Cali vibes, flyer parties, trap music and Mexican-American are some of the words that best describe Fuerza Regida, a four-member group hailing from San Bernardino, Calif., that’s helping push forward the urban corrido movement.
Composed of Jose Garcia (tuba), Samuel Jaimez (requinto), Jesus Ortiz (lead singer) and Khrystian Ramos (six-string guitar), Fuerza Regida, which means “strength” and “govern,” officially became a group in March 2015, starting off as a local cover band who added East LA flavor to their music.
“In the beginning, we performed at many flyer parties and people would stop what they were doing to pay attention to our set,” frontman Jesus Ortiz tells Billboard. “After nearly two years, we started noticing that we had fans outside of our city and that our music began sounding in Los Angeles. We got really happy.”
Ortiz recalls the first time Fuerza Regida went viral.
“What really got us out there was a song that I wrote called ‘Radicamos en South Central.’ It really opened the doors for us,’' he says. “Thanks to that song, Ramon Ruiz from Legado 7 discovered us and we got signed to two labels: his Lumbre Music and Rancho Humilde.”
Fuerza Regida, whose musical influences range from Adriel Camacho to Hijos de Barron to Metallica, pens raw lyrics about street life, Mexican culture and love, among many things. It can be best heard in songs such as "Sigo Chambeando" and "Malos Pasos."
“We sing both Regional Mexican and urban music, but we don’t want people to think that we play a specific type of genre,” guitarist Khrystian Ramos tells Billboard. “We want people to know that Fuerza Regida is capable of much more.”
Throughout 2019, Fuerza Regida landed on five Billboard charts: Hot Latin Songs, Latin Airplay, Regional Mexican Airplay, Top Latin Albums and Regional Mexican Albums charts. Their album Del Barrio Hasta Aqui debuted at No. 1 on the Regional Mexican Albums chart dated July 13, 2019.
Learn more about this week’s, and the first of 2020, Latin Artist on the Rise below.
Name(s): Jose Garcia (tuba), Samuel Jaimez (requinto), Jesus Ortiz (lead singer), Khrystian Ramos (six-string guitar)
Age(s): 22 – 25
Major Accomplishment: “Every time we step onstage. We just finished a five-day tour in California, Texas and New York. All five of them were sold-out shows. Honestly, our fans are our biggest accomplishment."
Recommended Song: “El Muchacho Alegre”
What’s Next: “We started a wave called Pisteando con la Regida. It’s a compilation album where we make our own covers of some of our favorite songs of all time. We already released Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 is coming out soon. We also plan on releasing new original songs and selling out more shows."
