A New Voice in Mariachi
Text by Susan Campbell
Photos by Marie Gregorio-Oviedo

Holding her own in the male-dominated world of mariachis, talented singer and musician Crystal De La Cruz has enchanted audiences since the age of six. Here the Latina talks about her life in the spotlight; her band, Relámpago; and her successful TV debut.

As the only female member of the Oxnard-based mariachi group Relámpago, 20-year-old Crystal De La Cruz navigates the maledominated genre with a finesse beyond her years. “It’s a man’s world,” says Crystal’s mother and the group’s manager, Norma De La Cruz. “Very few women are accepted—but Crystal is.” After 14 years on stage, she’s earned their respect.

Crystal’s career in the spotlight began at the age of six, dancing at the Lobero and other venues in Santa Barbara and her hometown of Oxnard. She took up singing at the age of 11, an endeavor that also required her to improve her Spanish. (Her parents, both from Mexico, encouraged speaking English at home.) At 15, she learned the violin, she says, so she wouldn’t have to “stand around” during the instrumentals. Her aunt, a classically trained violinist, gave her an instrument and taught her to play.
Today she sings and plays two to three gigs a week with Relámpago, an eight-member group that includes two additional violinists, two trumpeters, and guitar, vihuela, and guitarrón players. “Mainly I like keeping the traditions and culture alive,” Crystal says. “But I also like breaking the stereotype that people have of mariachis.”

And break it she does. Dressed in the mariachi uniform of a collared shirt with a moño tied at the neck, a vest, and long skirt, she looks every bit the part. But the Latina’s youth, petite frame, and delicate features challenge the broad-shouldered machismo that audiences anticipate. She answers their whispered surprise with a charismatic performance. “She takes my breath away when she performs,” her mom says with equal parts pride and awe.

The downside of her commitment comes in the form of long hours. With bookings every weekend and practice during the week—plus part-time work as a waitress at BJ’s Restaurant and Brewery and classes at Oxnard College—she acknowledges, “I have no social life.” She holds up Mother’s Day weekend as an example. “We worked 22 hours over those two days,” she says, beginning with early-morning serenades, or mañanitas, sung outside mothers’ windows. Patrons also hire the group for birthdays, anniversaries, even marriage proposals. (“One time the girl said no,” she recalls. “We felt so bad.”)

Last year her dedication paid off when she won a spot on the Telemundo reality-TV show, Nuevas Voces de America. The Spanish-language takeoff of American Idol kicked off with an audition of some 9,000 would-be contestants from New York, Puerto Rico, Texas, California, and Miami. The top 20 made it onto the show, which filmed in Florida’s South Beach. “We got complete makeovers, had stylists, makeup artists—we felt like stars,” she says.

But the experience wasn’t always easy. Early 5 a.m. wakeup calls to work out in the gym, plus daily music, choreography and etiquette classes took their toll on Crystal. Required to perform mostly popsongs, an unfamiliar genre given her singular devotion to mariachi, she felt she “buckled” under the pressure. Still, she made it all the way to number 11 before elimination—an achievement that her competitive side doesn’t allow her to fully appreciate.

Notoriety from the show helped bolster her career back home. “In the early days we traveled to festivals in San Jose, New Mexico, Fresno and Los Angeles,” she says. In 2003 and 2004, the band auditioned and won a coveted spot in the Guadalajara International Mariachi and Charro Festival alongside groups from as far away as Japan. These days, they play mainly local gigs that include appearances at the Old Spanish Days Fiesta. Last year Relámpago opened La Fiesta Pequeña to an appreciative crowd at the Santa Barbara Mission.

In the coming year, Crystal hopes to record her first CD and perform a concert for the family and friends who encouraged her during last year’s TV appearances. Of life so far,Crystal says, “I have the best luck in the world.”
For more information about Relámpago, contact Norma De La Cruz at (805) 216-5358.