El Komander tickets

El Komander tour dates

Alfredo Rios, known professionally as El Komander, is a Mexican singer-songwriter who specializes in the alternative musical genre narcocorridos, or drug ballads, that detail the lives, violence and wealth of Mexico's notorious drug lords. His concerts are known for being high energy, with excellent live instrumentals; he performs with a live band made up of other Mexican musicians, who seamlessly recreate his singles for a live audience. Rios, singing in Spanish, has clear, pitch-perfect vocals that speak of someone with years of training.

El Komander regularly performs on both sides of the border, since his fame has grown from his Mexican roots to include Los Angeles, Las Vegas and other areas of the southwestern United States.

El Komander's background

Alfredo Rios, born in Sinaloa, Mexico, began his career singing traditional styles of Mexican music, such as Mariachi, cancions and bandas. However, in an attempt to distinguish himself from other Mexican artists, he moved to singing narcocorridos. Narcocorridos as a genre has its roots in other traditional Mexican music, but its focus is solely on Mexico's many drug lords and their associated violence.

His initial debut was on the live En Vivo! Desde Badiraguato! which was recorded on La Disco Records in 2006; Rios has released several more albums over the years. The first full-length album was El Katch in 2009, which produced the hit Nomas por Ser Sinaloense.

In 2010, he released Archive Privado; 2011 saw El Komander release Y Seguimos La Borrachera followed quickly in 2012 with the live Desde Zapopan (En Vivo). Desde Zapopan (En Vivo) was then rereleased in 2013 with bonus tracks and a video for his hit single Cuernito Armani. In 2014, Rios released Cazador, with Detras del Miedo following in 2015.

Rios is known for his energetic live shows that showcase a live band, and his hits El Papel Cambio and Soy de Rancho are clear fan favorites at nearly every show. His shows are not without controversy, however. Mexican officials view narcocorridos as glorifying the violence of the very real drug wars happening throughout Mexico, and concert promoters were once fined $8,000 for having El Komander perform in Chihuahua City in 2013. Rios threatened to quit music altogether because Mexico's government put pressure on him to cease performing, and he briefly retired in 2014 due to all the scrutiny.

El Komander's collaborations and appearances

Each El Komander tour includes a live Mexican band. He tours extensively throughout Mexico and the United States, and he performs in venues like the Rabobank Theater and Convention Center in Bakersfield and the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles.

Similar to El Komander

Fans who have purchased El Komander tickets might also enjoy other popular narcocorridos singers like Gerardo Ortiz and Los Huracanes del Norte.