Alt.Latino: Zen and the art of new music

Summary

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All Songs Considered: Alt.Latino – "Zen and the Art of New Music"

Date: December 3, 2025
Hosts: Felix Contreras & Ana Maria Sayer

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Episode Overview

This episode of Alt.Latino immerses listeners in the vibrant world of new alternative Latin music released at the tail end of 2025. Despite already preparing end-of-year lists, hosts Felix Contreras and Ana Maria Sayer showcase tracks that exemplify how Latin artists continually evolve, revisit, and redefine their sounds. The episode is threaded with playful banter, sharp musical analysis, personal anecdotes, and thoughtful cultural commentary—exploring how today’s artists weave their identities and heritage into fresh sonic landscapes and how the Latin music scene bridges nostalgia, innovation, and activism.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Revisiting and Evolving: Diles Que No Me Matan – "Manos de Piedra"

• Artist: Diles Que No Me Matan

• Track: "Manos de Piedra" (re-release)

• [01:03–04:11]

  • Ana introduces one of Mexico City’s most exciting alternative bands and highlights the re-release of an older track, "Manos," now reimagined.
    • “They're probably one of Mexico City's most exciting alternative bands.” – Ana [01:08]
    • The new recording reflects the band’s growth and changing perspectives.
    • Ana emphasizes the value of artists revisiting their own work:

      “For a band to actually take it back into the studio, revisit it, and come up with something a little bit distinct... It’s a nice way, I think, to stay in conversation with the music, with the people listening to it.” – Ana [02:48]

  • Felix connects the title to boxer Roberto "Manos de Piedra" Durán but notes, “I was listening for some boxing references in the song. I didn’t hear it...” [03:53]

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2. Ethereal Transformations: Diana Lopez – "Sun Frequencies"

• Artist: Diana Lopez

• Track: "Sun Frequencies"

• [04:27–08:24]

  • Felix spotlights Diana Lopez, whose work has evolved from DIY singer-songwriter to ethereal, spiritual soundscapes.
    • He details her trajectory, noting the “ambient, sonic landscapes” and how her newest EP, Echo, layers intricate sounds with “simple beauty.”

    • “Her music struck me at a time when I wasn't looking for it, and it just, it just stayed with me.” – Felix [07:07]

  • Ana underscores Lopez’s unmistakable voice as the through-line in her stylistic evolution.

    • “Like, there’s maybe a stylistic shift... but that voice, it’s unmistakable. It stays.” – Ana [07:33]

  • Backstory: Lopez originally aimed to be an actress; she pivoted to music after an impromptu college showcase.
    • “She had so much fun doing that. She gave up on acting... and we all benefit from that.” – Felix [07:55]

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3. Distinctly Mexican Pop: Umbe – "Fantasmas"

• Artist: Umbe

• Track: "Fantasmas"

• [08:24–12:49]

  • Ana highlights Umbe, a 25-year-old Mexican artist unafraid to break pop conventions:
    • Releases a 22-track album, with unusually long songs for a young pop star.
    • “This is pop from Mexico. Very overtly, but not, like, in a way that feels like that’s what he’s trying to do. It just. It's just what it is.” – Ana [10:35]
  • Felix brings a generational & cultural lens:
    • Observes Umbe’s virality on TikTok, with "Fantasmas" providing the soundtrack to everything from family reunions to emotional milestones.
    • “That song is everywhere... It’s remarkable to me how many different ways that people use that particular lyric and that song and the feeling to reflect their own lives.” – Felix [11:16]
  • Fun moment: Ana, not on TikTok, is surprised to hear about the song's viral life.
    • “I just want to take a moment, acknowledge the fact that you are currently teaching me about a TikTok trend.” – Ana [12:01]

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4. Multigenre Storyteller: Renny Lopez – "Any Chance"

• Artist: Renny Lopez

• Track: "Any Chance" (from the album A New York Lie)

• [15:02–18:28]

  • Felix revisits an old favorite—a multitalented artist whose 11th album stretches between Latin rhythms, country/Americana, and New York’s eclecticism.
    • “To me that's an example of his resilience and his creativity. I'm a big fan.” – Felix [16:26]
    • Shares an endearing memory of the "Songs from the Stoop" YouTube series.
    • Lopez’s lineage: son of a renowned salsa trumpet player; sound shaped by salsa, funk, disco, country, and confessional songwriting.
    • “The whole city is like a character or a mood or a sensibility in each track.” – Felix [17:18]
  • Recommendation: “More people should know about this guy.” – Felix [18:15]

