José Ariel Camacho Barraza (July 8, 1992 – February 25, 2015)
was a Mexican singer-songwriter who performed the Sierreño and
Regional Mexican
Regional Mexican is a Latin music radio format encompassing the musical genres from the different parts of rural Mexico and the Southwestern United States. Genres include banda, country en español, Duranguense, grupero, mariachi, New Mexico ...
music genre. He was the lead singer of his band,
Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho. In 2013
Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho signed to JG Records. In 2014 they signed with
DEL Records
DEL Records is an American Spanish language record label founded by Angel Del Villar in 2009. It's headquarters is in Anaheim, California and includes DEL Records, DEL Publishing, DEL Studios and DEL Entertainment, all of which focus on Regional M ...
.
Life
Ariel Camacho was born to Benito Camacho and Reynalda Barraza on July 8, 1992 in
Guamuchil,
Sinaloa
Sinaloa (), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sinaloa), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is d ...
.
He started singing at the age of 12 in Angostura, Sinaloa. When he was in middle school, he met César Iván Sánchez, who played guitar and did back up vocals. Camacho later sought to expand his group and found a tuba player, Omar Burgos. His first concert was held in Tijuana, in which he played for more than 40,000 people. He quickly became known for his expressive way of playing the requinto (12 string guitar). He became known as "La Tuyia" due to a childhood nickname given to him by his grandfather because his guitar was much bigger than him. He decided to form a band in the start of 2013. His band "Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho" consisted of "El Tigre", Cesar Sánchez (rhythm guitar and backing vocals) and Omar Burgos, "El Cenizo" (tuba). Camacho was the lead singer and played lead guitar (Requinto) in the band. His band quickly became known due to their unusual combination of standard guitar, requinto, and tuba. Among their most successful songs were "Hablemos", "Te Metiste", "El Karma" and "Rey de Corazones". He was later nicknamed "El Rey de Corazónes" after releasing "Rey de Corazones" a song that quickly made his group known through social media. Camacho was praised for maintaining a classical element in his regional music by paying attention to the songwriters who had come before him such as Miguel y Miguel (Camacho's favorite artists). He was also a frequent collaborator with other
corrido
The corrido () is a popular narrative metrical tale and poetry that forms a ballad. The songs are often about oppression, history, daily life for criminals, the vaquero lifestyle, and other socially relevant topics. Corridos were widely popular ...
singers, including Grupo Fernandez, Marca Registrada, Los Traviesos De La Sierra and Regulo Caro.
Death
On February 25, 2015,
Camacho and four other people were in a car accident on the road from
Angostura, Sinaloa
Angostura is a city and it is seat of its surrounding municipality in the Mexican state of Sinaloa
Sinaloa (), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sinaloa), is one of the 31 states which, along ...
. Camacho was returning from a performance at a music festival, Carnaval de Mocorito. Camacho and two others died and two other people were injured. They were riding in a 2004 Honda Accord when Camacho lost control. The accident reportedly occurred at two in the morning on highway Angostura- La Reforma. Camacho died on impact. It is unclear whether he was driving intoxicated although it was reported he was driving at excessive speed. He died at the age of 22.
Legacy
Following his death, his group's song "El Karma" reached number one on the
''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs chart in March and the album hit the TOP FIVE of the Latin albums chart. Shortly after his death, his band "Los Plebes del Rancho" changed their name as a tribute to Camacho into "Los Plebes Del Rancho de Ariel Camacho." They continue to make albums in honor of Camacho, like "Recuerden Mi Estilo", alongside Camacho's father, Benito Camacho. Many have paid tribute to Camacho through the use of songs such as
Virlan Garcia with "Hasta el Cielo",
Los Traviezoz de la Zierra with "Mis Ultimos Momentos" and "Un Mentado Ariel." An album in tribute to Camacho was also released in 2017 called "Ariel Camacho Para Siempre" that features artists such as
Gerardo Ortiz
Gerardo may refer to:
People Given name
Gerardo is the Spanish, Portuguese and Italian form of the male given name Gerard.
* Gerardo Amarilla (born 1969), Uruguayan politician
* Gerardo Bonilla (born 1975), Puerto Rican-born professional race ca ...
,
Regulo Caro, and
Revolver Cannabis
A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating firearm, repeating handgun that has at least one gun barrel, barrel and uses a revolving cylinder (firearms), cylinder containing multiple chamber (firearms), chambers (each holding a single ...
.
Each year on the 25th of February in memory of Camacho, his band, family members, fans, and other artists come together at his grave to commemorate him. Ariel is now known by many as "El Rey del Requinto", "El Mentado", "Rey de Corazones" and "La Tuyia."
Discography
* ''La tuyia'' (2013)
* ''El Karma'' (2014)
* ''Hablemos'' (2015)
* ''El Negociante'' (2015)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Camacho, Ariel
1992 births
2015 deaths
Musicians from Sinaloa
Mexican male singer-songwriters
Mexican singer-songwriters
Norteño musicians
Road incident deaths in Mexico
21st-century Mexican singers
21st-century Mexican male singers
People from Guamúchil