Los Tigres del Norte (English: The Tigers of the North) are a norteño band from San Jose, California. Originally founded in the small town Rosa Morada in the municipality of Mocorito, Sinaloa, Mexico, with sales of 60 million albums, the band is one of the most recognized groups in the genre, due to its long history and its successes within the Mexican community in the diaspora. The band is famous for its political corridos, some of which have been censored, even in its own country. The band is the only Mexican group to win 7 Grammy awards and 12 Latin Grammys. In addition, the band has made 40 films alongside the Almada brothers (Mario and Fernando) among other well-known Mexican actors.

The band’s style is based on regional music of Mexico, using mainly instruments such as the electric bass (or double bass), accordion, bass, drums, and sometimes other percussion instruments. The lyrics in their songs fluctuate between the romantic and the corrido. In recent years the band has begun to make music in a new genre called narcocorrido, in which they narrate the experience of members of drug gangs operating in Mexico. The narcocorrido song “Death Announced”, for example, stands out, as it is dedicated to the legendary Colombian drug trafficker Pablo Escobar, “El Jefe de Jefes.” In that song, the band tells the story of the power and influence of the now imprisoned Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo. Another of their famous narcocorridos, “The Queen of the South”, is based on a literary novel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte from which a television series was made based on the Spanish writer’s work. They have become famous in Mexico and the United States, especially in California and Texas, mainly due to the large number of Mexicans living there. They also have found considerable fame in Colombia.

The band won a Grammy Award in 1988 for their album Gracias, América sin Fronteras, and twelve years later their album Herencia de Familia won the award for Best Norteño Album at the first ever Latin Grammys. A year later, in the second edition of the awards, they were nominated again for Best Norteño Album, this time for De Paisano a Paisano, and Best Regional Mexican Song for the song of the same title from that album.

In 2010, the band made headlines by joining in a massive international boycott of the U.S. state of Arizona, in response to the Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act.

On October 8, 2013, Los Tigres del Norte played at an immigration reform rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Their set list included songs that underscored the themes the rally would address including “La Puerta Negra” (1986), “De Paisano a Paisano” (2000), and “Mis Dos Patrias.” The band was introduced by then Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Mexican-American singer-songwriter and actress Lila Downs also accompanied the group in a series of duets.

In 2014 Los Tigres del Norte released the album Realidades, which contains the song “Era Diferente” (meaning “She Was Different”) about a lesbian teenager who falls in love with her best friend; according to lead singer and songwriter Jorge Hernández, this is the first time a norteño group has ever written a gay love song.

The band had sold 32 million records as of 2007. As of 2015, they had won 7 Grammy Awards, 6 Latin Grammy Awards, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. They received the Special Recognition (Spanish language) Award at the 26th annual GLAAD Media Awards in 2015, for their song “Era Diferente” (“She Was Different”). The band ranked number 15 in the list for “The 30 Most Influential Latin Artists of All Time” by Billboard magazine.

In 2018, many artists sought permission to record at Folsom Prison, more so for the 50th anniversary of Johnny Cash’s recording there. However, Los Tigres del Norte was the only act authorized by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. In fact, Los Tigres are the only band to record an album at Folsom since Johnny Cash released his 1968 opus.