Mexican band has US visas revoked for 'glorifying drug kingpin'

The US State Department has revoked visas held by members of a Mexican set for "glorifying a cause kingpin".

Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the band, Los Alegres del Barranco, had projected an representation of El Mencho onto a surface astatine a caller performance successful Mexico.

El Mencho, whose existent sanction is Nemesio Oseguera Ramos, is the person of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), 1 of the astir feared transnational cause trafficking gangs.

The CJNG is 1 of 8 transgression groups which the Trump medication precocious declared "foreign violent organisations" arsenic portion of its strategy to "ensure the full elimination" of these groups successful the US.

In a post connected X, Landau wrote "in the Trump Administration, we instrumentality earnestly our work implicit foreigners' entree to our country".

He added that "the past happening we request is simply a invited mat for radical who extol criminals and terrorists".

Los Alegres del Barranco had been scheduled to execute much than a twelve concerts successful US states including Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama, Kentucky and California.

Their euphony and that of different norteño bands has gained a ample pursuing successful the US, peculiarly successful areas wherever Mexican-Americans live.

The set fell foul of some the US and the Mexican authorities connected Saturday erstwhile they displayed an representation of El Mencho during their performance successful the Mexican metropolis of Zapopan.

It was projected portion they played a opus which praises him arsenic "a antheral of warfare who loves his family" and extols his exploits arsenic the person of the "cartel with 4 letters", a thinly veiled notation to the CJNG.

Narcocorridos, songs praising cause cartel leaders, are not uncommon successful Mexico.

Many bands playing norteña euphony - a genre characterised by catchy lyrics often sung to a polka-inspired bushed and accompanied by an accordion and the twelve-stringed bajo sexto - are paid by cause barons to constitute these songs.

Some bands trust connected income aboriginal successful their careers from being hired to play astatine backstage parties, galore of which are hosted by radical progressive successful oregon with connections to the cartels.

The opus praising El Mencho is not the lone narcocorrido successful Los Alegres del Barranco's repertoire.

An earlier opus entitled The 701 is astir the person of the Sinaloa cartel, Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, and however helium roseate to fig 701 successful Forbes magazine's database of the world's richest people.

Composed earlier El Chapo was jailed, it describes him arsenic "the world's astir wanted man" who is not lone affluent due to the fact that helium has "many banknotes" but besides due to the fact that helium "can number connected the relationship of the people", the opus claims.

The performance astatine which the set projected the representation of El Mencho came conscionable weeks aft relatives searching for disappeared loved ones came crossed a ranch that has been described by the authorities as a "training and extermination camp" for the CJNG.

Hundreds of abandoned shoes and suitcases, arsenic good arsenic bony fragments and ovens, recovered astatine the ranch look to bespeak that the cartel utilized it to bid radical it had recruited forcibly oregon by deception, sidesplitting those who resisted.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum was among those who criticised the band.

Asked astir the incidental astatine her greeting quality conference, she said that "this shouldn't happen, it's not right" and ordered an investigation.

The vocalist of Los Alegres del Barranco appeared pleased by the notation of his set during the president's quality conference.

Speaking successful a video published connected TikTok, helium answered a fan's question astir it, saying "how cool" it was and thanking radical "for each the enactment we person received".