Thank You for Making Baila el Pueblo Unforgettable
We’re filled with gratitude for the incredible sponsors and vendors who helped bring Baila el Pueblo to life! Their support made it possible to celebrate community, culture, and music in a meaningful way. Special thanks to our incredibly dedicated volunteers!
Our sponsor’s generosity helped create a space where music, dance, and culture could shine. Thank you for believing in this event and in the power of gathering together. Thank you to the City of Tucson, Rio Nuevo, Visit Tucson, Vamos a Tucson, Kappcon, Bookmans, Yelp Tucson, Arizona Arts Live, Long Realty Cares Foundation, and REA Media.
The vendors at Baila el Pueblo shared delicious food, beautiful crafts, and amazing offerings, making the event feel vibrant and welcoming. We’re so grateful for the energy and passion they brought to our community, from Reservation Sensation, Bella’s Mediterranean, Patricia’s Cuban Kitchen, and Masad Coffee to local artisans curated by Galería Mitotera, including Spirit of Cukson, MiCasita Press, Mercadito Maria Jose, True Descendants, HCortez Photography, Flowing Waters Soap Co., Crafty Stunn, Body & Soul, My Beaded Creations, Tacobout Crafting.
We still have a few limited-edition KXCI Baila el Pueblo tees and posters available if you’d like a keepsake from the day. Thank you again to everyone who joined us and for supporting KXCI. We danced, we connected, and we celebrated! Let’s keep the spirit of Baila el Pueblo alive. Until next time!
We’re so happy to share the images that were captured by Kathleen Dreier.
A Desert Music Festival
Saturday, March 22nd, 4 – 10 pm
Doors at 3:00 pm
MSA Annex · 267 South Avenida del Convento Tucson, AZ
Reyna Tropical
Los Esplifs, Native Creed, Hataałii, Nicosa, MizSkoden, Las Chollas Peligrosas
Tickets: KXCI Members $30, GA $35, Day of $40
KXCI presents Baila el Pueblo–A Desert Music Festival celebrating our regional cultural diversity. The festival will showcase a vibrant array of musical traditions from around the southwest. There will be local food vendors and artisans on-site.
Internationally touring artist Reyna Tropical will headline the festival. Inspired by the wide-reaching cultural traditions of Peru, Colombia, and the Congo, trailblazing guitarist and songwriter Fabi Reyna remixes and melds these influences to create a tropical feel. Regional artists include Los Esplifs, Native Creed, Hataałii, Nicosa, MizSkoden and Las Chollas Peligrosas. Poster artwork by Alex Jimenez.
KXCI presenta Baila el Pueblo, un festival de música del desierto que celebra la diversidad cultural de nuestra región. El festival destaca una variedad de tradiciones musicales de todo el suroeste. Habrá vendedores de comida locales y artesanos.
La artista Reyna Tropical encabezará el festival. Inspirándose en las amplias tradiciones culturales de Perú, Colombia y el Congo, la innovadora guitarrista y compositora Fabi Reyna remezcla y fusiona estas influencias para crear una sensación tropical. Artistas regionales incluyen Los Esplifs, Native Creed, Hataałii, Nicosa, MizSkoden y Las Chollas Peligrosas. Arte del cartel de Alex Jiménez.
Reyna Tropical
Malegría, Reyna Tropical’s long-anticipated debut full-length album, is at once a vibrant arrival and an electrifying bridge. The portmanteau, born from a 1998 Manu Chao song by the same name, is akin to bittersweet and blends the Spanish “mal” which means “bad” and “alegría” which means “happiness.” It marks Reyna Tropical’s movement from a duo to a solo project. The album is a contemporary celebration and continuation of wide-reaching cultural traditions—from Congolese, Peruvian, and Colombian rhythms to revolutionary artists like lesbian guitarist-singer Chavela Vargas—these influences meld and are remixed through the distinctive lens of trailblazing guitarist and songwriter Fabi Reyna. Traversing themes including queer love, feminine sensuality, and the transformative power of intentional relations to the earth, Malegría spotlights narratives often pushed to the margins and offers them a sonic homeland.
