Espinoza Paz

Sinaloan singer-songwriter Espinoza Paz ranks among the most varied, perceptive, and lyrical figures to surface in Musica Mexicana during the opening decades of the twenty-first century. Equipped with a smooth, resonant baritone, he has placed numerous tracks on the charts while supplying material to leading performers such as David Bisbal and Paulina Rubio. His 2008 release El Canta Autor Del Pueblo reached the top ten, after which came Yo No Canto, Pero Lo Intentamos in 2009, Del Rancho Para El Mundo in 2010, Canciones Que Duelen in 2011, and Un Hombre Normal in 2012, each finishing inside the Top 200. The 2016 album No Pongan Esas Canciones, together with 2018’s A Veces and Las Compuse Para Ti, rose to or near the summit of the Mexican Regional Albums chart. Also in 2018 he issued Hombre Normal, Vol. 2 and Hombre, while Que No Se Caiga el Ritmo arrived in 2019. The ballads collection Imborrable appeared in 2020 and was succeeded by the three-volume live set Que Te Duela Más Que A Mí in 2021. Paz resumed studio work with the cumbia-themed El Moreno Natural in 2024.

Born Isidro Chávez Espinoza in La Angostura, Sinaloa, Mexico, Paz composed his first song at age eleven. He moved to Sacramento, California, in 1996 and took work as an agricultural laborer, yet after his mother’s death he returned home to launch a career as a singer-songwriter. Breakthrough arrived when popular sinaloense banda vocalist El Coyote recorded several of his compositions, beginning with the 2005-2006 hits “Besitos en el Cuello,” “Prohibido,” and “Para Impresionarte.” Paz soon wrote for an extensive roster of regional Mexican acts that included Sergio Vega, La Arrolladora Banda el Limón, Banda Cuisillos, Julio Chaidez, Banda de Jerez, Jenni Rivera, Chuy Lizarraga, Adair Elizalde, El Potro de Sinaloa, El Chapo de Sinaloa, and Duelo, among many others. Especially significant was his work with Banda Cuisillos, who featured five of his songs on the successful 2007 comeback album Mil Heridas, among them the title-track smash. That same year Paz launched his own recording career with the full-length debut Paz en Tu Corazón, issued through Nueva Generacion Music Group. An independent follow-up, Amigo con Derechos, appeared in 2008 before Universal Latino signed him and released El Canta Autor del Pueblo on its Machete Music imprint. Drawing on earlier favorites such as “El Celular” and “Amigo con Derechos,” the album yielded the single “El Proximo Viernes,” which entered the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks chart. Later in 2008 Disa issued the compilation Mis Éxitos con Tololoche.

Paz registered simultaneous success as both performer and writer. While his own recordings sold steadily, he also supplied major hits to established and emerging artists alike. The 2009 single “Lo Intentamos,” previewing Yo No Canto, Pero Lo Intentamos, topped both airplay and Top Latin Albums charts and earned platinum certification in Mexico. During this period La Arrolladora Banda el Limón, Jenni Rivera, Calibre 50, Julión Álvarez, and Duelo all sought his material.

The sequence of hits persisted. Subsequent albums charted reliably: 2010’s multi-platinum best-seller Del Rancho Para el Mundo, 2011’s Canciones Que Duelen (reaching numbers two and one respectively on the Latin Albums charts), and the 2012 compilation Un Hombre Normal, certified five-times Gold in Mexico. Individual singles likewise performed strongly. In 2011 Paz received Songwriter of the Year honors at both the Billboard and BMI Latin Music Awards. His duet singles with Jenni Rivera (“No Llega el Olvido”), Maria Jose (“Así o Más”), and Paulina Rubio (“Me Voy”) also registered solid radio, chart, and sales results.

Late that year a disagreement with his manager and label prompted Paz to announce an unexpected retirement. Although no new albums followed immediately, he appeared on the duet singles “Te Pudiera Deci” with Gerardo Ortiz and “Te La Pasa” with Tito Torbellino the next year. In 2014 he performed at the Latin Grammy Awards alongside Banda el Limon and released the number-six single “Por Que La Engane?” In 2015 he recorded the duet “Siempre en Mi Mente” with Juan Luis Guerra and issued the solo track “Perdí la Pose,” the latter nominated for Song of the Year at the Latin Grammys.

Strong single-chart showings over the prior three years culminated in 2016, when the digital-only Para Mi Ex on independent O Music reached number one on the Mexican Regional charts.

Paz independently released four albums in 2018—Las Compuse Para Ti on Valentine’s Day, A Veces in May, Literalmente in August, and Mujer in November—all through Viernes Music, with the first two entering the Mexican Regional Albums chart. He followed with three full-length projects in 2019: Hombre Normal, Vol. 2 in January, Hombre in February, and Que No Se Caiga el Ritmo in November. Although none charted, he continued writing prolifically for others.

Amid the pandemic Paz issued the banda love-song collection Imborrable, then the three-volume live retrospective Que Te Duela Más Que A Mí. He toured in 2022, released the charting singles “Ese Soy Yo” and “Eres Amor,” and collaborated as both guest and co-writer with Juan Fernando Velasco on “Chao Lolas.” In 2023 he returned to intensive recording, issuing ten singles under his own name, among them the homesick ballad “Enloquecido,” the ranchera “Suenos Con Alas,” and “Yo Baila Con Bando.” His mariachi single “El Original” featured Pipe Bueno as duet partner. He also guested on Luis R. Conriquez’s “Ciega Por Ti” and partnered with Memo Garza on the romantico track “La Sonrisa Obligatoria.”

Cumbia captured Paz’s attention in 2023. Although he had previously written and performed in the style, he resolved to record an entire album of originals rather than cover standards. From late that year through February 2024 he wrote, demoed, and tracked the material with a full band augmented by expanded horn and backing-vocal sections. In April 2024 he released the fifteen-song El Moreno Natural, which he produced; the sole guest, singer Mariana Seone, joined him on the uptempo single “El Cojin.” Two weeks after the album’s arrival Paz issued the standalone ballad “La Mitad de la Mitad” ahead of touring throughout the Americas.