Fuerza Regida Sells Out MSG, Hollywood Bowl on Same Weekend
Fuerza Regida celebrated their newest album 111xpantia with back-to-back shows on opposite coasts. Over the weekend, the música mexicana band sold out a show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden Friday night and followed it with a sold-out Los Angeles night at the Hollywood Bowl Saturday.
“Selling out MSG and the Hollywood Bowl back-to-back is something we dreamed about, but to actually live it — that’s different,” frontman JOP tells Rolling Stone. “That’s history and we are always making history- that’s what we do. This isn’t just a win for us, it’s a win for the culture, for everyone who’s been riding with us since day one and for our genre.”
He adds, “Música mexicana is global and we are just getting started.”
With the two shows, the band becomes the first act to sell out both venues in the same weekend. During both shows, the group started off with filled their setlist with 111xpantia tracks, including “Peliculiando,” “Por Esos Ojos,” and “Marlboro Rojo.” In Los Angeles, JOP also brought out El Chuyin, Chino Pacas, and Clave Especial for “Como Capo.” The band also played their collaboration hits “Tu Boda,” “Me Jalo,” and even “Igualito a Mi Apá,” the group’s song with Peso Pluma.
JOP took a moment to briefly allude to the attacks on immigrants during the show. “No one is going to stop Mexicans. Mexicanos hay pa’rato, viejo,” JOP said onstage at one point, causing the venue to erupt in applause. “Arriba, Los Angeles. Arriba, Mexico!”
Earlier in the week, JOP addressed how the ICE raids were affecting their large audience, but assured that the threats wouldn’t affect their show. “It’s a fucked up situation but we’re here to help,” he told Variety. “We don’t want to disappoint nobody, and I know a lot of people bought their tickets and are looking forward to being with a community. That’s why we’re still going forward… the show must go on.”
Fuerza Regida opened both shows with dancers, showcasing folklore and tradition. Aztec choreography took over the massive stages for a moving ceremony honoring the Nahautl inspiration behind 111xpantia‘s manifestation concept. In Los Angeles, after the dancers, the Hollywood Philharmonic took the stage for orchestral takes of some of the group’s hits.
The Los Angeles and New York City dates are the only two U.S.-based shows the band has scheduled for 2025. The band is set to headline Estadio GNP Seguros on July 26, before stops in Guadalajara, Monterrey, and a pair of shows in Colombia later this year.
111xpantia marks the highest-charting Spanish-language album by a duo or group on the Billboard 200, and the highest-charting album in the música mexicana genre. It sat at Number Two on the chart, with Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos at Number One — the first time the top two albums in the U.S. were in Spanish. “We said it before the album even dropped, we were gonna make history,” Paz told Rolling Stone, reacting to the news. “This is a huge moment for Latin music, and we’re proud to help take the genre, to take música mexicana to this level.”
