You’ll see plenty of Latin music parties landing on the Strip for Cinco de Mayo, but there’s only one Deseo, now in its fifth year at Heart at Omnia. The Sunday-night party has only gotten sexier and more celebrated with age.
“It’s like a very upscale house party,” says Richard Candido, guest development, international marketing for Tao Group Hospitality. “It’s packed, the energy is amazing. The visuals, the lighting, the cryo, it’s fantastic. … There’s 1,000, if not 1,200, people in there, the bar is seven deep and people don’t want to leave.”
Candido credits much of Deseo’s current success to Bay Area-born DJ Yo Yolie, who anchors the party with a diverse rotation of Latin R&B, hip-hop and open format. “I heard her perform, and lo and behold, she ended up being a shining star,” he says. “She’s definitely helped take it to the next level.”
That next level involves swaths of Mexican flags taking over Heart, the intimate club-within-the-club at Caesars Palace’s massive Omnia, with the party stretching into the main room some nights. Lively mariachi bands parade through the venue, over-the-top shotskis are involved and large sparklers light up the DJ booth. “The ceilings are a little low for it, but we manage to not burn the place down,” Candido jokes.
Omnia launched Deseo in 2017, during what was arguably one of the biggest years for Latin music. Justin Bieber’s remix of Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” catapulted to the top of the Billboard Top 100 chart, the first Spanish song to do so since Los Del Rio’s “Macerena.”
“[Between] the Justin Biebers of the world diving into the Latin artist collabs and the J Balvins of the world, I saw that music transitioning,” Candido says. “That’s when I said, ‘If we’re going to strike, we need to strike now.’”
Years ago, Candido helped with a Latin event at Lavo, and he says that experience informed how he approached Deseo. It started as a monthly party to “create that anticipation,” he says, but it now runs weekly due to high demand.
“On a typical Sunday, we’re closing the doors around 2 a.m. On a Deseo Sunday, we’re closing the doors at 4 or 4:15 a.m.,” he says.
Deseo has hosted its share of magical moments over the years, including a party featuring prolific Latin R&B and reggaeton star De La Ghetto.
“It was a very proud moment to sit back in the DJ booth, look around and see the entire main room, balcony included, where you couldn’t even move,” Candido recalls. “That was a true testament that I had accomplished a very big goal of mine—of saying Richard Candido created the best Latin party in Las Vegas.”
Deseo slides into action on a Thursday for Cinco de Mayo, with party plans including a mariachi band and cocktail specials inside Heart of Omnia starting on May 5 at 10 p.m.
DESEO LATIN SUNDAYS Sundays, 10:30 p.m., $20-30. Omnia Nightclub, events.taogroup.com.
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