Ridin' with Cuco at Dodger Stadium

By the clip Cuco arrived astatine Dodger Stadium connected a caller Tuesday evening, thousands of fans were already lined up extracurricular the venue’s gates, waiting to beryllium fto in.

Though the matchup against the Arizona Diamondbacks wouldn’t statesman for different 2 hours, these Doyer diehards made their mode to Chavez Ravine aboriginal to drawback the pre-game festivities. It was Mexican Heritage Night, and the squad had plentifulness of amusement planned for the fanbase that Fernando Valenzuela built: a mini-concert by the legendary La Original Banda el Limón de Salvador Lizárraga; a lucha libre exhibition; and the throwing of the ceremonial archetypal transportation by Chavo Guerrero Jr., scion of the storied Mexican American Guerrero wrestling clan.

Luchadores execute successful the outfield during Mexican Heritage Night astatine Dodger Stadium.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

To implicit this hodgepodge of a taste celebration, the Dodgers besides asked Cuco to sing the nationalist anthem, a fitting invitation fixed that the 26-year-old Inglewood-born and Hawthorne-raised artist, whose existent sanction is Omar Banos, had conscionable enactment retired “Ridin’” (released May 9 via Interscope Records). The LP, his third, is an 11-track gem of L.A. Mexican Americana dripping with the ageless sounds of Chicano soul.

Donning a squad cap, a agelong achromatic tee, achromatic shorts, Dodger bluish Nike SB Dunk Lows and his trademark glasses, Cuco walked into the stadium entranceway reserved for suite-level ticketholders accompanied by his manager and a societal contented creator. Despite a vigor question that raised that day’s temperatures into the precocious 80s, a achromatic Dodgers windbreaker that helium planned to deterioration aboriginal successful the evening hung astir his neck. Pinned to it was a fastener that contained a representation of Jaime Mendoza, his precocious maternal grandfather.

“My grandpa was large connected the Dodgers,” Cuco said, noting that it was due to the fact that of him that his full household rooted for the Boys successful Blue.

Cuco wears a pin with his gramps Jaime Mendoza’s representation astatine Dodger Stadium.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

As Cuco is escorted done the factual bowels of Dodger Stadium by a brace of squad publicists taking him to dependable check, fans spot him and excitedly telephone retired his name. Some adjacent attack him for a selfie. When asked if helium often gets recognized successful public, the singer-songwriter chuckled.

“Yeah, if there’s a batch of Latinos around,” helium quipped. “I’m ever going to accidental yes to a photo. I’m ne'er going to crook them down.”

It’s cliché for immoderate creator to accidental that they’d beryllium thing without their fans, but this adage rings peculiarly existent erstwhile it comes to Cuco. His loyal supporters, dubbed the “Cuco Puffs,” turned a erstwhile precocious marching set geek into a bonafide indie popular star.

He began his vocation successful the mid-2010s by uploading Spanglish lo-fi emotion songs recorded successful his puerility chamber to Soundcloud and Bandcamp. Dreamy, synth-heavy ballads similar “Lover Is a Day” (off of his archetypal mixtape, 2016’s “Wannabewithu”) and “Lo Que Siento” (released arsenic a azygous successful 2017) rapidly connected with countless bicultural, Gen Z Latinos, racking up millions of streams successful the process. By the clip Cuco started performing astatine backyard shows, helium had packed crowds singing each lyric backmost astatine him.

Such was the hype astir him that respective labels got into a two-year bidding warfare to motion the improbable teen idol with a ready-made instrumentality base.

Cuco sings the nationalist anthem earlier the Dodgers game.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

“I don’t request a label. The labels mostly request me,” Cuco told The Times successful 2017. “Like, successful nary cocky way, the world of it is labels enactment up due to the fact that of the artists.”

When Interscope yet won retired successful 2019, it was connected the artist’s presumption — Cuco inked a seven-figure woody that allowed him to clasp ownership of his euphony and gave him the originative state to bash what helium wanted. He was 20 astatine the time.

That summer, helium released his debut album, “Para Mi,” a notable archetypal effort that paired a blissful dependable — inspired by a slew of genres, including psychedelic rock, bossa nova, popular and quiescent tempest R&B — with lyrics that touched connected loneliness and substance maltreatment (“Take this and alert distant till the substance numbs the pain,” helium sings successful “Ego Death successful Thailand”). The album’s archetypal single, “Hydrocodone,” is simply a motion to the symptom medicine helium was connected aft being progressive successful a near-fatal car clang portion retired connected circuit successful 2018.

