Throughout a big convention room desk someplace contained in the bowels of the Wynn Las Vegas, the members of Grupo Frontera appeared drained.
The Tex-Mex quintet had been shuffling up and down the Las Vegas strip for eight straight hours doing media interviews within the lead-up to the Latin Grammys, held on Nov. 13 at MGM Grand Backyard Area. They have been nominated twice within the regional Mexican tune class for his or her cumbia norteña tracks “Me Jalo,” a collaboration with the clamorous Mexican American band Fuerza Regida, and “Hecha Pa’ Mí,” however would lose out to Los Tigres del Norte’s “La Lotería.”
Regardless of the exhaustion, Grupo Frontera was glad to be again in Sin Metropolis as soon as once more — a testomony to how far they’ve are available such a quick time period.
In 2022, shortly after forming, the South Texas band confirmed up over the last Latin Grammys week held in Las Vegas, uninvited to any official ceremony; it’s a typical transfer by rising artists to get their identify on the market and probably rub elbows with among the greatest stars and producers within the Latin music world.
“We were just doing everything around it but not the [Latin] Grammys,” says lead vocalist Adelaido “Payo” Solís III. “I always think of that time that we came with nothing under our belt.”
Grupo Frontera had already generated buzz due to their cowl of “No Se Va,” a 2018 hit by Colombian pop band Morat. Their norteño take cracked the Billboard Sizzling 100 regardless of the group having no main label deal or studio album of their very own. Fame got here shortly for them after linking up with fellow border child Edgar Barrera. The award-winning songwriter-producer (Madonna, Shakira, Karol G and The Weeknd) took the band beneath his wing after watching them carry out on the grand opening of a tire store in McAllen, Texas.
In early 2023, Barrera paired them up with Unhealthy Bunny for “Un x100to.” Backed by the accordion — a staple of borderland music for greater than a century — the fashionable lovelorn cumbia about stalking an ex on Instagram and utilizing the final remaining little bit of telephone battery to apologize broke containment, propelling Grupo Frontera into the mainstream. Per week after its launch, Unhealthy Bunny introduced Solís on stage to carry out the observe at Coachella.
With a co-sign from the largest artist on the planet and beneath the tutelage of Barrera, Grupo Frontera shortly cemented itself because the Texas consultant of the brand new wave of música Mexicana, changing into one of many greatest gamers in a style on the cusp of dominating the worldwide streaming charts.
“The first year was a hundred percent the songs, lyrics and what [Barrera] told us to do,” mentioned Solis. “We didn’t really know anything about the music industry so in the beginning we just let him guide us and develop the sound he wanted for us.”
The band known as Barrera their Rick Rubin, referencing the Def Jam Information co-founder who produced albums for the Crimson Sizzling Chili Peppers, Slayer, Run-D.M.C., Woman Gaga and many extra seminal acts.
Since then, Grupo Frontera has put out three full-length albums and 4 EPs, gathering three Latin Grammys within the course of — they received for Regional Mexican tune in 2023 (“Un x100to”) and 2024 (“El Amor de su Vida” a collab with Grupo Firme), and Norteño album in 2023 for his or her debut studio album, “El Comienzo,” which peaked at No. 34 on the Billboard 200.
Their most up-to-date LP, “Lo Que Me Falta Por Llorar” (launched Oct. 23), is a mix of basic cumbias norteñas (the bouncy, heart-torn “Que Bueno Que Te Fuiste”), swaying Tejano songs (“Si me Quiere”) and a hip-churning huapango (“Quien la Manda”). It additionally leans into different fashionable Latin genres, with strands of reggaetón in “No Lo Ves” (that includes Ozuna) and lure flare in “Triste Pero Bien C—,” (that includes rapper Myke Towers).
“It’s like ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears,’ fame,” mentioned Solís. “The first [album] was too small, the second one was too big, and this one was just right.”
In November, Grupo Frontera obtained their first two Grammy nominations for his or her joint EP “Mala Mia” with Fuerza Regida, and a solo EP titled “Y Lo Que Viene.” The band was notified earlier than performing on the Grand Ole Opry, marking yet one more milestone because it grew to become the primary regional Mexican group to play on the iconic Nashville venue.
There’s an ongoing wager inside the group: If Grupo Frontera wins an American Grammy, Juan Javier Cantu, the group’s accordion participant and secondary vocalist, will tattoo a gramophone someplace on his particular person. It’s a giant deal given his apprehension towards physique artwork.