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5. Fresh Funk from Colombia: Duplat – "Vete del País"

• Artist: Duplat

• Track: "Vete del País" (from Dulce y Amarga)

• [18:34–21:15]

  • Ana describes Duplat’s blend of rock, reggae, funk, and jazz influences.
    • “There’s something really beautiful to me about his sound...It’s fun. It's fresh. The horns, the bass, like, all of it just feels really nice and right to me.” – Ana [19:29]
  • Felix contextualizes the 70s-funk resonance, referencing Nile Rodgers and Chic: “It's very 70s funk.” – Felix [20:48]
  • Deeper meaning debated: The lyrics (“get out of the country”) could be a romantic breakup or veiled political commentary on Colombia's turbulent times.
    • “It's another example of people making political statements without making political statements.” – Felix [21:33]

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6. Tejano Christmas Legacy: Ruben Ramos (feat. Gaby Moreno) – "El Año Viejo"

• Artist: Ruben Ramos "El Gato Negro" feat. Gaby Moreno

• Track: "El Año Viejo" (from upcoming album Los Días del Calor)

• [21:56–29:39]

  • Felix pays tribute to Ruben Ramos, a “pillar” of Tejano music since the 1960s.
    • Ramos’s sound—"well before the industry started calling it Tejano”—mixes cumbia, corridos, and a Texas sensibility.

    • “He's been making this music for so long...Ruben Ramos has been singing that since then. He never stopped performing.” – Felix [24:10]

    • Shares excitement about a new tribute album (out Feb/March), helmed by Carrie Rodriguez, featuring Ramos and other Austin musicians.
  • Ana and Felix discuss the evolving yet distinct worlds of Tejano and regional Mexican music:
    • “Tejano is markedly not regional Mexican music. It’s not norteno music, which is what Grupo Frontera is doing. They're very...they live in different worlds.” – Ana [26:43]
    • Felix notes their mutual influences but underscores the immense musical diversity of Texas.
  • Felix’s involvement: Hints he may perform at the upcoming tribute concert and be featured with Ramos’s musical family.
    • “She's been working on this project for a while... I've been fortunate to be part of that.” – Felix [25:55]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Joke to open the show:
  "The Buddhist master went to the hot dog vendor and said, make me one with everything. Get it?" – Felix [00:19]

  • Ana fails to get the joke, setting the tone for playful, warm exchanges throughout.

• On music evolution:
  “You release a song and it takes on all these different lives and forms.” – Ana [02:30]

• Dissecting TikTok phenomena:
  "I was gonna say, Felix, isn't this the project that you yourself might be making a guest appearance on?" – Ana [25:47]

• On Tejano and regional Mexican music:
  "They live in different worlds, but I think that, like, one influences the other...it's just really just a lot of fun to listen to...big, giant musical country that is Texas." – Felix [27:54]

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Important Segment Timestamps

• [01:03] – Introduction of Diles Que No Me Matan’s "Manos de Piedra"
• [04:27] – Diana Lopez, backstory and stylistic growth
• [08:24] – Umbe's "Fantasmas" and discussion of new Mexican pop
• [15:02] – Renny Lopez: influences, legacy, and New York storytelling
• [18:34] – Duplat’s sound and sociopolitical questions in "Vete del País"
• [21:56] – Ruben Ramos’ "El Año Viejo": Tejano’s roots and resurgence; Texas musical identity

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Overall Vibe & Takeaways

The episode is a lively, deeply knowledgeable exchange between Felix and Ana Maria—balancing seasoned perspective and youthful excitement with a genuine curiosity about Latin music’s constant reinvention. Their chemistry is engaging, often punctuated by lighthearted teasing, especially over generational divides (e.g., TikTok trends).

Listeners walk away with an expanded playlist and a richer understanding of how Latin artists are threading their roots, personalities, and zeitgeist into music that’s both instantly familiar and constantly “new.” The episode also invites reflection on cultural context, generational change, and the role of music as both personal and political expression.

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Recommended for:
Anyone curious about the evolution of Latin alternative music, the interplay of tradition and modernity, or those seeking authentic musical storytelling across the Americas.

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Transcript

[Announcer]

This message comes from the Council for Interior Design Qualification. Safety matters. That's why NCIDQ certified interior designers meet rigorous standards to protect health, safety and welfare. Learn [e-mail] NPR okay, so the Buddhist.

[Felix Contreras]

Master went to the hot dog vendor and said, make me one with everything. Get it?

