海角大神

Brass horn, acoustic guitar, and a punch of accordion notes spill out of a restaurant on a recent rainy evening in this bustling border city. Customers sway in their seats 鈥� and some stand up to dance 鈥� while the corrido, or ballad, blasting from the speakers tells a familiar story of love, struggle, and triumph.

Corridos have been popular in Mexico for more than a century. The song playing this evening is an old-school classic. Modern versions land Mexican and Mexican American artists at the top of international billboard charts.

But a prominent subgenre with lyrics focused on drugs, bloodshed, and consumerism, and songs known as narcocorridos, has bedeviled local governments struggling with high rates of violence and drug trafficking. Last month, Tijuana banned the performance of narcocorridos following threats allegedly by organized crime groups against corrido artists visiting the city.

It may come as little surprise that officials want to stamp out praise of the deadly, illicit activities of narcos in such public venues. Tijuana has had more homicides than any other city in Mexico, with more than 1,800 murders between May 2022 and May 2023.听

But experts and fans alike say bans are ineffective 鈥� and often have the opposite effect, helping narcocorridos become even more popular. In addition to violating people鈥檚 freedom of expression, censoring songs doesn鈥檛 make cities safer, critics say.

鈥�Corridos tell stories. If they鈥檙e good, the stories draw you in,鈥� says Graciela Antonio, sitting with her two adult sons at the Tijuana restaurant. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 personally enjoy songs about violence. But if I find myself singing along about something illegal, that doesn鈥檛 mean I鈥檓 about to do something illegal,鈥� she says. The recent ban听is 鈥渕issing the point鈥� about the problems with violence and cartels here, she adds.

Corridos came from Spanish romances and ballads, which were brought to Mexico by colonists. In Mexico 鈥� and increasingly in the United States 鈥� they have a fan base that spans generations.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a song related to something considered epic. ... Think of corridos as some story or history for the people,鈥� says Juan Carlos Ram铆rez-Pimienta, a professor at San Diego State University who studies narcoculture and corridos. 鈥淚f we want to eliminate narcocorridos, we have to make the practices of crime and drug trafficking less relevant.鈥�

In late September, a banner spelling out threats from a drug cartel showed up in Tijuana in the lead-up to a concert by a world-famous Mexican artist, Peso Pluma. Soon after, a Mexican American group also allegedly received threats from organized criminals. The musicians said the threats were over narcocorridos performed at their shows. They canceled their October performances.

The government ban soon followed.

Any artist who 鈥渢ransmits, exhibits, sings, or reproduces music, videos, images, or anything similar that promotes a culture of violence or apologizes for crime or illegal acts in a live performance鈥� will be fined up to $57,000 according to the ruling passed unanimously by Tijuana鈥檚 City Council in November.

Mayor Montserrat Caballero Ram铆rez, who moved into military barracks last spring due to continued threats on her life, said the law is not intended to ban all corridos from being performed. 鈥淒o not misrepresent what corridos are because they are welcome and even inspirational and part of Mexican folklore,鈥� she said after the vote. 鈥淲hat cannot be part of Mexican tradition and cannot represent us is the narcocorrido and the apology for crime.鈥�

Censorship, or concert safety?

Tijuana isn鈥檛 the first government to take a stab at banning songs that glorify violence and drugs. But Jos茅 Andr茅s Sumano Rodr铆guez, professor of cultural studies at the Colegio de la Frontera Norte, sees something new happening here.

鈥淚n the case of Tijuana, it鈥檚 more about the incapacity of the government to guarantee safety at these events,鈥� than about trying to censor artists, he says. 鈥淭ijuana is in the center of the fentanyl crisis. There are various [organized crime] groups competing for control of the drug market, which makes it a little complicated to protect not just the musicians singing about these things, but the fans at concerts to see them.鈥�

While politicians might see an appeal in banning songs that glorify the drug trade, a 2021 study found such bans also have the unintended effect of making them more popular 鈥� and enhancing the image of musicians as rebels who are above the law.

鈥淟iving documents鈥�

The songs are valuable, even if the content is shocking, says Anajilda Mondaca Cota, who has studied the effects of drug trafficking on Mexican culture for several decades and recently retired from the Universidad Aut贸noma de Occidente in the state of Sinaloa.

鈥淭hey are like living documents that help us understand the violence that鈥檚 transformed our country,鈥� she says. Narcocorridos have shifted greatly even over just the past 15 years since the launch of former President Felipe Calder贸n鈥檚 so-called war on cartels. It鈥檚 important to document that, 鈥渆ven if painful,鈥� she says.

The Mexican government鈥檚 inability to halt cartel violence lies at the root of the enduring popularity of corridos in Mexico, says Dr. Ram铆rez-Pimienta.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a sense that justice as an institutionalized activity is not strong in Mexico,鈥� he says. 鈥淪o, this notion of taking justice into your own hands is prevalent. As one corrido says, 鈥榳ith his pistol in his hands,鈥� people believe they have to defend themselves.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 believe a country where harmony and peace prevail could produce a lot of ballads these days,鈥� he adds. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a cultural privilege to have the ongoing production of this music in Mexico, but the source of it is in inequity, the lack of justice, and a sense of a difficult life.鈥