The U.S. State Department has revoked the visas of the Mexican band, Los Alegres del Barranco, a Mexican regional music group.
During a concert on March 29, 2025, at Telmex Auditorium in Zapopan, Jalisco, the band displayed large images of a drug cartel during the performance. The drug cartel here in question is Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as El Mencho.
El Mencho is the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), known as one of the most violent cartels in Mexico. The band was supposed to perform serval shows in the US including Texas, and Tulsa.
Why were the Mexican band's visas revoked?
The band, Los Alegres del Barranco, is best known for performing narcocorridos, a kind of subgenre of Mexican folk music, that tells stories about drug traffickers and other organized crimes. Their songs are known to be centered around the lives of the cartel leaders.
While performing at the concert, they displayed pictures of El Mencho. This gesture was perceived as glorifying a drug cartel. Following this, the US State Department revoked the group's work and tourist visas. It should also be noted that Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) was one of the cartels named as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in February.
The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, Christopher Landau, took to X (formerly Twitter) to express what he felt about displaying the image of the drug cartel during the concert. He said:
"I’m a firm believer in freedom of expression, but that doesn’t mean that expression should be free of consequences. A Mexican band, “Los Alegres del Barranco,” portrayed images glorifying drug kingpin “El Mencho” — head of the grotesquely violent CJNG cartel — at a recent concert in Mexico. I’m pleased to announce that the State Department has revoked the band members’ work and tourism visas."
He continued:
"In the Trump Administration, we take seriously our responsibility over foreigners’ access to our country. The last thing we need is a welcome mat for people who extol criminals and terrorists."
When the band displayed the images during the concert the audience cheered and applauded, however, the officials at Jalisco began their investigation. As per AP News, if the band was found guilty of promoting violence then they could be charged and would end up in prison for six months.
Mexico's President, Claudia Sheinbaum, has also called for a thorough investigation of the band. The Mexican band, formed in 2005, released a statement on April 2, 2025, and posted the same on their Instagram handle as well. The statement read:
"We recognize that, as artists, we have a great responsibility to our audiences, especially to the younger generations who follow our music. We deeply regret that any part of the show was perceived as offensive or inappropriate."
"We reaffirm that our music is inspired by telling popular stories within Mexican music. We will take stricter measures regarding the visual and narrative content of our shows," it concluded.
While critics see the narcocorridos genre of music as romanticizing drug cartels, others see it as a way of glorifying violence. The Mexican band was scheduled to perform in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but so far, the ticket sale website indicates that no tickets are available, although no official public announcements have been made.
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