Howie Dorough is known to tens of thousands of fans as the guy performing alongside his Backstreet Boys bandmates on the Sphere's massive screens, but this month he's trading that scale for something far more personal: a coffee shop. Dorough is hosting “Cafecito Con Howie,” an intimate coffee shop-style residency at Hard Rock Cafe Las Vegas, built around his new single “Coquí” and his effort to reconnect with the Puerto Rican side of his family.
The event, first detailed by FOX5 Vegas, takes place August 21 and August 28 at Hard Rock Cafe Las Vegas, with tickets available through hardrock.com. The package pairs live music, conversation, and coffee, offering fans an up-close look at the inspiration behind Dorough's upcoming Spanish-language music project, according to the station's report. Dorough has a Puerto Rican mother, and the sessions are designed to give fans insight into how that heritage shaped the music he's making now.
A Passion Project Years in the Making
Dorough described “Coquí” as a passion project he worked on intermittently for a while, per the same account, rather than something rushed out to capitalize on a trend. He said he did not learn Spanish as a child, and has said that not learning the language as a kid hindered him in opportunities throughout his career. Now, he says he's learning Spanish through the very music he's creating, using the new song as both an artistic statement and a personal language lesson.
That struggle with language and identity isn't new territory for Dorough. In May 2019, he released the single “No Hablo Español” as part of his family album *Which One Am I?*, directly addressing his childhood in Orlando, Florida, growing up with a Puerto Rican mother without becoming fluent in Spanish, according to Rockmommy. That 2019 music video featured his son James and his mother Paula, making the theme a family affair well before “Coquí” arrived.
What Fans Get at the Coffee Shop Sessions
The “Cafecito Con Howie” package includes a meet-and-greet photo with Dorough, a Q&A session, a three-song acoustic set, and “Coquí” lattes served in an exclusive commemorative event mug, per HowieD.net. Dorough officially released “Coquí,” his debut full Spanish-language solo single, on June 18, accompanied by a music video filmed on the beaches of San Juan, Puerto Rico, as detailed in a Facebook announcement.
Dorough said he created the project for his mother and his children to embrace their culture and heritage, and that the sessions embrace his Latin roots. His mother is 92 years old, giving the family connection at the center of the project added weight. Hard Rock Cafe Las Vegas Strip, located at 3771 S. Las Vegas Blvd, features multi-level dining and event spaces equipped with a live acoustic performance stage, well suited to the kind of small-room, conversational format Dorough is going for this time around.
Solo Work Alongside a Massive Group Legacy
Dorough's solo catalog stretches back to his 2011 debut pop record *Back to Me*, followed by the family-focused *Which One Am I?* in 2019, before this year's pivot into fully Spanish-language material. Those solo efforts have always existed in the shadow of his day job: the Backstreet Boys, formed in Orlando in 1993, have sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making them the best-selling boy band in music history.
Dorough and his bandmates launched their “Into the Millennium” residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas in July 2025, becoming the first pop group and first boy band to headline the $2.3 billion venue, marking the 25th anniversary of their 1999 album *Millennium*. That followed the group's earlier 80-show “Backstreet Boys: Larger Than Life” residency at Planet Hollywood's Zappos Theater from 2017 to 2019, which generated more than $23 million in ticket revenue. Hoodline previously reported the group is adding New Year’s Eve Sphere shows, extending the residency further.
A Different Kind of Stage
The Sphere itself generated $370.3 million in ticket sales across 105 performances in 2025, underscoring just how large the Strip's residency economy has become for veteran acts like the Backstreet Boys. Against that backdrop, “Cafecito Con Howie” stands out as a scaled-down, culturally personal counterpoint — coffee and a handful of songs instead of arena-sized production. Dorough has also spent years on charitable work tied to his family, having established the Dorough Lupus Foundation after his sister Caroline died from lupus in September 1998, raising funds for medical research and financial assistance for patients.
