Fuerza de Tijuana
The Tijuana quartet brings rock ‘n' roll swagger in every sense of the word to its regional Mexican music. Adding electric guitar, bass and drums to the traditional accordion gives the group’s music a contemporary edge; their choice of subjects, including former Pablo Escobar henchman Popeye, is often controversial. Of course, that alone is no reason to listen to Fuerza. Their tight chops, though, are, and this week, the group’s best-of album made the top 10 Billboard Heatseeker’s chart. Now, former Fonovisa head Gustavo Lopez signed the group to a joint venture deal through his Talento Uno, the company he formed after leaving Universal last year. Among his Fuerza plans is having the group expand from hardcore corridos and into radio-friendly romantic fare. -- L.C.
Gustavo Elis
Gustavo Elis is an urban singer from Venezuela who began his career as a breakdancer and eventually discovered the music path after auditioning -- via a reality show -- for the boy band Calle Ciega. On YouTube, his videos have accumulated more than 75 million views and his style of reggaeton includes romantic lyrics as you can see in his clip “La Ultima Vez.” Gustavo Elis kicked off 2018 with a new single and video called “Habibi,” which so far has collected over 5 millions of views in less than a week. Also, Elis will be touring in Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Peru and United States, among others. -- Suzette Fernandez