Formed in 2016, Reyna Tropical began as an organic, unhurried exchange between Fabi Reyna and Nectali “Sumohair” Diaz who met during a workshop series for emerging musicians. “Our first EP was so spur of the moment,” Reyna recalled. “What we needed was to document, to just do something for our hearts. Not for money, not for our livelihood. Just for us.” The band formed when Reyna had been immersed in full-time work founding and building She Shreds, the world’s first magazine dedicated to women and nonbinary guitarists, and was itching for a creative release and return to her musical roots. By January 2018, the band’s self-titled EP, Reyna Tropical, dropped and the foundations of the band’s spellbinding and distinctive sound were documented and formed. Best known for their rhythmic, hip-swaying tropical feel, the first Reyna Tropical tracks featured Ableton-made beats produced by Diaz—featuring Afro Indigenous drum patterns and environmental samples—expertly mixed with dreamy guitar riffs and soft vocals by Reyna.
Los Esplifs
Los Esplifs have been cultivating a following of dancers, psychonauts and all around “cool” kids since their start in the Arizona D.I.Y Scene in 2018. Los Esplifs blends folkloric music of Latin America with the attitude of American music such as Jazz, Hiphop and Punk. Since 2018, they have released 3 full works; “Self Titled”(2019) ,“Estraik Back” (2021) and their most recent album “Chemistry” (2023) . Known for explosive live performances and wild stage antics, Los Esplifs have performed in national and international festivals. Their latest single “Cenizas” (2024) is now available.
Hataałii
At 21-years-old, Hataałii — the singer, songwriter, and poet born Hataałiinez Wheeler in Window Rock, AZ, the capital of Navajo Nation — arrived just in time to witness American collapse. Not a galvanizing, grand explosion of empire but a paralysis-inducing decay and alienation that infects the American body politic. Zealotry repurposed into a new cultural crusade every week. Reality-building and delusion affirmation masquerading as liberty. The show-horse ladder of success. Pandora’s Box purchased on credit, driving everyone mad in different ways, algorithmically determined to suit your unique neuroses.
It’s from this vantage point that Hataałii brings us Waiting For A Sign, a heady collection of ghost town anthems, short story mirages, and brain fog-clearing personal reckonings. At times it recalls the playfully languid puzzlement of Pavement’s Wowee Zowee, the trickster melancholy of Lou Reed’s The Blue Mask, the economical yet winking earnestness of Blaze Foley, or the softer Spacemen 3 songs that cast awe and mystery against a droning, endless atmosphere. But, as easy as the tempos can get, Hataałii operates with purpose: the obscurantist details come into focus, giving way to trenchant observations about paranoia, accountability, and post-colonial fallout.
Waiting For A Sign is Hataałii’s second album for Dangerbird following 2023’s Singing Into Darkness and, counting an array of self-released projects, his sixth album since 2019. Early on, Hataałii’s DIY home recordings had built some organic goodwill, attracting love from the likes of Aquarium Drunkard (who called him “a master at conjuring a kind of Southwestern saudade”) and Mac DeMarco. Singing Into Darkness built his profile further: He won plaudits from SPIN (who called him “2023’s breakout star”), FLOOD (“Hataałii is utterly charming, disarmingly approachable, and delightful in his playfulness”), and KCRW. He chatted with Rolling Stone about Cormac McCarthy and Okkervil River’s Will Sheff about Neil Young. He published a poetry chapbook, and got some love for that as well.
Operating for the first time with something approaching expectations, Waiting For A Sign doesn’t overhaul the Hataałii sound — Hataałii still plays every instrument, including slide guitar — but instead distills it further, accentuating the eccentricities and building towards broader horizons. Culled from an initial collection of over 40 demos with help from producer / engineer Alex Simon, the twelve songs on Waiting For A Sign feel muscular, assured, and judicious — the work of an artist, operating from a place of strength, stretching themself into subtle new shapes.
MizSkoden
MizSkoden hails from Tucson (Chukson) Az. Percusionista of nearly 25 years, DJ and producer. Pulling inspiration from her Yaqui (yoeme) Mayo (yoreme) roots. Honoring the rhythms that were created through black and indigenous struggles of survival, to decolonize the dance floor.
