Los Dos Carnales

The history of Los Dos Carnales

Los Dos Carnales is the name of the norteño music group formed by brothers Imanol and Poncho Quezada along with Armando Hernández and Kevin Montemayor. They debuted in festivals and bars, and in 2018 they released their first album, Te Lo Dije. Fame didn’t wait, in 2019 Los Dos Carnales achieved success with the hit single Vida Ventajosa. Later came the hits El Envidioso, El Corrido del Fantasma, Cabrón y Vago, and Al Estilo Rancherón. Despite their short career, they are now seen as the new great exponents of the norteño genre.

Beginnings

Originating from San Pedro de las Colonias (Coahuila) and united by music, Pocho, Imanol, Armando, and Kevin began their journey as a group around 2015. The band, which takes its name from the relationship of its voices: Poncho and Imanol, was born around the brothers. They had started as musicians from a very young age, and it was Poncho (the older of the two by 6 years) who was in charge of Imanol’s artistic formation.

As they said, they always had a good relationship and both felt attracted to the same musical style, so it wasn’t surprising that they ended up singing together. They both started as clowns at parties, then did some performances, and finally went to bars, where they gradually started to gain recognition. It was during that period that the Al Estilo Rancherón quartet was born.

With Poncho as the singer and bajo quinto player; Imanol as the second voice and accordion player; Armando on the bass, and Kevin on the drums, Los Dos Carnales burst onto the scene in 2015 by opening for La Trakalosa de Monterrey in their native Coahuila. In this way, the group began their very fruitful career. From 2015 to 2018, the group continued to play and open for other artists until finally making their official debut.

Los Dos Carnales: debut and career

In early 2018, Pocho, Imanol, Armando, and Kevin officially entered the scene with their first single, Puro Dos Carnales. A few months later, on May 1, 2018, the group released their first album, Te Lo Dije, featuring songs like Le Hace Falta un Beso, Imperio Beltran Leyva, and a collaboration with Luciano Diaz that gives the album its name. In the middle of the following year, the band returned with the EP Dio Vuelta la Moneda, featuring their famous El Corrido de El Fantasma, a song in honor of the artist of the same name that gained millions of plays and became a classic for the group.

It should be mentioned that El Fantasma has been one of the main driving forces behind the group’s fame. They have not only appeared at some of his concerts, but have also collaborated on several hits. After the EP, that same year, the singles El Sonriente de Durango and Tristes Navidades were released, as well as their first big hit, Vida Ventajosa. Vida Ventajosa was their first big entry into the charts; from then on, the group didn’t stop raking in hits.

Second album and live releases

Their second album, Para impresionarte (2019), was released at the end of the same year, preceded by their first live album, En vivo desde las cañas (2019). The latter was released on October 31, 2019, while Para impresionarte came out at the beginning of November. Later that year, the group released the albums Somos Arrieros (2019), which included songs like El Tesoro and Vida Ventajosa; and Moños Negros (2019), from which the tracks Caballo Adicto, Así Somos, La Marihuana, el Marihuanito, and Mi Pueblo de San Pedro were taken.

Corridos y Más Corridos (2020) and Al Estilo Rancherón (2020)

The releases continued in 2020 with the release of the singles Moños Negros and the hit El Envidioso, which in one day exceeded 200,000 plays on digital platforms, including Spotify, Tidal, and YouTube. Later, the songs Juan Ramos, Nave 727, and Él fue Arturo came out. Also, earlier that year, the group released two EPs: Corridos Con Olor a Monte (2020), which came out in April in collaboration with Los Reos de Tamaulipas, and 6 Tragos (2020), which was released in June.

As if that wasn’t enough, that year, the group released two albums: Corridos y Más Corridos (2020) and Al Estilo Rancherón (2020). Some of the songs included on these are: Plama y San Felipe, El Gallo Pobre, El Corrido de el Cholo, El Corrido de Panchito, Desde Hoy, and Al Estilo Rancherón (with El Fantasma).

In November 2020, a few months after Al Estilo Rancherón, Dos Carnales released their next album, Borracho (2020). This consisted of a total of 13 songs, among them Pepón, Corrido de Idefolso, Home Run, Mis Raíces, Francisco Cortez, and El Borracho. Ending the year, on December 18, the group returned with a Christmas single consisting of three songs: En Esta Navidad, Oye Santa Claus, and Tristes Navidades.

2021: Collaborations and more albums

Always active, the group started 2021 with the release of the EP Tragedias de Mi Pueblo (Con Banda) on February 3, 2021. Later that same month, the group released the singles Por Alguien Como Tú and La Tóxica. In March 2021, the group collaborated with Colombian singer Camilo on the song Tuyo y mío, which was part of Camilo’s second album, En Mis Manos, and immediately became a hit.

After the release of Tuyo y mío, the group released La Pregunta del Millón, a single that was part of the “Wednesday boleros and Friday corridos” dynamic, in which they released two singles each week, the first being a bolero and then a corrido. A few days later, on April 16, 2021, the group collaborated with Calibre 50 on the single El Mensaje. That same day, the single El Abuelo was released, followed by En Fin and Al Millón, which were released on April 21 and 23, respectively.

Boleros De Hoy and Corridos Pa’ la Historia

On May 7, 2021, the group released the album Boleros De Hoy (2021), a 10-song work that included, among others, the April releases (La Pregunta del Millón and En fin..) and included songs like La Tóxica, La Fiesta, Ya Valimos, and Me Estoy Acostumbrando. At the end of that month, the group released their second album of the year: Corridos Pa’ la Historia (2021). This album, like Boleros De Hoy, brought together several previous releases and other unreleased songs, such as El Terreno de Güero Flores, Los Primos, Yo Soy Rico, and El Éxito.

Premios Juventud

In July 2021, Los Dos Carnales were nominated for the Premios Juventud held in Miami in the categories: “best regional Mexican song”, “best regional Mexican collaboration”, “best regional Mexican fusion”, “viral track of the year”, and “favorite group or duo of the year”. At the end of the ceremony, the group took home the Premio Juventud for La nueva generación regional mexicano and the Best Regional Mexican Song (for El Envidioso). For El Envidioso, the group also received that year the Premio lo Nuestro for Norteña Song of the Year.

A few days before the Premios Juventud, the group released the single Déjate de Cosas, a collaboration with Gerardo Ortiz that quickly climbed the charts with its own music video. Later, in August 2021, the collaborations La Parca (with Ortiz) and El Final (with Alzate) were released.

Cabrones y Vagos (2021)

The EP Los Dos Carnales Con Sax (2021) was released on October 22, 2021. A month later, Los Dos Carnales released their next album, Cabrones y Vagos (2021), in collaboration with El Fantasma. This collaborative album consisted of 11 songs, including the hit Cabrón y Vago, Mis Raíces, El Valor de un Varón, El guarro, and La C y la J.

In November 2021, the group achieved one of their biggest achievements, winning the Latin Grammy for Best Norteña Album for Al Estilo Rancherón.

To close the year, in December 2021, the group released several singles. Thus, the singles Misma Sangre, Rodolfo El Reno, Navidad Sin Ti, and Capricho Maldito appeared. Finally, on December 17, 2021, the EP Navidad Con Los Dos Carnales was released, following the same line as the group’s 2020 Christmas EP.

Current musical activity of Los Dos Carnales

In April of 2022, the group released their latest single “No Estaré Aquí.” Within three days of its official release, the song reached the Top 20 of trending music videos on YouTube Mexico. Currently, the song has over 2 million views on the platform.