Why Did Natanael Cano Not Include Any Corridos on His New Album ‘Porque La Demora?’
Photo by Alexi Pavlov.
After putting corridos tumbados on the map, Natanael Cano has surprisingly released a new album without featuring any of them. Could the crackdown on corridos in Mexico and the U.S. be a reason why the Mexican superstar has leaned into reggaeton in Porque La Demora? Cano recently opened up about his decision to go a different direction with his LP.
Since debuting in 2019, Cano has been a pioneer of the corridos tumbados movement alongside his Rancho Humilde labelmates Fuerza Regida and Junior H. He laid the foundation for the success of current corridos stars like Peso Pluma and Xavi. This past year, the political climate around corridos has shifted in the U.S. and Mexico. Due to the genre’s narco and bélico roots, 10 states in Mexico have banned or put limits on corridos being performed in public spaces. That has led to many corrido artists having their concerts or tours cancelled on both sides of the border, including Junior H. “It was beautiful to see how Mexican artists were rising and putting the legacy at the top, in everyone’s sights, but thanks to our f**king government, we’re screwed,” he wrote in an Instagram post last month.
Things haven’t been any easier for música mexicana artists in general in the U.S. In an apparent move to curb corridos stateside, the U.S. government has canceled or suspended the visas of acts like Julion Alvarez, Grupo Firme, and Los Alegres del Barranco. Now, there are zero corridos in Cano’s Porque La Demora. He instead explores reggaeton in “Blancanieves” and “Mary Poppins” featuring FloyyMenor.
However, in an interview with Excélsior, Cano explained that his move away from corridos isn’t politically motivated. “Corridos are a world where I have to really focus, burn thousands of neurons, and think of each musical tone,” he explained. “I really enjoy making reggaeton music because I don’t have to work as much. I just have to focus on writing and coming up with the melody while with corridos, I have to do everything: I produce the music in terms of the sound of the bajo, tololoche, the charcheta, the requinto, the guitar. Everything.”
It will be interesting to see if other corridos artists follow Cano’s lead into other genres. He also embraces hip-hop and trap in “Como Tony” with Eladio Carrión and “El Juez” with Myke Towers. Fellow corridos singer Gabito Ballesteros joins him on the Afrobeats song “Perlas Negras.” Cano’s next concerts are at Baja Beach Fest on Aug. 10 and Coca-Cola Flow Fest on Nov. 22.
Check out the music video for “Blancanieves” below.