on three phrases of English Why fitness forgot ordinary people, and what Zumba handed back Not contaminating your dream with fame or money Getting off the ego when your own instructors dance better than you Single fatherhood at fifty, City Zero and the football club Intriguing Quotes “Patience and perseverance go further than talent.” - Beto Pérez “If you want to be successful, you have to occupy a space that isn’t occupied.” - Beto Pérez “Don’t contaminate your dream. Not with fame, not with money.” - Beto Pérez “In this country it counts for a lot to be somebody. Being a millionaire just makes you one more statistic.” - Beto Pérez “If you doubt in this business, you die.” - Beto Pérez “If you stop moving, you die.” - Pablo Alsina Key Moments [00:46] Jennie introduces Beto Pérez, the creator of Zumba [01:48] Two chapters, Cali and Miami, and how Rumbacize became Zumba [04:25] Dancing in Cali clubs at fifteen as the cleanest kid in the room [11:10] Bogotá, Greek music and tangos, and choreographing for Shakira [14:35] The Ohio infomercial deal, closed on three phrases of English [16:44] Two fitness products in a hundred stick, and why Zumba was one [20:33] The Forrest Gump comparison and the lives he never planned to change [21:09] Jennie’s story, and the line that stuck: if you doubt, you die [22:26] Don’t contaminate your dream with fame or money [26:32] Getting off the ego and being proud his instructors are better [28:11] Single fatherhood at fifty, City Zero and the football club [31:29] Legacy, and wanting Zumba to outlive him the way Apple outlived Steve Jobs [33:01] Move your body, Zumba.com, and next year’s Zumba cruise Notable Guests / Resources Beto Pérez, creator of Zumba, originally from Cali, Colombia, and @zumbabeto on Instagram Zumba.com, where you can find certified instructors near you and sign up for instructor training Alberto Perlman and Alberto Aghion, the partners who named the company with him City Zero, his four storey gym in Brickell, Miami Zumba Lift, Aqua Zumba, Zumba Kids, Zumba Step, Zumba Gold and STRONG Nation Jennie López, a Zumba Education Specialist for seventeen years and co-host of Very Caliente Special Announcements The Zumba cruise sails again next year, four or five days of nonstop Zumba, and it is open to everyone, not just instructors. Zumba Lift is Beto’s newest program, Zumba with weights. 🎧 Connect with the Hosts Follow Jennie (@IntentionalUnicorn) and Pablo (@PabloAlsina) on Instagram for behind-the-scenes moments, bonus wisdom, and pure good vibes. 🛍️ Support the Show Love what we’re doing? Share the show, leave a review. 🔥 Hashtags to Follow & Share #VeryCaliente #LatinxPodcast #BilingualPodcast #MindsetShift #AuthenticityMatters #PositiveEnergy #CourageCultureConversation #PodcastLaunch2026 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
