Delma and I have been struggling to explain Chente to our non-Hispanic friends. He is huge. Not just in Mexico. In the US too, though you probably haven't heard of him if you don't have at least one Mexican friend. He's dominated the charts since 1967. And not just the music charts. ALL the charts (pie charts, eye charts, Allele charts).
He transcends the generational barrier and is one of the few artists that no one in any Mexican family will have qualms with listening to in the car. And the dude is one of the most hard-working artists ever. He's put out an album almost every year since 1967. I think he may have missed a year or two, but there are some years where he released three (3!) albums. I don't even know how that's possible.
The point of all this is that Vicente Fernandez is a big deal. A very, very big deal. We're listening to him RIGHT NOW and singing along. A part of it might be that his music is fun to sing along to when you're drinking. Which any good Mexican family does. A lot.
He's such a big deal that when we heard he was going to make a stop in Chicago for his final tour, we couldn't pass it up. We saw him last night. Here's proof:
See? That's Chente.
It was an awesome experience. He sang for nearly three (3!) hours. I don't know how he still has that awesome voice. And it's not like he's lip-synching either. You can hear when he messes up and he's 72 (72!) years old so he messes up a lot. The Allstate Arena was going nuts, dude. People were stompin' and clappin', Mexican flags were a wavin' and panties were being thrown on stage.
It's more than just his awesome music though. And it's more than the nostalgia factor for me. Sure, when I hear his music, I get taken back to the one-bedroom apartment we lived in when I was six and I smell the caldo de pollo my mom would cook on the stove and it makes me happy. But it's more than all that.
For me at least, it's about connecting with my people. I am a very bad Mexican. I mean, I'm only half-Mexican, so maybe that's a part of it. But my Spanish is atrocious, I can't take more than two shots of tequila or I get sick and I just get super awkward around other Mexicans. I'm already a really awkward guy, but I don't know what to say in situations where it's me and a Mexican dude who only speaks Spanish. Partly because my Spanish sucks, but also partly because I feel like I can't relate.
And that stings, dude. I want to know more about my culture, I want to be proud of it. I mean, I AM proud of my Mexican heritage, but it's like a fair-weather fan being proud of his team when they're winning. If my nationality were an NBA team, I would only be able to name two of the starters (Vicente Fernandez at point-guard and Vicente Fox at center) and no one else. I wouldn't even be able to name the coach or any notable players in said NBA team's history. I mean, maybe Santa Anna? But that's mainly because of his connection to Texas.
I'm in this weird grey area that I feel a lot of second-generation Mexican-Americans are finding themselves in. I know my sisters feel this way. I'm not Mexican enough to be embraced by most Mexicans, yet I'm too Mexican to be fully embraced by some Americans. I'm in culture limbo, never really sure of where I fit in. And that's not a bad thing. I like being a part of the two cultures.
But it's why I cling to Chente's music. It is something I can relate to, something I understand. Like pozole or tacos de lengua, it's a part of my family's culture and history. And when I have kids, I'm going to play his albums on blast for them to listen to. Because I want them to remember their history. I want to remember MY history. I want to learn it.
You want to know how big Chente is? He's the only man my mother would ever cheat on my dad with.
That's how big Chente is.
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