Que Sigan Llegando Las Pacas

“Everything happened so fast,” Chino Pacas tells Apple Music. “It’s been a short while, but even my voice has changed. The transition of adolescence has become noticeable.” Cristian Humberto Ávila, the boy from Apaseo el Alto, Guanajuato, was only 16 when he decided to record his first song: “El Gordo Trae El Mando” was a corrido that someone had commissioned from him, and he decided to share it online on a whim. Soon after, he had signed a record deal and collaborated with major genre artists, and his future seemed bright. “Ya no la bajo y ni pienso bajar [I’m not going down, don’t even think about it],” he sings on “Dijeron Que No La Iba Lograr,” a statement of purpose that is now confirmed with the release of his first album.

On the day of his 18th birthday, Pacas dropped Que Sigan Llegando Las Pacas, his full-length debut and an official landing in the major leagues. The album assembles his most notorious songs—both by him and his musical allies—as an emerging corrido star, showcasing a talent in full bloom. “I spent a year and a half on it,” he says. “I had about 50 songs, 30 of which had been recorded, but went through the process of selecting only our favorites.” All the initial viral hits are here, but also future classics like “Mami Chula,” his most experimental track to date, and a much anticipated collaboration with Drake on “Modo Capone,” featuring Fuerza Regida. The singer talked to Apple Music about some of the key songs on the album.

“Smith” feat. Fuerza Regida & Junior H
“This is one of my favorite songs. It kicks off with the sound of an opera and the voice of my buddies Junior and Jesús [Ortiz Paz]. It’s such a great track. We premiered it at the Rolling Loud festival, then played it in Houston, and the response was amazing. We were missing a collaboration with Fuerza Regida, and Jesús offered this song that had already been recorded with Junior. We’re really happy with the result.”

“Morena Canela”
“This song is dedicated to all people, but mostly to dark-skinned girls. It delves into a more romantic vein that I hadn’t explored before. We started to experiment, and this is what we came out with. My friend Armenta wrote it, and I did the vocals. I had never performed this kind of material before; ‘Qué Onda’ is the only one that comes close.”

“Pues Podemos” feat. Turo Pacas
“A killer track that we worked on with my blood brother, Turo Pacas. We always wanted to record something together, did a few tracks but waited to put out a really good one. This one was done over a year ago. We kept it under wraps for a while. Few people knew about it, and we didn’t share it on social media or anything. I liked that we split the songwriting 50/50. I wrote the part that I’m singing, and he did the same. It’s like a fusion of our brains.”

“Modo Capone” feat. Fuerza Regida & Drake
“This is one of the hardest corridos I have. It features Drake and Fuerza Regida, two of the greatest stars in the American music business. We recorded it in Houston, and the process was lightning fast. We spent less than 30 minutes recording Drake’s voice; Jesús and I gave him some guidance. It was a bit difficult for him, but that's to be expected since he doesn't speak Spanish. That said, it flowed quite smoothly.”

“3 Letras (OVO)”
“This is a corrido that we wrote especially for Drake with various artists from the label. He gave me the info, and we came up with this. Some people may not get all the references, because it has some specific words in English—nods to the Drake persona. We did several versions and improvised three variations of the original story. He liked all three, but this was his favorite.”

“Mami Chula”
“I like that it has a bit of an urban tinge. We did a full reggaetón version and decided not to release it, even though that was the original genre. We transposed it to the guitar and it stayed like that. I’ve never put out a reggaetón track, but we’re now working on that with different artists. The second volume of this album will probably include some reggaetón.”

“Otra Vez Pegue Un Vergazo”
“This one is recent. It preserves the sonic identity that marked my beginnings, about a year and a half ago. It’s not that long, but time flies, and you can even hear the changes in my voice. The transition of adolescence has become noticeable. This is one of the few tracks that has my early voice.”