[Ana Maria Sayer]

No, I don't get it.

[Felix Contreras]

I just saw that one the other day. It was pretty funny. From NPR Music, this is Alt Latino. I'm Felix Contreras.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

And I'm Ana Maria Sayer. Let the cheesemate begin. Okay, so we took last week off. We are very quickly, fastly, super speedily approaching the end of the year, but we're not there yet and people are still releasing music. Felix?

[Felix Contreras]

Yeah, we have to squeeze in a little bit more, even though we've already put our end of the year list together, which we will be getting to. But yeah, this week, tons of great music that's still coming out. And you get to go first.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I do have a couple of things up my sleeve, as per always. Okay, starting us off with a band that I have never brought in, but is a band that I actually listen to personally a lot and I follow very closely. They're probably one of Mexico City's most exciting alternative bands. They're called Dile Que no Me Matan. They just released a new single that was actually a re release of a track they put out a long time ago. It's called Manos.

[Singer/Artist]

Genesis. Genesis just toy miranda del faro.

[Felix Contreras]

De la cabeza. I like the different rhythm textures in that one.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I imagined you playing the drums, Felix. Literally what I was envisioning, it is basically an extensive sonic exploration of knowing Nothing. It's interesting because they do kind of flip a couple times throughout the song. There's a moment in the song where they really do shift to like a different tone, a different texture, a different type of pacing. And I think what it really is an attempt at a representation of the experience of the thing that they're talking about. They mention the reason that they re released and re recorded the song as being something that this song has really evolved and changed with them as. As they've played it, as they performed it, as they've introduced it to the world over the years. And I always think that's an interesting thing, right, because it's like that's something we talk about. You release a song and it takes on all these different lives and forms. And so for a band to actually take it back into the studio, revisit it, and come up with something a little bit distinct from what they had before is like. It's a nice way, I think, to, like, stay in conversation with the music, with the people listening to it. They recorded it in Santa Maria de la Rivera, which is a neighborhood that is, like, becoming one of the most explosive artist neighborhoods in Sedimes. So it's just a nice track. I loved it. And Felix, with a name like that.

[Felix Contreras]

Tell them not to kill me. What also stands out to me is the name of the track, Manos de Piero, the Hands of Stone. It's also the nickname of a very, very famous Panamanian boxing champion, Roberto Duran. Manos de Pierra. That's the first thing I thought of. I was listening for some boxing references in the song. I didn't hear it, but, you know.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Maybe it's not in what it says, but how it's perform. That was Manos de Piedra by Diles que no Mematan. Okay, Felix, what do you got?

[Felix Contreras]

Oh, my gosh. Okay, so this is an artist. I don't know how I found her, honestly. Her name is Diana Lopez. I don't want to say too much right now at the top. She's got a new EP out called Echo. This track is called Sun Frequencies. Check this out.

[Singer/Artist]

I'm not the same as I was I looked into the sun and became one. I'm not the same as I am I looked into the sun and became one.

[Felix Contreras]

You know, Anna, I never know what I'm gonna like.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I know what you're gonna like.

[Felix Contreras]

Like I said, I don't know where I found her and I knew nothing about her, so I had to dig, dig around. I see that she's been making music since 2018. In her early work is more traditional. Singer, songwriter, very low key, very DIY bedroom production stuff. The usual song forms, verse, chorus, bridge, all that stuff. But that voice, that ethereal voice is still there. Perfect for her emotional lyrics. In fact, in 2018, our former colleague Sidney Madden wrote about her for our website. About 2020, she released something called Shape Shifting and it began to have more of an ambient, more sonic landscapes. And last year she released a bunch of singles that were more spiritual in nature, celebrating nature. Titles like Redwood Resonance, Earth Rhythms, Deepwood Melodies. And her new EP is just four songs and it's layered with all these multiple sounds and influences. It's a simple beauty, but simple, not being derogatory. It's very, very, as you hear, like the rest of records like this. It impacted me so much. I don't know where I was in that space and time that I built a whole playlist around it with all these other artists that are well established that feature that same kind of approach to music. Her music struck me at a time when I wasn't looking for it, and it just, it just stayed with me.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

It really is the voice, though, Felix. Like, there's maybe a stylistic shift or what have you as she experiments with different, you know, melodies in production and whatever it is. But that voice, it's unmistakable. It stays.

