Michelle Maciel is shaking up música mexicana in more ways than one. The rising Mexican star, who has been open about his transgender journey, has become a leading LGBTQ+ voice in the genre while pushing corridos in a new direction with his debut album Trastornado. In addition to corridos tumbados, Maciel switches up the sound with elements of EDM, pop, and el movimiento in the mix alongside acts like Edén Muñoz and Yahritza y Su Esencia. In an interview with Remezcla, he talks about his first LP, how he’s breaking down barriers in música mexicana, and his hopes for a future where LGBTQ+ artists are normalized and not continually othered.
“I’m from Sonora, where it’s very regional Mexican,” Maciel says. “It’s something I’ve always had in my blood. Corridos made me feel something I’ve never felt from any other genre. I feel a special energy.”
Reflecting on his genre-bending sound, he learned how to play the guitar from practicing songs by Mexican punk groups like Panda, Allison, and Motel. Maciel also mastered the instrument by playing Alejandro Fernández classics. On the movimiento side, Maciel cites Dalex, Justin Quiles, Sech, and Mora as inspirations. On top of his diverse sonic palette, he is also breaking ground in música mexicana as a trans man.
“It feels very cool [to represent the LGBTQ+ community] because there’s not really anyone else doing this,” he says. “Regional Mexican is a mega machista genre where you don’t see men or women from the LGBTQ+ community being a part of it. It feels very beautiful and nostalgic to be a pioneer in this way.”
Maciel scored his first big hit in 2022 when he featured on Ramón Vega’s “Escorpión,” which blended música mexicana with pop. He then explored corridos tumbados for the first time last year in the fiery “CCC” featuring Muñoz. Their winning collaboration has over 207 million streams on Spotify. It’s also included on his album Trastornado, where he experiments with electro-corrido in “PLYBOY” with Marca Registrada and norteño in “QPTP” featuring Yahritza y Su Esencia. There’s no limit to Maciel’s talent.
“It’s a very atrabancado album,” he says about Trastornado, which came out in late May. “In Mexico, atrabancado means that it was made with passion. It’s like being passionate to the point of saying, ‘I don’t care. I’m going to do this because I want to.’ I want people to feel that chingue su madre vibe from this album.”
In Mexico, atrabancado means that it was made with passion. It’s like being passionate to the point of saying, “I don’t care. I’m going to do this because I want to.” I want people to feel that chingue su madre vibe from this album.
Maciel reveals that he has some collaborations on the way with “regional Mexican acts who I admire a lot and that I’ve dreamed of working with.” In addition to blazing a trail through his own music career, Maciel has started to write songs for other artists. After collaborating with Muñoz on “CCC,” he has continued to work with Maciel in songwriting sessions. As he becomes more of a force in música mexicana, Maciel wants to normalize people like himself being in the genre.
“We’re fighting for a future where an artist’s personality isn’t based solely on their intimate lives,” he says. “They don’t ask Peso Pluma, ‘How do you feel about being a heterosexual artist in regional Mexican music?’ I want a future where those questions don’t exist. I’m more than that.”
