Carlos Rivera is channeling his personal highs and lows via his most culturally enriching album yet. Embracing his Mexican heritage and culture, the Latine pop superstar celebrates life and death in ¡VIDA MÉXICO!, his latest album (released on March 5), in which he collaborated with música mexicana icons. He is also pushing Mexican culture further to the forefront through a mariachi cover of a Taylor Swift hit.
“I felt the need, both artistically and personally, to return to my roots,” Rivera tells Remezcla. “Important celebrations in my life have always been soundtracked by mariachi music. I’ll be at a party at two or three in the morning singing with the mariachi band. I’ve compiled many of my life experiences for this album.”
We first got to know Rivera after winning the third season of La Academia in 2004. While many singers from reality competition TV shows didn’t outlast their 15 minutes of fame, he will soon celebrate 22 years since his victory. Rivera remembers it was his father who drove him from their hometown of Huamantla in Tlaxcala to Mexico City for the show’s auditions. After Rivera married his wife, Cynthia Rodríguez, in 2022, his father passed away a few weeks later. With ¡VIDA MÉXICO!, he processed that grief in the emotional “Almas” and the Día de Muertos anthem “Calavera.” “My father’s death was a crucial point for me to write songs that healed me, and those songs became my reason for making this album,” Rivera shares.
In Mexican culture, life and death are honored hand in hand. A year after his father’s passing, Rivera became a father with the birth of his son, León. While most Mexican celebrities move to Mexico City, he is still based in Huamantla, where León is growing up. ¡VIDA MÉXICO! is also a celebration of the gift of life and the country that raised Rivera. That message comes through in his heartfelt mariachi song “Larga Vida.” “I wanted to make an album that pays tribute to Mexico in many ways,” Rivera adds. “It’s an homage to the colors, flavors, sounds, and traditions of Mexico. You can listen to this album and feel that. I’m very happy, and I’m proud of the result.”
For ¡VIDA MÉXICO!, Rivera teamed up with música mexicana stars like Alejandro Fernández in “Sin Despedida,” Ana Bárbara in “Cuento De Nunca Acabar,” and Pepe Aguilar in “Conversaciones Con Mi Almohada.” He also revisited “Recuérdame” from Disney’s Coco in a duet with Natalia Lafourcade and tapped Marisela for “Donde Estés, Donde Estoy.” “It fills my heart because these five great singers not only collaborated with me for the artist that I am, but because of the love they have for me,” Rivera says. “To have them all on my album, I take it as a warm embrace from them, and that’s what makes it more special.”
On TikTok, Rivera was getting tagged in a mariachi version of Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia” made with AI. “I know it’s weird to hear it with mariachi in Spanish, but I love it,” he says with a smile. “It’s a guilty pleasure.” As a fan of the song, Rivera brought it to life with his mariachi band in a video that’s gone viral. “I didn’t expect the wonderful reaction from people,” he adds. If Swift wants to record a Spanglish duet with him, would he be open to it? “Imagine how incredible that would sound?” Rivera remarks. “For me, that would be amazing. If she wants to do that as a gift to her Mexican fans, I’m here.” While admitting that it would be “complicated” to commercially release the mariachi version due to copyright issues, he has started performing “The Fate of Ophelia” on his ¡VIDA MÉXICO! Tour.
Rivera recently took a break from his tour to perform his love songs at the wedding of Mexican influencer Un Tal Fredo to his partner, Adrián Álvarez. In the past, he has shown his support for the LGBTQ+ community by allowing his song “Digan Lo Que Digan” to be the theme for an Argentine telenovela about a same-sex couple. “I’ve always said my music is at the service of love in all its forms and manifestations,” Rivera says. “It’s beautiful to know that my songs are playing in many people’s weddings around the world. When someone uses my music for a very important moment like that, I’m always going to celebrate that.”
After touring Latin America and Spain, Rivera plans to bring the ¡VIDA MÉXICO! Tour to the U.S. next year.
¡VIDA MÉXICO! is out now.