All different band members, which additionally embody congas participant Julian Peña Jr., bajo quinto participant Alberto “Beto” Acosta and drummer Carlos Guerrero, have already got a gramophone tattoo to characterize their Latin Grammy victories so far. They’re an costly behavior, Solís famous, pointing to Acosta, whose neck and arms are coated in ink, as proof.
“ I think Beto’s body is worth more than his watches,” he mentioned.
“He’s worthless,” Cantu chimed in. Confused, I requested if he as an alternative meant “priceless.”
“No, he meant worthless,” Guerrero jokingly interjects, inflicting the group to jolt in roaring laughter. Teasing apart, there may be an unequivocal sense of respect and appreciation for each other. All through the interview, the band members busted one another’s chops, throwing within the occasional “Te amo, compadre!”
“We want to always be the five of us, however long the group lasts,” mentioned Cantu, who admits he’s probably the most sentimental of the bunch. “We’ve had our differences but there’s never been a moment where someone wants to leave [the band].”
The newest album comes at a pivotal time for the Texas band, which will embark on its worldwide “Triste Pero Bien C—” tour subsequent yr. Not every thing about their meteoric rise has been rosy.
Earlier this yr in a now-deleted TikTok video, Grupo Frontera seemed to be dancing to the Village Folks’s “Y.M.C.A.,” a tune related to Donald Trump’s rallies since a minimum of 2020. Different movies of Solis’ grandparents dancing to the tune whereas holding voting stickers circulated on-line, prompting many spectators to surprise if the members have been Trump supporters.
“No way, I don’t think people will believe that! It didn’t happen,” Solis first advised himself when he noticed the rumors start to unfold on-line.
“It’s like when you are a little kid and your mom asks you, ‘Who did this?’ You know you didn’t do anything but they blame you for it, but your mom knows you didn’t do it,” added Solis. “That’s a bit of how we were feeling at the moment.”
Shortly after the social media frenzy, Grupo Frontera was named as a headliner for the Sueños music competition in Chicago, inciting backlash amongst many attendees. One particular person on-line created a petition for its removing from the lineup on Change.org.
The rising onslaught of criticism prompted the band to reply, posting a message on its social media platforms on Feb. 7 and once more on Feb. 22 stating that Grupo Frontera had “no affiliation, nor any alliance, with any political party that’s against immigrants and the Latino community.”
The statements got here at a fraught political second for a lot of within the Latino group. Trump, who has vehemently focused immigrant teams, had simply been sworn into workplace for his second time period and was promising to conduct “the largest mass deportation in U.S. history.” Many political consultants additionally pointed to the Latino vote swaying towards Trump.
“Our music is to make love, connect people by the border, not the opposite,” Cantu mentioned. “Why would we get involved in something that is seriously damaging families?”
Solis hoped to clear the air on the subject as soon as and for all, and transfer ahead from the social media rumors.
“Any person who is against our people and who is harming our people, not just our Mexican community but all Latinos, we do not support that,” he mentioned. “Not just the president, but anybody.”
The band members say they’ve discovered a number of key classes from this expertise. For one, they’ve continued to indicate up the place they imagine counts probably the most, within the communities they maintain pricey to their coronary heart. In March, when flash floods impacted Reynosa, Mexico, the border metropolis throughout from the river from the Rio Grande Valley, the group delivered support to assist impacted people. The band additionally donated a portion of all proceeds from its shock EP “Y Lo Que Viene” to frontline organizations within the wake of the continuing immigration raids concentrating on Los Angeles since June.
“When it comes from the heart, people feel it and know it,” Cantu mentioned.
“That’s how this dream began with us five, we wanted to make music that was different from what people were hearing, [music] that made sense and that everyone who is in their homes can unite over a song,” mentioned Cantu. “[We want to hear ] a kid say, ‘I want to listen to ‘No Capea’’ and his grandfather too!”
One might assume that such on-line rumors would weigh on the psychological well being of every member, maybe frustrate them to no avail, however the group has made peace with the concept some people will proceed to query the group’s intentions.
“But we understand people that are frustrated and want to take out their anger towards someone, no one wants to see [their favorite artist] supporting someone who is against the community,” mentioned Cantu. “But we are with you.”
Whereas principally quiet throughout the complete interview, Peña, who usually delivers the group’s tagline on the finish of each tune (“Y esto es Grupo Frontera!”), lifted up his sleepy gaze from the desk to ship one ultimate assertion of the afternoon: “There’s a saying, that what one does not owe, one does not fear.”
