*The competition promoted by the Government of Mexico surpassed one million votes and opened a professional path for young people on both sides of the border.
More than one million votes, 16,289 participants from Mexico and the United States, and three new careers backed by the music industry marked the second edition of México Canta, the Mexican government’s initiative to begin driving the glorification of violence out of regional Mexican music and replace it with stories of identity, love, family, roots, and hope.
Tiffany Cruz Galaviz, from Glendale, California; Lizandro Antonio Espinoza, from Portland, Oregon; and Bryan Soto, from Valle de Chalco, State of Mexico, were chosen by the public as the winners of the final held September 13 at the Auditorio Nacional.
Tiffany captivated the audience with “Cosa fina de mi país”; Lizandro performed “Pena de la buena,” while Bryan Soto, accompanied by Clave 5/7, presented “Labios de cereza.” All three will sign contracts with companies belonging to the Mexican Music Council, according to the official results.
The fact that two of the three winners competed from the United States confirmed the binational reach achieved by a project that, after only two editions, has turned Mexican music into a bridge for young people who grew up between languages, territories, and cultures.
The public response also showed considerable growth. The first edition concluded in 2025 with 222,955 votes, while this year’s final surpassed one million—more than four times the participation recorded during its debut.
A total of 10,528 young people from Mexico and 5,761 from the United States registered for the 2026 competition. Seven representatives from each country advanced to the semifinals, held at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles and the Ángela Peralta Theater in Mazatlán.
Eight reached the Auditorio Nacional: four representing Mexico and four representing the United States. The final was broadcast by more than 40 public media outlets and crossed borders through the international signals of Canal Once and the Canal de las Culturas de México, as well as digital platforms.
México Canta is part of the federal government’s Comprehensive Strategy to Address Root Causes. Its purpose is not to prohibit genres or censor songs, but to offer stages, support, and professional opportunities to those who create models that differ from violence, misogyny, racism, and discrimination.
“It is not about prohibiting; it is about generating other proposals,” Culture Secretary Claudia Curiel de Icaza explained during the final. The official maintained that these new voices demonstrate that it is possible to renew Mexican music without presenting violence as destiny.
That shift in narrative has a face in the young people who participated from the United States. They are the children of immigrants, workers, bilingual artists, and descendants of families who carried Mexico’s songs, customs, and memories with them.
Tiffany Cruz Galaviz, one of this edition’s winners, was born in Los Angeles and grew up in a family shaped by migration. Her mother arrived in the United States when she was around 17 and began working as a seamstress; her father emigrated from Puerto Rico at the same age and has not seen his family in more than six decades.
Her mother enrolled her in a conservatory when she was very young so she could have opportunities that other members of her family had not had.
“To have something like this, where we can have an opportunity and have people we can talk to and trust, knowing they are going to give us good work—yes, I am very grateful,” said the 24-year-old singer.
Lizandro Antonio Espinoza, 21, turned his participation and subsequent victory into a tribute to his grandfather. His family has roots in Morelia, Michoacán, as well as in Durango and Zacatecas. While building his music career, he works nights and reserves his days off for resting and walking through the mountains of Oregon.
“I am here at México Canta because I know that, even if I do not win, I am doing this for my grandfather, in honor of my grandfather. I know that someday, no matter how, I will be great,” he said before becoming one of the three winners.
Among the finalists from the United States was also Joshua Soto, an 18-year-old from the Bronx, New York, whose parents emigrated from Mexico City. When he started school, he was the only child in his class who spoke Spanish, and for years he felt insecure about being Mexican and different from those around him.
Music helped him reconcile with that identity. At the age of five, he showed an interest in singing, and his parents enrolled him in piano lessons at Bronx House, a community center in his neighborhood.
“It is a great pleasure to be here, to have the opportunity to go to Mexico, meet other Mexican Americans, and learn more about my culture,” Soto said.
Rosalba Valdez, a 27-year-old finalist born in Chicago and the daughter of immigrants from Michoacán, said the competition gives Mexican American artists the opportunity to build bridges and raise their voices for their communities.
“Being Mexican American is such a beautiful experience. I carry it with me wherever I go, as an artist, but also in all my work as a human being,” she said.
For Valdez, asserting that identity takes on greater importance amid the attacks and criminalization faced by the immigrant community in the United States.
“Our culture is so beautiful through its music, food, and our hardworking, resilient people. We must continue honoring that,” she emphasized.
Grecia del Carmen Marín, a 25-year-old participant from California, found in México Canta an opportunity to represent regional Mexican music and pass it on to new generations.
During the pregnancy, she recounted, doctors warned her mother that both of them were in danger and that she could be born with Down syndrome. Her mother decided to continue the pregnancy.
“I believe I am living proof that science can also be wrong. It is a source of pride to represent everything that regional Mexican music is and to continue teaching younger generations about all kinds of Mexican music,” she said.
Grecia also highlighted the inclusion of those living north of the border: “It is incredible that the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, is including us. I am very grateful.”
Daniel Ochoa, 25, a resident of Arizona, said participating allowed him to meet performers with different styles and learn about the cultural diversity that exists in Mexico and the United States.
“To me, being Mexican American means that I can represent my Mexican culture while living in the United States and bring my parents’ culture with me,” he explained.
He advised those considering pursuing a similar opportunity not to overthink it: “Just go for it. You may surprise yourself and come away with an experience you would never have had otherwise.”
Miranda González, 28, was born in Colorado, spent part of her childhood in Cancún, and returned to the United States at age 13. For her, both countries are part of the same identity.
“Mexico has always been in my heart and always will be. It is part of me and part of who I am,” she said. “México Canta is something spectacular, something that is going to unite Mexico and change many people’s lives.”
The stories of these seven contestants show that the project’s impact cannot be measured solely by votes. The competition also created a space where young people born or raised in the United States could present themselves as a living part of Mexican culture without having to choose one country over the other.
More than 15,000 young people participated in the first edition, the broadcasts accumulated more than 11 million views, and 25 public media outlets joined the project. In 2026, registrations, participating media outlets, and—most significantly—the public vote all increased.
México Canta has not eliminated expressions that glorify crime and violence on its own, but it has begun competing with them for audiences, stages, and professional opportunities. It does so without prohibitions: it places different songs before the public and offers their writers and performers a path into the industry.
In just two years, that alternative has ceased to be merely a government declaration. More than one million votes and the voices of young people from California, Oregon, Arizona, Colorado, New York, and Chicago show that new Mexican music is also being written far from Mexico and that, on both sides of the border, there is a generation ready to sing about something more than violence.
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