K-Paz De La Sierra

• Genre: Norteno

About

Duranguense heavyweights K-Paz de la Sierra may hail from the Mexican state of Durango -- and play its bouncy, upbeat music -- but they got their start in Illinois. The group members met in Chicago in 2003 and quickly rose to the top of the ranks of regional Mexican music: After releasing a few singles to immediate acclaim, including the hit "Jambalaya," their debut, Arrasando con Fuego, shot up the charts. Subsequent albums performed equally well, and the band seemed poised for a long career. Strife has marred K-Paz's success, however; the group splintered in 2007, when five members left to start their own band, AK-7, after disputes with lead singer Sergio Gomez. Six months later, Gomez was found dead, tortured and murdered after a show in Morelia, Michoacan.

- Sarah Bardeen