Narcocorrido

Narcocorrido
Stylistic origins	Mariachi Ranchera Polka Norteño Banda
Cultural origins	Early 20th century Mexico
Typical instruments	Accordion Acoustic Guitar Electric Bass Guitar Tuba Bajo Sexto Drums Vocals
Derivative forms	Corridos Alterados Corridos Progresivos
Regional scenes
Mexico (with origins in the states of Sinaloa, Chihuahua, Zacatecas, Durango, Tamaulipas, and Michoacán) United States (notably in the states of California, Texas, Arizona, and Nevada) Central America (notably in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala) South America (notably in Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia)

A narco-corrido (Spanish pronunciation: [narkokoˈriðo], Drug Ballad) is a subgenre of the Mexican norteño-corrido (northern ballad) music genre, a traditional folk music from northern Mexico, from which several other genres have evolved. This type of music is heard on both sides of the US–Mexican border. Besides being heard in Mexico, it is widely heard and produced throughout all Latin America. It uses a danceable, accordion-based polka as a rhythmic base. The first corridos that focus on drug smugglers—the narco comes from "narcotics"—have been dated by Juan Ramírez-Pimienta to the 1930s. Early corridos (non-narco) go back as far to the Mexican Revolution of 1910, telling the stories of revolutionary fighters. Music critics have also compared narcocorrido lyrics and style to gangster rap and mafioso rap.

Narcocorrido lyrics refer to particular events and include real dates and places. The lyrics tend to speak approvingly of illegal activities, mainly drug trafficking.

This genre of music is the evolution of traditional corrido ballads of the Mexican-US border region, which stemmed from the 16th-century Spanish genre of romance. Among the earliest exponents of narcocorrido music were Los Alegres de Teran, who recorded many. In the 1980s, Rosalino "Chalino" Sánchez contributed to narcocorridos. Known throughout Mexico as "El Pelavacas" (Cow Skin Peeler), El Indio (The Indian, from his corrido "El Indio Sánchez"), and "Mi Compa" (My Friend), Chalino was a Mexican immigrant living in Los Angeles. He then began distributing his music for a sale price. His lyrics dealt with heartbreak, revolution, and socioeconomic issues. Soon he was selling mass copies. Chalino Sánchez was murdered in 1992 after a concert in Culiacán. In death, he became a legend and one of the most influential Mexican musicians to emerge from California, he was known throughout Mexico and United States as El Rey del Corrido (The King of the Corrido).

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Wikipedia