Lalo Mora

A major star in regional Mexican music, singer Lalo Mora, Sr. has recorded some excellent banda albums along the way but has made accordion-powered norteño his primary focus -- first as a member of the popular Los Invasores de Nuevo León from 1980-1993, and more recently as a solo artist. Mora is highly regarded for his expressive performances of ranchera songs and his mastery of corridos (narrative folk ballads that have been an important part of regional Mexican music for generations), and his repertoire has included original material as well as Mexican standards.

Born Eduardo Mora Hernàndez in the Mexican state of Nuevo León, Mora began singing at the age of four -- and by the time he was in his mid-teens, he was earning some money singing in local bars, restaurants, and clubs. Mora started using Lalo Mora as his stage name as a teenager, and it was also during his adolescent years that he enjoyed a small local following as half of a vocal duo called Lupe & Lalo (which also included singer Guadalupe Mendoza). Mora got a major break in 1980, when he was invited to join the norteño group Los Invasores de Nuevo León as a lead vocalist. Los Invasores de Nuevo León were a new group at the time but went on to become a big name in regional Mexican music, and their success brought Mora a great deal of exposure in both Mexico and the United States.

In 1993, Mora left Los Invasores de Nuevo León to become a full-time solo artist (he was replaced by Isaías Lucero, who was replaced by Rigoberto Marroquín four years later in 1997). Leaving a group as visible as Los Invasores de Nuevo León was a gamble for Mora, but it was a gamble that paid off for him commercially; as a solo artist, he became even more famous in the regional Mexican market. Mora built a huge catalog of solo albums, recording for Fonovisa Records (one of the top labels in regional Mexican music) extensively in the '90s and early to mid-2000s. And in the mid- to late 2000s, Mora provided a lot of solo albums for Disa Records (another label that is a major-league player in the regional Mexican market).

In the 21st century, Mora's son Lalo Mora, Jr. has followed in his father's footsteps and pursued a career in music. The 2000s found the younger Mora working as the lead singer/bajo sexto player for Los Herederos de Nuevo León, a norteño group with a strong Invasores de Nuevo León connection; in Los Herederos de Nuevo León, Lalo Mora, Jr. has performed alongside accordion player Javier Rios, Jr., who is the son of singer/accordion player Javier Rios, Sr. (a founding member of Los Invasores de Nuevo León). Lalo Mora, Sr. and Javier Rios, Sr. had spent 13 years performing together in Los Invasores de Nuevo León -- and after reaching adulthood, Lalo Mora, Jr. and Javier Rios, Jr. ended up performing together in Los Herederos de Nuevo León. The elder Mora's Un Millon de Primaveras was issued in early 2017. ~ Alex Henderson, Rovi