Nicosa
Nicosa is the creative project of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Nicole Paco. With her debut 5-track EP, ERA, she immerses listeners in a bold and unfiltered approach to rock and roll, seamlessly blending elements of Latin pop, psychedelic influences, and raw guitar-driven energy. Her music is characterized by a unique fusion of Spanish lyricism, infectious grooves, and introspective moments, as she draws on her diverse Mexican-American roots to create a sound that’s both personal and universal. Nicosa’s harmonies are lush, her rhythms funky, and the textures of her songs are dreamlike yet grounded in a deep, authentic connection to her heritage.
ERA was recorded entirely in analog at Oracle Recording Studio, with the expertise of Austin Owen, Francis Kelly, and Alex Tighe, resulting in a sound that’s both timeless and fresh.
From the border town of Rio Rico, AZ, Nicosa embraces her identity as an independent artist, channeling her rich cultural tapestry into every note and lyric she creates.
Las Chollas Peligrosas
All-female Phoenix quintet Las Chollas Peligrosas comes from a lineage that spans the Americas. From Costa Rica, to Venezuela, to Mexico and the U.S., this history inspires them to draw upon multiple subgenres of traditional and popular Latin music and a wide range of other musical influences.
Five-part bi-lingual vocals, accordion, violin, classical guitar, percussion and upright bass create a truly unique blend of rhythm and melody birthed from their diverse heritage, their strong bond and their connection to the sacred land that is the southwestern desert.
Truly collaborative, all the ladies take the lead and support one another with rich harmonies throughout their shows. Much of the subject matter is designed to shine a light on social justice causes and inspire action within communities. In the spirit of the beautiful but prickly Cholla cactus, their namesake, Las Chollas Peligrosas speak to truth and empowerment in the name of human rights and cultural awareness.
Each member of Las Chollas Peligrosas have arrived from different musical journeys but share a love for this music and the power it has to unite the community and communicate the voice of the people for positive change.
Native Creed
Direct from the Tohono O’odham Nation, Native Creed have played waila dances & celebrations across the Nation and Arizona for over 25 years. Generations of the Lopez family play in the band and their guitar-driven songs and strong community connections keep the cumbia circle spinning till dawn.
Thank You to our Sponsors!
If you’re interested in sponsorships, vendor opportunities, or have questions about the event, please email [email protected].
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How do I get to KXCI’s Baila el Pueblo Festival and where do I park?
We encourage biking, carpooling, or rideshare options, and use of public transportation via Tucson’s streetcar, located conveniently close to the festival grounds.
Limited on-site free and paid parking will be available.
FESTIVAL GROUNDS AND PARKING MAP
Festival Hours and Lineup
Schedule
3:00 pm – Doors
4:00 pm – Welcome and Opening blessing
4:10 pm – Las Chollas Peligrosas – Ocotillo Plaza
4:40 pm – Native Creed – Main Stage
5:35 pm – Hataałii – Ocotillo Plaza
6:05 pm – Los Esplifs – Main Stage
7:10pm – Nicosa – Ocotillo Plaza
7:40 pm – Reyna Tropical – Main Stage
9:05 pm – MizSkoden – Main Stage
How accessible are the festival grounds and facilities?
The MSA Annex and Festival area are wheelchair accessible. There will also be an ADA porta-potty on the Festival grounds.
Is there a clear bags policy? What can I bring with me?
There is NOT a clear bag policy but backpacks and larger bags are subject to search.
Empty refillable water bottles are allowed. There are drinking fountains at the MSA Annex
Please note that the MSA Annex has a “no weapons” policy.
Small, foldable camping style chairs are allowed
No coolers
Will there be food and drink available?
Patricia’s Cuban Kitchen, Reservation Sensation, and Bella’s Mediterranean Food will be on the grounds as well as all of the usual MSA Annex vendors. Both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase.
Will there be festival merch and fun things for sale?
Yes! Several local artisans will be on site. KXCI will have limited-edition Baila el Pueblo shirts and KXCI merchandise for sale.
Can I bring the kiddos?
Yes! This is an all-ages, family-friendly event, 12 and under are free
I lost something at the event, help!
The lost and found is located at the front entrance of the festival grounds ticket booth
What is your re-entry policy?
Re-entry is allowed with your wristband
Can I take photos or video?
Absolutely! Please tag us with #KXCITucson. Professional cameras and recording are not allowed.