This March, Cuco celebrated 3 years of sobriety.

The twelvemonth 2022 saw the merchandise of “Fantasy Gateway,” an ambitious conception medium heavy inspired by psych rockers Tame Impala that takes the listener to different dimension, featuring notable collaborations with artists similar Mexico’s indie darling Bratty and chap sadboi romántico DannyLux. “Sitting successful the Corner,” recorded with música Mexicana crooner Adriel Favela and state vocalist Kacey Musgraves, is simply a abstraction popular ranchera that yearns for a person who has left.

“It’s the vibe, man,” helium says of the musicians helium chooses to enactment with. “It’s not truly astir artists being large oregon not. It’s conscionable if I get on with them and they person chill ideas and it aligns with my personality.”

With “Ridin’,” Cuco delivers his astir mature medium to date. Produced by Thomas Brenneck (Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Mark Ronson, Amy Winehouse), the grounds is simply a neo-Chicano psyche instant classical that pays tribute to the likes of Brenton Wood, Al Green and Smokey Robinson — psyche and R&B artists from the ’60s and ’70s whose euphony has been adopted by lowrider and Chicano civilization — each portion maintaining that chiseled Cuco sound, a cleanable matrimony betwixt the aged and the new.

The album’s opener, “ICNBYH” (an abbrevation of “I Could Never Break Your Heart”), would beryllium astatine location successful an “East Side Story” mixtape compilation. Cuco’s psychedelia roots are astir evident successful songs similar “Ridin’,” a way that feels similar you’re cruising connected a spaceship down Whittier Boulevard.

“I couldn’t truly effort to marque thing that sounded precisely similar [Chicano soul]. I was hoping to embody that timelessness, but I had to enactment successful the astir authentic mode imaginable truthful that it felt that way,” helium said.

“I wanted to spell for much earthy sounds with the psyche sound, but I deliberation it’s conscionable inevitable for maine sometimes. I’m conscionable going to extremity up doing immoderate psychedelic parts with the euphony due to the fact that that’s what I’ve ever been.”

“Ridin’” is an medium of the summertime contender for anyone whose thought of summertime means hanging retired astatine the formation with each your friends — this nonstop script describes the euphony video for the album’s archetypal single, “My 45,” which stars Mexican American histrion Xochitl Gomez arsenic a femme fatale.

And portion the LP is teeming with capable vehicular references to marque Bruce Springsteen jealous (the screen shows Cuco sitting connected apical of his 1989 Toyota Supra), Cuco says “Ridin’” isn’t strictly meant for the car.

“I’m hoping that [“Ridin’”] is thing that’s interpreted nevertheless the listener chooses to construe it, whether they’re ridin’ successful your car, ridin’ for idiosyncratic oregon conscionable ridin’ done life,” helium says.

After dependable check, Cuco made his mode backmost to the suite level to hold for the remainder of his enactment to arrive, which included his parents, Adolfo Banos and Irma Mendoza. The lone kid of immigrants, the creator has made it a constituent to stock his occurrence with them. Forgoing wearing thing successful Dodger blue, the elder Banos donned a hoodie from his son’s latest tour. Mendoza showed up wearing a squad chapeau and a striped shirt. Affixed to it was a fastener identical to her son’s. It was her idea; she had made them the nighttime before.

Cuco gets a hug from his dada aft singing the nationalist anthem.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

As it got person to crippled time, the vocalist was ushered down to the tract erstwhile again. It was showtime.

Cuco poses with his parents earlier singing the nationalist anthem.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

“Please basal and region your hats for the singing of the nationalist anthem,” the stadium announcer said implicit the P.A. system. “Joining america contiguous is Cuco, indie popular prima from Hawthorne!”

Cuco took a bushed earlier singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” successful his patented brushed and mellow voice. His parents stood astir 20 feet away, beaming with pride. After it was each over, the vocalist rapidly made his mode to them, and was met with smiles and hugs.

A infinitesimal later, a accumulation adjunct grabs Cuco for his last work of the night. He’s handed a microphone and is escorted backmost to wherever helium performed the nationalist anthem. He’s met by a congregation of luchadores who volition enactment arsenic a chorus arsenic helium delivers the operation popularized by the legendary broadcaster Vin Scully — “It’s clip for Dodger baseball!”

In the fall, Cuco volition spell connected a nationwide circuit to beforehand the medium — he’ll beryllium performing astatine the Greek Theatre connected Sept. 15. But close present it’s summertime and he’s ridin’ with his loved ones, astir to ticker a crippled the Dodgers volition extremity up winning 4-3 successful other innings.