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Jorge Hernandez is the lead vocalist, accordion player, and front-man of the popular norteno band, Los Tigres del Norte.

Early Life
Jorge Hernandez was born in 1954 in a small town in Sinolea, Mexico. As a child Jorge and his four brothers moved around quite a bit. By the age of 14, the family had lived in 3 towns, Rosa Morada, Los Mochis, and Mexicali. Music had always been a part of Jorge’s life, and he had been performing professionally in surrounding cantinas since he was eight. Jorge and his brothers would also occasionally serenade the workers at the ranch where Jorge’s father worked. Jorge learned the accordion from his maternal grandfather, who was a musician at the Limon ranch nearby. Jorge’s father did not support his sons’ musical endeavors, but in 1968 he became injured and was no longer able to work. Jorge and his brothers crossed the border into the United States in late 1968 and went to San Jose, California to find work as musicians in order to support their family. They soon met Arturo Walker, of the record company Discos Famos, who took the boys under his wing. They continued to work in San Jose, CA for the next several years in order to support their family in Mexico.

Musical Career
Jorge Hernandez started the band Los Tigres del Norte in 1968, after moving to San Jose, CA. As the director and the accordion player, Jorge Hernandez became the frontman of the band. The band got local recognition, but did not receive international recognition until the mid-1970s. Their main success came after Jorge and the band’s agent, Arturo Walker, heard a mariachi band sing a song about a drug runner. This inspired Jorge and the other members of the band to record a version of the song, which became their first big hit, “Contrabando y Traición”. The band continues to push boundaries, while focusing on the lives of the Mexican people. They generally touch on subjects of drug smuggling and immigration, but their music encompasses a wide range of subject matter and emotion. In 2007 the band was honored as a BMI Icon at the BMI Latin American Music Awards. The band has recorded over 55 albums, including gold and platinum records. Since 1932, Los Tigres del Norte have sold over thirty four million records. Furthermore, with a career spanning 30 years, this norteno band is the longest-running group in the genre. The group has been able to maintain its popularity due to the unyielding devotion to their fan base. During concerts, the band takes song suggestions from the crowd and goes on to play all the songs suggested. In 2009, the band played a twelve hour long concert, breaking their previous record of nine hours. This dedication has led to a supportive fan base, that has continued to support the band throughout generations.

Rise of the narcocorrido
The song “Contrabando y Traición” was the band’s first big hit, and led to the rise of a new genre of music, the narcocorrido. From a young age, Jorge has always had a fondness for singing stories or “corridos”. When he was young, Jorge and his brothers would serenade workers on the ranch with popular corridos of the time. Corridos, which began in the early 20th century as a way to idolize folk heroes, were generally stories of the struggles of the Mexican people. As drug smuggling and illegal immigration became more prominent in their lives, Jorge and his brothers adapted these stories to fit the lives of the Mexican people. Los Tigres del Norte released several other narcocorrido hits such as, “La Banda del Carro Rojo” and “El Mojado Acaudalado.” The narcocorrido has become a popular form of music in Mexican and Mexican-American culture, becoming a large part of mainstream Mexican music. The narcocorrido has also added substantially to a new cultural movement called narcoculture, or the culture surrounding the Mexican drug trade. This cultural movement, which has in recent years become popular among many Mexicans is one reason for the wide success of the narcocorrido.

Effects on other genres
The band’s success also led to the rise of other Latin genres such as norteno music. This recognition has helped to redefine Mexican music as a major contender for such awards as the Latin Grammys. The band has also helped to evolve the genre. “I think norteno has been evolving. It's the only type of music I've experienced that's stable. The public always buys the product” says Jorge Hernandez. Jorge is optimistic about the future of norteno music, but also feels that it may be becoming more corrupt, especially in Los Angeles, where the music is becoming more explicit in nature.

Critical Reception
The brothers have had a long career spanning thirty five years, including 55 albums, some of which went gold or platinum. They have been honored as a BMI icon at the BMI Latin American Grammys. They have a large fan following, who lovingly refer to them as “Los Idoles del Pueblo.” As Teresa Aguilera, a Mexico City music critic, said “"They definitely are the most respected norteño group. Although corridos date back to the Mexican Revolution they usually dealt with historic figures. Los Tigres, however, gave them a twist, daring to speak on subjects that other people wouldn't touch." Los Tigres del Norte have been pushing the boundaries on Mexican music for over three decades, and are considered by most to be the undisputed kings of the norteno genre. According to Chon Noriega, director of the Chicano Studies Research Center at the University of California in Los Angeles, Los Tigres del Norte are the most popular Spanish speaking music group in the US. Noriega attributes this popularity to their widespread message directed at the poor, working class Mexican and Mexican-American.