Chalino Sánchez

About Chalino Sánchez

Chalino Sánchez, born in Sinaloa and raised between Mexico and Los Angeles, was a working-class corridista who reshaped the narcocorrido for the late 20th century. He sold cassettes out of his car in Los Angeles in the 1980s, accepting commissions from gunmen, traffickers, and ordinary working people who wanted their lives or relatives sung about. His voice was rough and his songs were unsentimental; he was kidnapped and shot in Culiacán in 1992 at 31. His son Adán Chalino Sánchez carried his name into a recording career until his own death in 2004. Two generations of regional Mexican singers cite Chalino as a foundational influence.