[Felix Contreras]

Yeah. The little info I found in her that she started out, she wanted to be an actress. She's from New York, she lives in upstate New York. I don't know if she's still there, but she wanted to be an actress. And one of her friends was a music major in management, so they had to put together a showcase and they didn't have anybody to showcase, so they said, hey, I'll sing some songs. And she had so much fun doing that. She gave up on acting, at least for the time being, and really went into the music and we all benefit from that. Her name is Deanna Lopez. The track is called Sun Frequencies and the EP is called Echo.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Okay, so this is an artist. His name is Umbe. He's Quite young, he's 25 years old. He's from Mexico, and he's been one of these kind of like future of pop. What's it gonna sound like? What's it gonna look like? Artists in Mexico, in Latin America generally. He's releasing this very ambitious album this week. It's 22 tracks and a lot of these tracks are quite extensive. Like, I'm talking like five, six minutes, which is not really the standard right now in terms of, like, especially for a young pop artist who's kind of like still building, building, building. He has a pretty solid audience at this point, but definitely not what I would have expected. One of the songs on this album is actually a single that I've been listening to now for quite some time. And so I wanted to take the opportunity to play it today. It's called Fantasmas.

[Singer/Artist]

There.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

He's got this really lovely, distinctive voice. But more than that, what I love about that song in particular is it is. I mean, it's a pop melody, it's simple, it's, it's, it's, it's sweet, but it's really. He stays very like, light touch. He's not heavy handed about it, but stays very consistent in this vein of bringing where he's from, what he is. I mean, this is not an attempt to replicate American pop by any means. And I think that's what's really key to me here is, like, this sound. This is from Mexico. This is pop from Mexico. Very overtly, but not, like, in a way that feels like that's what he's trying to do. It just. It's just what it is.

[Felix Contreras]

In my many hours of watching TikTok videos and my obsession with TikTok, you've heard him. Oh, my God, that song is everywhere. That part where he sings the lyric and then the trumpet comes in. Yeah, it's just. It's everywhere.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I'm not on TikTok, so I don't know.

[Felix Contreras]

Oh, my God. And so many people use it because this song evokes so many feelings. There's feelings like family reunions. There's feelings of loss. There's feelings of, you know, love for parents, love for children. It's just. It's remarkable to me how many different ways that people use that particular lyric and that song and the feeling to reflect their own lives. I mean, that's. I'm so glad you brought it in because I needed to know more about him because that song is just everywhere.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I just want to take a moment, acknowledge the fact that you are currently teaching me about a TikTok trend. I was like, I don't know. I just heard the song, and I liked it.

[Felix Contreras]

It's so funny that you picked that one. I thought you picked it because of the TikTok trend.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

No, I had no idea. I told you, I'm not on TikTok, Felix. I don't know what's happening.

[Felix Contreras]

Oh, so when I send you videos, you never see them.

Oh, my God. Let's carry on. Let's put a pin in that.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Should I say yes?

[Felix Contreras]

I just want to go back to.

The striking music that this young man has made. And like I said, the way that so many people interpret it. I can't wait to hear the rest of the record because it sounds amazing because he's put so much time and effort into it. I want to see what. What more he has to say.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

That was Fantasmas by Umbe. And it's time for a break, I think. Right.

[Felix Contreras]

Okay, let's take a break. We'll come back with a lot more new music right after.

[Singer/Artist]

Foreign.

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[Felix Contreras]

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[Felix Contreras]

And we're back with more music. Okay, Anna, I got something for you.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Yay.

[Felix Contreras]

And I may have played this artist before. I'm sure I have. In fact, I know I have. But he's got a new record out. He's a perfect example of more people should know about this musician. His name is Renny Lopez. He's got a connection to the legacy of Fanya. His music reflects so many different musical influences. This is his 11th album, if you can believe it. His new album is called A New York Lie. The track is called Any Chance Burning Up.

[Singer/Artist]

I'm loving you. Hot nights on the avenue Full moon keeps our bodies in tune Almost dupes of NYC Miracles are born and set free let's fly the way lovers do but any chance of you and me Any chance this is destiny Will you dance? Can you see Well, I might get lost in my fantasy.

