Meet the Mexican soldier trying to revamp a musical genre accused of glorifying cartels

The cult of El Mencho’s image and the power of narcoculture in Mexico

The sound of an accordion in Guadalajara covers the silence that has enveloped a ranch in Teuchitlán for weeks, the scene of horrors where the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) allegedly tortured and murdered young people. It’s Saturday, around 10 p.m., and Los Alegres del Barranco are projecting images of Nemesio Oseguera, “El Mencho,” leader of the CJNG, on the stage of the Telmex Auditorium, one of the main venues in Mexico’s second-larges…

Meet the Mexican Soldier Trying to Revamp a Musical Genre Accused of Glorifying Cartels

Captain Eduardo Barrón, who performs under the name “Eddy Barrón," began releasing music videos and songs on Spotify last year in coordination with the Mexican military.

Meet the Mexican soldier trying to revamp a musical genre accused of glorifying cartels - Entertainment News

At a Mexican military base, Captain Eduardo Barrón picks up not a rifle but a microphone. Swaying boot-to-boot, he belts out a song as the sounds of trumpets and accordions roar from a band of a dozen camouflage-clad soldiers.

Mexican military captain trying to revamp musical genre accused of glorifying cartels

Captain Eduardo Barrón's "corridos" stand in stark contrast to the controversial narco corridos by famed artists that pay homage to cartel bosses, portraying them as rebels.

Meet the Mexican soldier trying to revamp a musical genre accused of glorifying cartels

Regional Mexican music is crossing borders and going global. Corridos, a musical sub-genre often linked to drug cartel violence, are sparking controversy as famed artists pay homage to cartel bosses, portraying them as rebels going against the system.

MEXICO CITY—In a Mexican military base, Captain Eduardo Barrón does not take a rifle, but a microphone. He swings, singing at full lung while a dozen camouflaged soldiers play trumpets and accordions. The rhythmic style, known as a run, is recognized by almost all the inhabitants of this Latin American nation of 130 million inhabitants. However, Barrón’s lyrics differ markedly from those that sound loudly on speakers throughout Mexico. “I still …