Natanael Cano

Leading the 21st-century corridos tumbados movement, also called trap corridos, stands charting singer-songwriter Natanael Cano, whose work fuses hip-hop beats, signature production elements, rapping, chanting, and additional urbano touches with Mexico’s longstanding folk-song lineage dating back 150 years. He stands alongside a small circle of peers who have expanded the corrido template, among them Arsenal Efectivo, Piso 21, and Fuerza Regida. His profile rose sharply through the 2019 remix single “Soy el Diablo,” a collaboration with Bad Bunny; by that point Cano had already spent years refining the hybrid sound, a trajectory visible in early YouTube successes such as “El F1” and “El Drip.” Both tracks accumulated tens of millions of views and cleared the path for the 2019 album Corridos Tumbados, which reached number four on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart. The same year, “El de la Codeína” climbed to the top of Apple Music’s Latino ranking.

Born in 2001 in Hermosillo, Sonora, Cano displayed an early passion for music that his parents never anticipated would dominate his life. At age 13 he began teaching himself guitar by studying Ariel Camacho videos because lessons were beyond the family’s means. He left school at 16 to focus entirely on music, and by 17 he was uploading original material to YouTube and other social platforms. Rancho Humilde, the label headed by Jimmy Humilde and known for its close connection to underground currents, signed him at 18 and promptly released singles on SoundCloud and YouTube; the first of these, “El de la Codeína” and “Perfecta,” quickly drew attention.

Throughout 2019 both artist and label intensified their push across streaming and social media with a wave of tracks that included “Soy el Diablo,” “El de los Gentes Gucci,” and “El Drip.” In spring Cano issued the ten-track digital mini-album Todos Es Diferente, its later portion featuring guest Ruben Figueroa on “El Gryffindor.” That fall Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny, impressed by “Soy el Diablo,” reached out to contribute a remix, marking Bunny’s first venture into Mexican regional music; he teased the track on Instagram ahead of its Halloween release. Rancho Humilde issued Corridos Tumbados on the same date, an album built solely on bass-and-guitar rhythms that dispensed with the tuba and accordion traditionally associated with the style; it debuted at number one on the Mexican albums chart.

In July 2020 Cano delivered the EP Trap Tumbado, produced by Play N Skillz and Young Hollywood. The full-length Soy El Nata followed in September, with Las 3 Torres, a joint project alongside Ovi and Junior H, arriving in December. His sixth studio album, A Mis 20, appeared in May 2021 and peaked at number nine on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart. NataKong, released in April 2022, included appearances by Steve Aoki and Grupo Codiciado and reached number 12 on the same tally. The 2023 set Nata Montana presented 15 expansive corridos tumbados whose guest roster featured Peso Pluma on “Pancakes,” Junior H on “Eres,” and Chino Pacas on “En Corto,” among others; it rose to number five on the Top Latin Albums chart.