In July 2012, Rancho Alegre met up with the legendary Johnny Degollado. We had just produced our first Rancho Alegre Conjunto Festival in February and finally got a chance to sit down with the guy who had been producing Austin's only Conjunto music festival for several decades before we came on the scene.

Fito Olivares passed away on March 17, 2023 at age 75.

In July 2013, Rancho Alegre met up with the Cumbia legend before a show at Cuauhtemoc Hall in San Marcos, Texas, and he gave us what he said was one of the most in-depth and fulfilling interviews he had ever given up until that point.

We learned a lot about the man himself, his musical influences, his early solo career on Gil Records, his time with the old-school Conjunto Regional/early Norteño group Dueto Estrella, and much more from his 60-year career.

This interview is entirely in Spanish.

Music played:

Conjunto music legend Alfredo De La Rosa passed away on April 8, 2022. A member of one of the most storied and influential musical family dynasties in Texas music, Alfredo spent many years playing with brothers Tony and Adan and sister Eva as well as with his own Conjunto. His style was steeped in the classic Conjunto of the Coastal Bend: a clean, straightforward sound driven by a strong, unrelenting beat and equally strong vocals, perfect for the dancehalls of South Texas.

Recorded in August 2017 at the Yarborough Branch of the Austin Public Library. Chencho Flores passed away in January 2021 due to complications of COVID-19 at the age of 91.

At the time of this interview, Chencho was 88 years old and had just started his own Conjunto earlier that year after a long tenure with Conjunto Los Pinkys.

In this interview from 2013, Rancho Alegre's Baldomero Cuellar sat down with a true Conjunto legend, Jose "Pico" Ramirez. Best known as one of the original members of Ruben Naranjo y Los Gamblers from Alice, Texas, Pico supplied strong but intricate bajo sexto to Naranjo's simple, yet elegant accordion, as well as second voice harmonies that were second to none. This sound made the group famous and their personal interactions with fans made them beloved.

In this interview, recorded in August 2017, Baldomero Cuellar talks with Vicente "Chente" Alonzo, an Austin conjunto music legend with nearly 60 years in the business. While he has played bajo sexto with several different bands, he is most recognizable as the longtime second voice and bajista for El Montopolis Kid Johnny Degollado, with whom he began playing in 1957. Most recently, he was with Chencho Flores y Su Conjunto.

Recorded in June 2019 at Austin Central Library 

In June 2019, Rancho Alegre finally caught up to Little Miss Dynamite herself, Shelly Lares. We had been after her since we first started doing interviews in 2011 and the stars finally aligned and our schedules finally allowed for us to finally meet. And let's just say that the award-winning, hard-working musician, vocalist, entrepreneur, producer, arranger, bandleader, songwriter, and record label exec did NOT disappoint. 

This interview was recorded in October 2017 at Rocky's home in Temple, TX. In 2022, Rocky began performing again with brothers Little Joe and Gilbert.

Johnny Hernandez has seen it all in over six decades in Tejano music. From his beginnings with his brothers in Little Joe and the Latinaires to his solo career and everything in between, Johnny remains one of the most passionate performers, one of its strongest talents, and a tireless advocate for Tejano music. 

Nick Villarreal passed away in July 2017. This interview was recorded in September 2011 at El Torreón Restaurant in San Antonio.

Conjunto legend Nick Villarreal, or “Nicky Snick,” if you prefer, was a character larger than life itself. He was a man with charisma so strong, it’s almost radioactive. From his jokes to his laugh, to that big booming voice, he was just FUN.