Ernesto Barajas, leader of the Mexican regional music group Enigma Norteño, was shot and killed on Tuesday (Aug. 19) afternoon in a parking lot in the municipality of Zapopan, on the outskirts of Guadalajara in the state of Jalisco, according to local media reports. He was 38 years old.
The artist’s management and booking office, Tanto Líder, confirmed his death to Billboard Español. Tanto Líder also posted about Barajas’ passing through his Instagram Stories. “Rest in peace, Ernesto Barajas. Your Tanto Líder family will always be proud of you and remember you as the great artist and human being you were,” read the statement. “May God hold you in His holy love.”
Two other people were reportedly injured in the attack, according to the newspaper El Universal, which also reported that Barajas had received threats from organized crime in 2023, and that the Jalisco State Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into the events. Calls made by Billboard Español to the prosecutor’s office and police were not immediately returned.
Barajas rose to fame alongside his band with an extensive repertoire of narcocorridos in which he gave special prominence to figures from the Sinaloa Cartel, the state where he was born. Titles such as “Los Lujos el R,” “Quemándose un Gallito (El Rambo),” “Chavo Félix,” “Mayito Gordo,” “El Flaquito,” “El Chicken Little (EL 09)” and “Álbum JGL” are part of a long list of hits.
In recent years, the singer had received constant threats, one of the most talked about being a narcomanta that appeared prior to Barajas’ show in Rosarito, Baja California in 2023, allegedly from the CJNG (Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación), leading to the cancelation of his performance, according to El Financiero. The publication also reported that one direct message to the artist criticized his relationship with Alfonso “El Aquiles” and René “La Rana” Arzate García of the Sinaloa Cartel, and was signed by the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel.
Due to its lyrics, Enigma Norteño was one of the groups most affected by the ban in several Mexican states on performing music that glorifies crime. In May, during an interview broadcast on Telemundo, Barajas spoke about this situation:
“In my opinion, a song, a corrido, has nothing to do with what is happening in Mexico,” he said at the time. “About five or six years ago, there was also a wave of zero corridos. We once played in Chihuahua, which is one of the strictest states. I remember we made a list and played only songs, literally, and we had to do what other colleagues are doing, which is just playing the accordion and stuff, and they (the audience) were the ones singing.”
In addition to music, Ernesto Barajas hosted the podcast Puntos de Vista; the last episode was published on his YouTube channel on Aug. 13. His podcast featured guests such as Eduin Caz from Grupo Firme, Gabito Ballesteros, Roberto Tapia, and Jesús Ortiz Paz from Fuerza Regida.
In 2024, Enigma Norteño celebrated two decades of its career with a commemorative album, XX, featuring stars such as Gabito Ballesteros, Carín León, Panter Bélico and Joel de la P, all of whom are declared fans of the group. Just on Aug. 15, singer and producer Edgardo Nuñez released the song “Hello Kitty” in collaboration with the group.
