of the genre, which tends to erase the stylistic or structural characteristics of "revolutionary" or traditional corrido without a clear and unified understanding of its evolution. This is mainly signified by the "narcocorrido", many of which are egocentric ballads paid for by drug smugglers to anonymous and almost illiterate composers (more about this assertion here l [dead link]), but with others coming from the most popular norteño and banda artists and written by some of the most successful and influential ranchera composers. 1. La Cucaracha (chorus only) Performed by Sean Buss & Elisa Problems playing this file? See media help. Songs about the battle of Ciudad Juarez titled Toma de Ciudad Juárez In the Mestizo-Mexican cultural area, the three variants of corrido (romance, revolutionary and modern) are both alive and sung, along with popular sister narrative genres, such as the "value" of Michoacán state, the "son arribeño" of the Sierra Gorda (Guanajuato, Hidalgo and Querétaro states) and others. Its vitality and flexibility allow original corrido lyrics to be built on non-Mexican musical genres, such as blues and ska, or with non-Spanish lyrics, like the famous song El Paso by Marty Robbins, and corridos composed or translated by Mexican indigenous communities or by the "Chicano" people in the United States, in English or "Spanglish". The corrido was, for example, a favourite device employed by the Teatro Campesino led by Luis Valdez in mobilizing largely Mexican and Mexican-American farmworkers in California during the 1960s. Corridos have seen a renaissance in the 21st century. Contemporary corridos feature contemporary themes such as drug trafficking (narcocorridos), immigration, migrant labour and even the Chupacabra.[6] Subcategories Narcocorridos Main article: Narcocorrido Modern artists have created a modern twist to the historical corridos. This new type of corridos is called narcocorridos (literally "drug ballads").[7] The earliest form of corridos emerged in the Mexican Revolution and told stories of revolutionary leaders and battles. Narcocorridos typically use real dates and places to tell mainly stories of drug smuggling but also include violence, murder, poverty, corruption, and crime.[8] The border zone of Rio Grande has been credited with being the birthplace of narcocorridos. This began in the 1960s with the fast growth of drug empires in the border states of Mexico and the United States.[9] As drug lords grew in influence, people idolized them and began to show their respect and admiration through narcocorridos.[9] There are two main types of narcocorridos: commercial