Peso Pluma shows off arena-level stature, Mexican corrido culture, in Fresno tour stop
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“Peso Pluma is the Mexican Elvis.”
That was Simon Tafoya’s proclamation after seeing the Guadalajara-born singer perform to a sold-out crowd at the Save Mart Center on Saturday night.
His wife bought tickets months ago, on pre-sale, and joked she was there mostly for moral support. Tafoya is the fan.
He enjoys the music, but for him, seeing Peso Pluma was really about Mexico’s corrido culture, of which the 25-year-old singer has become a sort of global ambassador.
“That’s the part I like,” Tafoya said.
Peso Pluma is a superstar of so-called corridos tumbados, a modern version of traditional Mexican music that incorporates hip hop and reggaeton, among other influences. He was the first regional Mexican act to perform on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and the first “música Mexicana” artist to be on the cover of Rolling Stone. The magazine called him “Most Important New Artist on the Planet.”
This was his second performance in Fresno. He played at Chukchansi Park in March 2023. He wasn’t the headliner then, but those following the scene knew he was one to watch.
An arena-level production
Regional Mexican music (and Peso Pluma’s brand in particular) has reached arena-level status, a fact that was on full display Saturday night. Peso Pluma performed for nearly two hours, alongside an eight-person band with nearly a dozen dancers. The set covered some 25 songs, lasted almost until midnight and ended with the entire arena up and jumping to the beat, cannons shooting confetti over the crowd.
The staging and production were suited to the venue; columns of laser light and pyrotechnics blasting around an illuminated LED stage.
At one point mid-set, a moon floated out over the arena. If you looked closely, you could see it was powered by drones. Ditto for a single mechanized bat flying around the dancers during the song “La Patrulla.”
Fans were given wristbands that were synced to light up, change color and pulse with the rhythms of the performance, allowing for the crowd itself to be part of the production. And to good effect.
Several diamond chain necklaces aside, the singer himself seemed almost understated among it all, in a white T-shirt and sun glasses, jeans and sneakers. At times, he sang with one hand tucked in his pocket, or else with arms swaying to the beat in a way that should have registered as awkward, but somehow came off as cool.
And yes, there was a bit of pelvis thrusting, this being the Mexican Elvis, and all.
Other regional Mexican concerts at the Save Mart Center
The Save Mart Center seems to have a steady streams of regional Mexican and Latin artists coming through. Saturday night marked the the end of a three-day run of shows at the Save Mart Center that included Puerto Rican actor/pop star Chayanne and fellow corridos tumbados singer (and Peso Pluma collaborator) Junior H.
Still to come this month are Grupo Firme and Grupo Frontera on Sept. 13 and 27, respectively.
Celebrity sightings
This was a sold-out show and the arena was full to the very top rows. Spotted among the crowd was Tik-Tok comedian Leo González. He was swarmed by fans looking for pictures. Only a small portion noticed Fresno boxer Marc Castro standing nearby.
Concert, Fresno State football snarls traffic
On Friday, the Save Mart Center sent out a traffic advisory, warning concertgoers that getting into and out of the arena would take extra time, given the show was sold out and that it was happening on the same night as Fresno State football’s home opener against Sacramento State.
They needed more time, given the number of empty seats inside the arena at 8 p.m., the given start time for the concert. At 8:45 p.m., traffic was still backed up outside the arena along Shaw Avenue. Peso Pluma took the stage at 9:30 p.m.
Other random observations
“Peso! Pluma!” was the call-and-response refrain for the night, though at least once the singer reversed it on the crowd. “Pluma! Peso! Pluma! Peso!”
There was no opener. But the singer did bring out at least three special guests to join him throughout the night. Not Snoop Dogg or Becky G, but still.
Kudos to the kid a few rows up who live-streamed the entire show while scream/singing along to every. song and shooting Peso Pluma finger hearts. That kind of joy is hard to come by.
Kudos to whoever figured out you can (and should) use bang-less pyrotechnics inside of arenas.