[Felix Contreras]

Okay. I mentioned that he has 11 albums, and to me that's an example example of his resilience and his creativity. I'm a big fan. I found him, God, years ago, like almost a dozen years ago when he was doing this series on YouTube called Songs from the Stoop. And he references that in this track where he was just on his stoop playing his own music. His kids would come out and join him. They're like, obviously, 10, 15 years older now, but they were little kids. They would come out and join them. Neighbors would come by, you know, his dad was also named Rennie Lopez and he was a trumpet player and he played with Ray Barreto and Tibica SE10. Very, very hardcore salsa. So he grew up with that in his household. But then he was also a child of his time, right? So there was Prince, there was funk, there was disco, there was all that stuff. He was in New York and he absorbed all these things. And if you follow the trajectory of his music, you can hear all of that in different aspects. And it's not like he went through phases. They were actually part of his growth and development. So as a musician, as he grew and as a songwriter, all of these elements came through. He self describes his music as a mix of Latin rhythms, rock and roll, outlaw country, Americana and truth and myth. On this album, he's really leaning into the country Americana thing because there's still guitars. Very confessional songwriting. The album's called A New York Lie. It's a deep personal reflection on his life, but also on New York City because the whole city is like a character or a mood or a sensibility in each track. You know, he has that very distinctive voice. There's some up tempo stuff, there's some down tempo stuff. It's just another example of why I'm such a big fan of this guy. And again, more people should know about him.

[Singer/Artist]

Will you dance? Can you see what am I getting lost in my fantasies?

[Felix Contreras]

The artist is named Renny Lopez. The album's called A New York Lie, and the track is called Any Chance.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Okay, Felix, last thing I have for you today is from a Colombian artist named Duplat. This is a song called Vete del Pais.

[Singer/Artist]

Vete del Pa.

[Felix Contreras]

Wow. A lot of unpack with that one.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Yeah, seriously. I mean, this is an artist who has been releasing albums since 2019, but really is not Felix actually all that widely known. There's something really beautiful to me about his sound that actually reminds me a lot of like earlier Rayana, actually like this kind of interesting mix of like rocky reggae, funky type of he has on certain points at his record. It's a jazzier kind of breakdown that he'll do, but it really is to me that communication of that part of the world and kind of like the. The a little more alternative band sound. Even though he is just a solo artist that I've been hearing more and more in recent years, I just love what he's doing, Felix. It's fun. It's fresh. The horns, the bass, like, all of it just feels really nice and right to me.

[Felix Contreras]

What do you mean by fresh?

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Oh, my God. I knew you were gonna say that. Because we know it's cyclical, Felix. We've been through this 20,000 times. I get it. It's not fresh for you. It's fresh for me. But in. It's not freshness for you. That's what makes it fresh for me. You know what I mean?

[Felix Contreras]

I never know until I think about what you say, like, days later.

Cause that's, like, it sounds. It's very 70s funk. Totally very 70s funk.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I wasn't alive then. But yes. But yes.

[Felix Contreras]

Got a Nile Rogers feel. You know, Nile Rogers from Chic and all the record producing. It's a very 70s feel. But talk about the lyrics. What are they talking about? Is it a love story? Is he. Cause consider, like, are they based in Colombia? Because consider what's going on in the area right now.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Yeah.

[Felix Contreras]

Singing a song. Get out of my country.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I don't know. I don't know. I wonder about that. He's saying, get out of the country. And don't tell me, like, don't even tell me you left. Just leave. I don't know what that is. Is that love? Is that a response to something, a feeling, a sentiment? That's in Colombia right now? I don't.

[Felix Contreras]

You know, we don't know. Right. But the possibility is, like. It's another example of people making political statements without making political statements.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

It's the classic romantic conceit for expressing a thing. For sure.

[Felix Contreras]

Yeah.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

It's possible.

[Felix Contreras]

Yeah. There's certainly a lot of stuff going on there in that part of the world.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

That track was called Veta del Pais, and it's off of Duplat's new album, Dulce y Amarga.

[Felix Contreras]

Okay. I'm gonna close out the show where in December. We're starting the holidays a little early. Okay. Because I have a Christmas track for you.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Is it early? We're in December, I guess.

[Felix Contreras]

Yeah, it's after Thanksgiving. It works. I see Christmas tree lights up so we can start playing the music. Although it's not really Christmas until I play the Charlie Brown Christmas record. But that's another story. But I will instead play this track. This is from a guy named Ruben Ramos. El Gato Negro, he calls himself. This is called El Ano Viejo. It features Gabby Moreno. He's a Texas music legend, but his music has also expanded way beyond Texas. He has a new tribute album coming out in February, but they're releasing this one early again. This is called El Ano Viejo featuring Gabby Moreno.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Wow.

