Lydia Mendoza

Born to a musical family in Houston, Texas, in 1916, Lydia Mendoza launched her own career in music by 1934, after having performed musically in her lower-class immigrant family's band since 1928. Though only 18 years old, Lydia's mesmerizing voice and distinctive guitar playing made her a hit. She became best known during the 1930s and 40s, with hits like "Mal hombre" and "Pero hay que triste". She said that she was never cheated by a record company because her father handled all of those details and made sure she wasn't swindled. She has received the National Heritige Award, the National Medal of the Arts and, during her 60-year career, recorded some 50 LPs and over 200 songs for many different labels around the country. Her touring has taken her all over the USA and Mexico, and as far away as Columbia. In her later years, a stroke cost her both her singing voice and her ability to play her guitar. Until her death in 2007, she lived in a modest bungalow in Houston Heights, Houston, Texas.