Billboard Explains: Peso Pluma & The Mexican Music Boom

Regional Mexican music, or música mexicana, isn’t a trend, it’s a movement that has only grown stronger in the past few years.

A new generation of artists such as Peso Pluma, Eslabon Armado, Fuerza Regida, Natanael Cano, Grupo Frontera, Yahritza y Su Esencia, among others, have helped usher a new global era for the legacy genre, which has been around for more than 100 years. The new generation continues to honor the music of their parents and grandparents by putting their on spin on the traditional sound — either by fusing it with other genres, such as hip-hop, modernizing the lyrics for a more Gen Z approach and/or collaborating with non-regional Mexican artists for a wider reach.

According to Luminate, regional Mexican music consumption in the United States jumped 42.1% year to date through May 25, outpacing gains in the Latin genre overall, as well as country, dance/electronic, rock and pop. Only K-pop — up 49.4% year to date — has performed better this year than regional Mexican. About 99% of regional Mexican consumption comes from streaming. 

With Peso Pluma at the center of it, to date, he has over 700 million on-demand official streams in the United States, according to Luminate, and 22 entries on the Billboard Hot 100. In June, he became the first artist to ever lead both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. lists simultaneously with different songs: the sierreño anthem “Ella Baila Sola” with Eslabon Armado and his Bizarrap-produced track “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 55.” His album Génesis debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 (dated July 1) — the highest rank ever for a música mexicana album on the chart.

The latest episode of Billboard Explains looks into what it is about Peso Pluma and other more newer artists that are are catching everyone’s attention. Check it out above.

Watch the latest Billboard Explains above. After the video, catch up on more Billboard Explains videos and learn about the role record labels play, origins of hip-hop, how Beyoncé arrived at Renaissance, the evolution of girl groups, BBMAs, NFTs, SXSW, the magic of boy bands, American Music Awards, the Billboard Latin Music Awards, the Hot 100 chart, how R&B/hip-hop became the biggest genre in the U.S., how festivals book their lineups, Billie Eilish’s formula for success, the history of rap battles, nonbinary awareness in music, the Billboard Music Awards, the Free Britney movement, rise of K-pop in the U.S., why Taylor Swift is re-recording her first six albums, the boom of hit all-female collaborations, how Grammy nominees and winners are chosen, why songwriters are selling their publishing catalogs, how the Super Bowl halftime show is booked and why Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License” was able to shoot to No. 1 on the Hot 100.

Purchase tickets to the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Week here.