[Felix Contreras]

Right? So this is an example of musicians taking care of their own. Ruben Ramos was. He started making music back in the late 60s with a band called the Mexican Revolution, which was part of the whole Chicano movement thing. He's been making this music for so long, it was well before the industry started calling it Tejano. And then everybody else started picking up on Tejano. Back then it was a mixture of a bunch of different things, as you can hear, cumbias, corridos, all that stuff, but with a distinct Texas flair. And Ruben Ramos has been singing that since then. He never stopped performing. He's been doing all this stuff. And our friend Carrie Rodriguez has taken on this project to basically pay tribute to Ruben. She's performed with him a bunch of times there in Austin, and they've got this tribute coming out. It's got all these great Austin musicians. I just love the idea of giving a musician like Ruben Ramos his due while they're still alive and recognizing that while he may not be a big influence, influence outside of Texas, like maybe people know I've heard his name forever, but maybe people who aren't, you know, Dominicans in New York or, you know, wherever, like Latino communities from other parts of the country, may not know his name, but he's a pillar, he's foundational. He's part of that whole sound that has gone on to influence things, like some of the Mexican regional artists from Texas that we've played on the show. So I'm. I'm excited. I can't wait to hear. The rest of the record is called Los Dias. El Calor doesn't come out till late February, early March. And there is a cool tribute concert planned for him sometime in February in Austin that I hope to be able to get to maybe even be part of.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I was gonna say, Felix, isn't this the project that you yourself might be making a guest appearance on?

[Felix Contreras]

I have been fortunate that Carrie has been inviting me to perform at these performances that she calls Love Auditorios, where she brings in different types of vocalists, singers, performers from different genres. She's been doing this for a couple of years. She's really done a remarkable job. She's established a non profit. She's been able to bring in all these people. Killer house band. Killer house band. I love playing with, and I've been fortunate to be part of that. And she's been working on this project for a while. And the album, again that whole Texas scene, man, whether even like from that generation, even the younger musicians, some of the people that we featured on the show, it's like a little family. Right. Whether they even know each other, but it still has a feeling of family when you talk about musicians from Texas.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

It is interesting to me, though, Felix, that you do pull that thread of what this project is and the Tejano, the cumbia, the Texas of it all, and compare it to the burgeoning regional Mexican scene that, yes, does have its footprint in Texas. I think a good example of that is Grupo Frontera, for example, one of the biggest groups in that genre right now who did come from southern Texas. But the origins of those sounds to me are quite distinct, and they're on distinct trajectories. Like a revisiting or reimagining or a revitalization of Tejano is actually, to me quite independent. I mean, what is so distinct about Tejano is that it is markedly not regional Mexican music. It's not norteno music, which is what Grupo Frontera is doing. They are Mexican Americans who are doing a sound that is from the north of Mexico vs. Mexicans Americans who are doing a sound that is literally of Texas, which is. Yes, those both exist in Texas, were born in Texas, are continuing to be made in Texas. But they're very. To me, they live in different worlds.

[Felix Contreras]

They live in different worlds, but I think that, like, one influences the other.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Sure.

[Felix Contreras]

You know, and it's just really just a lot of fun to listen to and a lot of. And to think about, like just big, giant musical country that is Texas.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Well, and also, like, for me, Tejano, I feel like it doesn't exist without being very directly linked to some of its earlier sounds versus Northeno. Feels like there's been a lot more phases of Northeno. To me, tejano is more. It sounds more like a specific moment to me.

[Felix Contreras]

Sounds like maybe we need to do another themed show.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

I know we really. We haven't visited it in a while.

[Felix Contreras]

No, because seriously, about how those worlds either coexist or don't coexist or semi exist. You know, where's that Venn diagram? Where's that mark where they coexist together, you know?

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Right.

[Singer/Artist]

Well.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

And if you ask anyone in Mexico making Norteno or any varietal. Right. We're talking about one also that it gets confusing when we talk about regional Mexican versus specifically, I'm talking about North Daniel right now. They're all going to tell you that not with Tejano.

[Felix Contreras]

Probably didn't have anything to do with. Yeah, the album's called Los Dias del Calor. That's not going to come out until, like I said, late February, early March. The track is called El Ano Viejo. It's a Christmas themed, holiday themed track that is the great Ruben Ramos Elgato Negro, also featuring the great Gabby Moreno on that track as well. You have been listening to alt latino from npr music. Our audio editor is noah caldwell.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

Saray mohamed is the executive producer of npr music.

[Felix Contreras]

The executive director of npr music is sonali mehta.

I'm felix contreras.

[Ana Maria Sayer]

And I'm ana maria sayer.

[Felix Contreras]

Thank you for listening.

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