CRISTIAN

Album ∙ Música Mexicana ∙ 2025

Chino Pacas

In 2024, when Chino Pacas dropped Que Sigan Llegando Las Pacas, he couldn’t have had a bigger spotlight on him. A major-label full-length debut backed by Drake and Fuerza Regida, with prominent features from both, swiftly put the rising teenage star in an enviable position. Less than a year later, he returns with a sophomore album intended to further elevate his standing in the música mexicana scene and to better differentiate himself from the current profusion of viral sensations.

If CRISTIAN is any indication, Chino Pacas has a great deal to offer his listeners in the coming years. A robust follow-up with high-profile guests like Luis R Conriquez and Tito Double P, it situates the young artist within styles both familiar and favorable. There is, of course, an ample selection of corridos, beginning with “CHAMAQUITO” and carrying into even more defiant and evocative expressions like “ZUMBANDO” and the standout “FLOTA” with Neton Vega. On a different tip, the Banda Otro Pedo collab “NO ES UN JUEGO” gives his preferred approach a decidedly lusher, more ornate refresh. An apparent 180-degree shift, “GTO” takes him into a seemingly Bay Area-inspired hip-hop mode opposite Latin rap fixture Santa Fe Klan.

Where some artists of his generation might be inclined to simply stay in their lane, he makes subtler adjustments that justify his profile. On the beautifully arranged “ANOCHE,” he reveals a sensitive romantic side in wondrous contrast with the harder stuff. His earnest cover of Tropicalísimo Apache fave “OJITOS MENTIROSOS” not only comes naturally, but also indicates a knowledgeable appreciation for his predecessors.