With record-breaking Forum performance, Maná gets crowned as the 'Kings of L.A.'

As Maná entered the bowels of the Kia Forum connected Friday night, its members received a royal invited from the USC Marching Band, the Inglewood High School set and the Los Angeles Clippers Spirit Team.

That evening’s show marked the Mexican stone band’s 43rd arena amusement successful the L.A. area, surpassing Bruce Springsteen’s grounds for astir arena performances successful the region.

In grant of Maná’s longstanding past with L.A. and the historical Forum venue, a imperishable partition installation was revealed backstage astatine the venue pursuing their spectacle-filled accomplishment that read: “Mana - Kings of L.A.”

Overall, the Grammy winners person played much than 30 shows astatine the Forum; successful 2012, they played 11 consecutive sold-out shows astatine Staples Center successful enactment of their eighth medium “Drama Y Luz.”

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Further tying them to L.A. is their prima connected the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which was cemented successful 2016.

Formed successful the Mexican metropolis of Guadalajara successful the mid-1980s, Maná archetypal played successful L.A. successful 1993 pursuing the merchandise of their acclaimed 1992 medium “¿Dónde Jugarán los Niños?” The set was instrumental successful popularizing the stone en español genre, and their euphony is often heard crossed the Southland, from location parties to sporting events.

Earlier this year, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced that the radical was among the 14 artists nominated for the 2025 inductee class, alongside Oasis, Mariah Carey, Outkast and Cyndi Lauper.

Though the set was yet not inducted into the Rock Hall this year, they represented the archetypal chiefly Spanish-language enactment to beryllium nominated for induction.

“This unsocial makes Maná’s information important successful an progressively planetary society,” De Los contributing columnist Alex Zaragoza wrote backmost successful February. “But erstwhile considering the Mexican band’s interaction connected Latin music, arsenic good arsenic the Trump administration’s expanding crackdowns connected immigrants successful the United States, their inclusion is imperative.”

Weeks aft tens of thousands of Angelenos gathered for “No Kings” protests against the policies of President Trump, the recently minted “Kings of L.A.” showed solidarity with the galore residents of their “second home” who person been affected by the existent administration’s actions successful caller months.

Manás Fher Olvera turns toward a cheering sellout assemblage portion performing with the set astatine the Kia Forum connected Friday.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

“L.A. has ever been precise influential for america ... and we’ve seen the metropolis evolved,” pb vocalist Fher Olvera told The Times. “We’ve seen that Latinos person continually gained power, but besides that the problems facing the assemblage present person grown, particularly implicit the past fewer years.”

Following the archetypal question of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids that took spot passim L.A. successful June, Maná was among the galore artists that spoke retired against ICE’s actions by reaffirming that immigrants and Latinos “make this state great.”

“Right present our connection is to person faith, bash not despair,” Olvera said. “Like the Buddhists say, ‘Everything shall pass.’ And these problems volition besides walk and thankfully it won’t instrumentality excessively agelong [because] statesmanlike word don’t past truthful agelong — though this word has felt similar 5 minutes underwater.”

Olvera expressed optimism astir the aboriginal of Latinos successful the U.S., pointing to the increasing powerfulness of the confounding Latino vote.

“The powerfulness of Latinos volition proceed connected aft this [period], and Latinos volition beryllium the ones to alteration aboriginal elections,” helium said. “And that scares [politicians], but there’s nary mode of going back.”

Drummer Alex Gonzalez noted that determination hasn’t been immoderate issues with ICE astatine their concerts since the onset of Trump’s 2nd word and called connected Latinos to cognize and usage their rights passim the country.

That sentiment was much intelligibly expanded connected erstwhile the set closed retired the Friday amusement with a truncated rendition of Bob Marley’s 1973 deed “Get Up, Stand Up.”

“Get up, basal up / Stand up for your close / Get up, basal up / Don’t springiness up the fight,” Olvera belted retired aft delivering an impassioned code astir the Latino assemblage to the packed stadium.

“I deliberation it’s important to instrumentality vantage of the signifier we person to stock messages astir the situation and quality rights,” guitarist Sergio Vallín told The Times. “[We’ve] besides stood for thing affirmative for our fans.”

Mexican pop-rock set Maná performs astatine the Kia Forum successful Inglewood.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

From their earliest tracks, the radical has commented connected societal issues successful tracks specified arsenic “Falta Amor,” “Me Voy a Convertir en Un Ave,” “Justicia, Tierra y Libertad” and their screen of Rubén Blades’ “Desapariciones,” which discusses however dictatorships crossed Latin America person disappeared citizens.

In 1996, Maná launched the Selva Negra Foundation — named aft a opus released that twelvemonth with the aforesaid sanction — which protects species, restores ecosystems and promotes biology education. They person besides been vocal successful protecting susceptible oversea turtle taxon successful Mexico and prominently diagnostic oversea turtle motifs successful their performance acceptable designs.

Friday nighttime besides served arsenic an juncture for families to transportation connected the bequest of Maná fandom and to person cross-cultural connections done the band’s music.

Maritza Castillo was celebrating her 48th day with her husband, 2 children and siblings-in-law astatine the concert. A autochthonal of San Miguel el Alto successful Jalisco, Mexico, she was archetypal exposed to Maná astatine property 16.

“I emotion Maná due to the fact that it brings maine backmost to my younker and they were the archetypal performance I’d ever been to present successful the States,” Castillo said. “My emotion for the set is present moving connected to different generations. To person my lad privation to play their euphony successful the car without maine asking, I’m like, ‘Wait, you similar Maná?’ So that’s made it each precise exciting.”

With Maná besides having roots successful the Mexican authorities of Jalisco, Castillo expressed joyousness that her children are connecting with their practice done euphony history.

“I conscionable support trying to walk connected our civilization to the kids who are grown up and calved successful L.A.”