Mexico Launches Song Contest to Combat Cartel Glorification
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum launched “Mexico Canta,” a song contest aiming to counter the narcocorrido genre’s glorification of cartel culture. The contest, open to Mexican and U.S. artists aged 18-34, encourages songs on themes of love, despair, and Mexico, in contrast to narcocorridos’ violence and misogyny. Recent incidents, including visa revocations for a band displaying cartel imagery and violent fan reactions to a narcocorrido ban, underscore the initiative’s urgency. The contest runs from April 28th to May 30th, with submissions limited to three-minute songs.
John Q. Hosedrinker