Valentín Elizalde Valencia (; 1 February 1979 – 25 November 2006) was a

regional Mexican Regional Mexican music refers collectively to the regional subgenres of the country music of Mexico and its derivatives from the Southwestern United States. Each subgenre is representative of a certain region and its popularity also varies by ...

singer. Nicknamed "El Gallo de Oro" (The Golden Rooster), he was known for his off-key style. His biggest hits included: "Vete Ya," "Ebrio de Amor", and " Soy Así" (a cover of José José's classic song). Some of his songs were

narcocorrido A narcocorrido (, "narco-corrido" or ''drug ballad'') is a subgenre of the Regional Mexican corrido (narrative ballad) genre, from which several other genres have evolved. This type of music is heard and produced on both sides of the Mexico–U ...

s eulogizing Mexican drug lords like Vicente Carrillo Fuentes. He also wrote lyrics honoring Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, leader of the Sinaloa Cartel. He was murdered as he left a performance; allegedly by members of the drug trafficking cartel Los Zetas.

Life and career

Elizalde was born in Jitonhueca, a village near the city of Etchojoa,

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

. He then moved to

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

, and later to Guasave,

Sinaloa Sinaloa (), officially the (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 18 municipalities, and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales. It is located in northwest Mexic ...

, where he, his father, also a singer, Everardo "Lalo" Elizalde, nicknamed "El Gallo" (The Rooster), and brothers resided for a few years. His father died in a car accident on the so-called "Curva de la muerte" (Curve of Death) in Villa Juárez, Sonora.

Musical incursion

On June 24, 1998, Elizalde performed for the first time as a singer in Bacame Nuevo, Sonora, during the festivities of a local festival. Under the record label Ayana Musical, in 1999 ''he released Regresan los mafiosos'', his first studio album.

Murder

On 25 November 2006, Elizalde, aged 27 at the time, was shot twenty times as he entered his SUV shortly after finishing a performance in Reynosa, Tamaulipas. His manager and his driver were also killed. The murders were witnessed by hundreds of fans who were attempting to get autographs. Videos of the murder were also posted on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

Motives

It is widely believed that Elizalde was killed for his performances of the

corrido The corrido (Spanish pronunciation: Help:IPA/Spanish, oˈriðo is a famous narrative metrical tale and poetry that forms a Ballad (music), ballad. The songs often feature topics such as oppression, history, daily life for criminals, the vaqu ...

, "A Mis Enemigos", which contains lyrics believed to antagonize drug trafficking gang Los Zetas. Raúl Hernández Barrón, alleged murderer of Elizalde and high-ranking member of Los Zetas, was arrested on 22 March 2008 in Coatzintla, Veracruz.

Legacy

While none of his albums reached the top 20 when he was alive, his albums were top sellers in 2007, after his death. In 2007, Elizalde was nominated posthumously for the Grammy Awards in the category of Best Banda Album.

Family

Elizalde's former girlfriend, Blanca Vianey Durán Brambila, was killed in Sonora, Mexico, in June 2016. His daughter, Valeria, has aspirations of becoming a singer.

Discography

;Albums *Amor que Muere (1998) *Regresan los Mafiosos (1999) *Traición Federal (2000) *17 Éxitos en Honor a mi Padre (2001) *Y se Parece a Ti (2002) *Mi Satisfacción (2003) *Corridos Entre Amigos (2003) *Herencia Mexicana (2004) *Volveré a Amar (2004) *Soy Así (2005) *Vencedor (2006) ;Posthumous albums *La Playa (2007) *Lobo Domesticado (2007) *Más Allá del Mar (2007) *15 Éxitos (2007)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elizalde, Valentin 1979 births 2006 deaths 20th-century Mexican male singers Deaths by firearm in Mexico Mexican murder victims Mexican people of Basque descent People from Etchojoa Municipality People from Guasave People from Navojoa People murdered by Mexican drug cartels Singers from Guadalajara, Jalisco Singers from Sonora