Stagecoach 2024: Carin León makes history at country music festival

Balladeer Carin León continues to carve out his place in Latin music as one of the most prominent acts in Mexican regional music, but he is also rapidly winning over the country music fandom, performing at the iconic Grand Ole Opry in Nashville in February and making history as the first artist to perform mainly in Spanish at the Stagecoach Country Music Festival this weekend.

“Long live Mexican, country, and all music, as it unites us the most,” León exclaimed to a roaring crowd during his performance at the Palomino Tent on Friday, April 26.

After his stint at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, León took the stage for the third consecutive weekend at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. In a similar fashion to the last two weekends, he did it with an effortless swagger that resonated with fans who sang and danced along to hits such as “Que Vuelvas,” “La boda del Huitlacoche” and “Te Lo Agradezco.”

He didn’t just stick to performing in Spanish; his set transitioned into his collaborative tracks “It Was Always You (Siempre Fuiste Tú),” with Leon Bridges and “The One (Pero No Como Yo)” with Kane Brown, where he filled in and sang the English verses for his counterparts.

There was a special moment, too, when he invited  Ana Bárbara, the queen of Grupero Music, to join him to perform “Lo Busqué,” a song that they recently shared at the 36th annual Premio Lo Nuestro in Las Vegas earlier this year, where Bárbara accepted a Lifetime Achievement award.

‘Regional Mexican music is having a moment’

Stagecoach has increased the diversity of its performers over the years. It has featured several Latin acts, including Los Lobos, Alejandro Escovedo, The Mavericks, The Last Bandoleros, Star De Azlan, and Lindi Ortega. However, León’s inclusion on this year’s lineup is the first time Stagecoach has brought on a huge regional Mexican performer to do a set mainly in Spanish.

León is one of the several artists riding a wave of success thanks to the mass appeal of regional Mexican music, a catchall term for various Mexican genres such as mariachi, banda, corridos, norteño, sierreño and others.

Some performers, such as León, have a particular disdain for the term, saying that lumping several Mexican genres is a disservice to the individuality of the different music. He went so far as wearing a T-shirt with the phrase “F— Regional” onstage during his performance with Colombian singer-songwriter Camilo at the 20th annual Premios Juventud in Puerto Rico in July. León later clarified his feelings, adding that he finds the term confining as it’s no longer regional, extending past borders and social classes and trending to go global.

A 2023 Luminate mid-year report showed that regional Mexican music was the fastest-growing Latin subgenre (up 49% year-over-year) and produced some of the biggest Latin songs last year. It also reported a new trend that found that 17% of non-Hispanic listeners enjoy the genre.

It wasn’t just Latin music that experienced growth. A Luminate 2023 Year End Report found that country was among the genres that grew the most, with Latin up 21.9% to 75.26 million units and country rising 21.8% to 92.19 million units.

Nathian Rodriguez, associate professor and associate director of the School of Journalism and Media Studies at San Diego State University, has taught classes examining how broader culture intersects with Latino/Latinx identity. Some of his courses include Bad Bunny & Cultural Media, Cardi B & Pop Culture Politics and Selena & Latinx Media Representation.

“Regional Mexican music is having a moment globally,” Rodriguez said. “People are not monolithic in the music they listen to, and they’re not only going to listen to country. They’re listening to everything, and Stagecoach is noticing that their audience is multicultural and multilingual, and that’s what they’re going to cater to.”

Stacy Vee, vice president of festival talent at Goldenvoice, said in a recent phone interview that bringing a more diverse lineup to the stage makes for a better festival overall. She said the acts have been well received, with some fans writing letters of support and appreciation.

“I want Stagecoach to be a presentation of creativity and to amplify voices who make country music from all walks of life,” she said. “I think it’s important that anybody who comes to Stagecoach can see themselves in the lineup.”

Vee said she and others at their parent company, Anschutz Entertainment Group, were impressed by León’s persona and music. She thought it fitting that he performed at Stagecoach, which led to him being added to Coachella.

“He’s breaking down so many barriers, selling out arenas, and he’s a massive star,” Vee said. “Since he’s been added to the lineup, he has been collaborating with artists in the country space, and I’m just in awe of what he is doing and where he’s going.”

Cultural overlaps

The collaborative success and overlapping interest among regional Mexican and country music can also be understood through history.

Latin performers have teamed up with country stars for decades. Some notable collaborations include Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson’s recording of “To All the Girls I Loved Before” and later for “Spanish Eyes.” There have also been plenty of Latin performers, such as Mexican-American singer Linda Ronstadt, who went on to produce country music successfully.

The growing global appeal of Mexican regional music brings León’s embrace of country music and his performance at Stagecoach into that historical lineage. It’s also a part of the lived experiences of country and Mexican regional music artists that carry into the production of their genres, which also has its own history.

Rodriguez grew up in Texas and took a required course on the state’s history that explored the many contributions from different cultural groups and how it affected its development. With Texas bordering Mexico and descendants of Spanish, Native Americans and other groups being present long before its statehood, the populations have inspired each other. Among the genres under regional Mexican is Tejano music, which combines Mexican-Spanish vocals with dance rhythms that originated from Czech and German genres such as polka.

“Whether you were white and country or Mexican and vaquero, you were still wearing boots, jeans, big belt buckles and cowboy hats,” Rodriguez said. “The two music styles, like country and regional Mexican, are also very similar in the topics they sang about and the instruments being used.”

Country and Mexican regional fans are finding common ground through the cowboy/cowgirl fashion aesthetic and performers like León, whose ballad anthems of lost love also resonate with each genre’s respective fans.

Liz Ley and Mary Simmons of Yucaipa are friends and showed up to catch León’s set. Ley doesn’t listen to country music, while Simmons enjoys both but is finding herself becoming more of a León fan now that he’s collaborating with country stars and incorporating English into his music.

“He’s bringing the other culture here, and he’s going both ways, and I love that,” Simmons said.

“He belongs here,” Ley added.