Chalino Sánchez

Rosalino Sánchez Félix was born on "Las Flechas", a small ranch in Sinaloa. He was the youngest of seven children. His parents were Santos Sanchez (?–1964) and Senorina Felix (?–1991). Chalino grew up poor and lived a difficult life. His sister, Juana, called him a curious and mischievous child who always dreamed about becoming a singer. His birth name was Rosalino, but he preferred his nickname Chalino since Rosalino sounded too feminine for Sanchez.[1]

In 1975 when he was 15, his sister was raped. Two years later in 1977, a 17-year-old Chalino saw the man at a party and allegedly shot him in revenge, killing him.[2] After committing this act, Sanchez left for Tijuana with his gun and a Jesús Malverde chain. During his time in Tijuana, he worked as a "coyote" (an immigrant smuggler), taking immigrants into the United States.

The same year, Chalino himself crossed into the United States as an undocumented immigrant worker. He began in Oregon and later moved to Los Angeles to live with his aunt in Inglewood, California. He washed dishes, sold cars, and, according to his friends, dealt small quantities of marijuana and cocaine. He also helped his older brother, Armando, run an immigrant-smuggling operation.[1]

Chalino met Marisela Vallejos through his cousin, Rosalba; in 1984 they married in a simple and intimate wedding. They married with their son, Adán Sánchez, on the way and had a second child, Cynthia Sanchez. They were married until Chalino Sanchez's death in 1992.

In 1984, Armando was shot and killed in a hotel in Tijuana, which inspired Chalino to compose his first corrido or ballad.[3] Around this time, Chalino was arrested. He began composing songs for his fellow inmates and anyone with a story worth telling.[4] Chalino began to earn money through his compositions and would be gifted with guns and 'presents' by his customers. Among his many customers were Lucio Villareal, El Pelavacas,[5] and Jorge "El Coquio" Castro. A small group known as "Los Cuatro de la Frontera" recommended Chalino go to a recording studio in Olympic Boulevard in Los Angeles. The studio was called San Angel Records and was owned by Angel Mariscal. Originally another artist was meant to sing Chalino's songs, but he canceled, so Chalino sang his own songs.

In 1989, Chalino recorded his first cassette of 15 songs. While selling his cassettes out of his car trunk, Chalino stocked tapes at local swapmeets, bakeries, and various other businesses across South Central Los Angeles. Chalino connected with another Mexican immigrant, Pedro Rivera, who had set up a small recording studio in Long Beach, California. Called Cintas Acuario, this studio allowed aspiring musicians to record for cheap.

Chalino and Rivera pioneered the "prohibited corridos" (corrido prohibido), songs that mythologized drug smugglers, murderers, or "valientes". The Cintas Acuario roster (which later included Pedro's children, Lupillo, Juan, and the late Jenni Rivera) was not initially aired on radio, but they became the foundation of the Latino genre in Los Angeles.

Promoters across the Southland quickly sought to book Chalino at their clubs. Chalino sang his songs in his cadence and Sinaoloan slang, something no big singer had ever tried to do.[6]

On 15 May 1992, four months after the Coachella incident and during a performance at the Salon Bugambilias in Culiacán, Chalino was handed a note from someone in the crowd. The note is believed to have been a death threat, but has not been confirmed. A video recording of the song "Alma Enamorada" shows Chalino crumpling up the note before singing the song. After midnight, Chalino drove away from the club with two of his brothers, a cousin, and several young women. They were pulled over by a group of armed men in black Chevrolet Suburbans. They showed state police ID cards and told Chalino their commander wanted to see him. Chalino agreed and got into one of their cars while the others stayed behind.

The following day, at six in the morning, two farmers found Chalino's body by an irrigation canal near Highway 15, near the neighborhood of Los Laureles, Culiacán. He was blindfolded and his wrists had rope marks. He had been shot in the back of the head twice.[14]

Chalino's son Adán Sánchez followed his father's footsteps and was also a successful Regional Mexican singer; however, he died due to injuries sustained in a car accident at the age of 19.[15]

Since his death, his fame and recordings have grown in popularity. Chalino still amasses millions of streams three decades after his death and remains popular with young Hispanic listeners.

“ Note that these cassette were released when he was alive, this means it doesn’t include compilations or releases after his death”

• 1988 Mas Exitos Con Chalino Sanchez
• 1988 Mas Éxitos Con Chalino Sánchez “Esclava Sellada”
• 1988 Chalino Sanchez Canta Corridos Al Estillo Culiacan
• 1988 Chalino Sanchez Puro Culiacan
• 1989 El Gallo de Sinaloa
• 1989 El Bandido Generoso
• 1989 A Todo Sinaloa
• 1989 El Pela Vacas
• 1990 Dos Cruces Negras
• 1990 Homenaje a Pollero
• 1990 Y Sigue la Balacera
• 1990 13 Mejores Exitos
• 1991 Nieves De Enero Con Los Amables Del Norte
• 1991 Chalino Sánchez Con La Banda La Costeña De Ramón L. Alvarado
• 1991 Alma Enamorada
• 1991 El Pavido Navido
• 1992 Chalino Sánchez Con Banda La Costeña “Corridos Y Canciones”
• 1992 Adiós a Chalino

“Released On“:

Rosalino Records

Cintas Acuario

Musart

Disco Linda

• Quinones, Sam. (2001). True Tales from Another Mexico: The Lynch Mob, the Popsicle King, Chalino and the Bronx University of New Mexico Press www.samquinones.com