Diego Raya Rosas, a longtime Quad-Cities rapper known as Blue Malboro, has advanced to the finals of México Canta, or Mexico Sings, a binational competition promoting peace and love in Mexican music.
Raya Rosas, 34, is one of seven finalists in the competition, which began in the spring with more than 15,000 song submissions by Mexican and Mexican-American musicians. The contest, established in April by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, aims to break narratives of violence and strengthen positive themes in Mexican music.
Raya Rosas, of East Moline, advanced to the final round for his song “Cuando Niño,” which describes his life as a child living in Puerto del Monte, Salvatierra, Guanajuato.
‘Cuando Niño’
“Cuando Niño” translates to “As a Child” or “When I Was a Child.” In the song, Raya Rosas describes playing soccer with his friends and spending time with his grandmother in Puerto del Monte. He often climbed to the roof of his house and looked towards a large hill in his town that stood clear in the skyline.
“I described the way I looked at it. It was so tall I thought it went all the way to heaven,” Raya Rosas said. “I didn’t realize until I was older how great it was being a kid and all the fun I had.”
Raya Rosas, his mother and brother immigrated to Moline when Raya Rosas was 13. As a child, he was a fan of rap, especially the Mexican hip-hop group Control Machete. He began performing music as Blue Malboro while he was a student at Moline High School.
The stage name combined his favorite color, blue, with childhood memories of when he and his friends stole his mother’s Marlboro cigarettes and pretended to smoke them. Raya Rosas removed the ‘r’ from the name for copyright concerns.
Raya Rosas said many of his songs as a teenager focused on drugs and partying, and other students listened to his songs when they got high. Often, he found himself getting into trouble.
In his final year of high school, Raya Rosas’ mother pulled him from school and put him in a rehabilitation center in Mexico for three months.
The facility was worse than he imagined any prison in the United States could be, he said. Other young people at the facility told stories involving gangs, rape and murder.
He remembered his mother, who worked and sacrificed everything for her sons. Raya Rosas realized he did not want to continue the path he was on.
“All the time I was there, I was just thinking, ‘Why, why am I here? I want to get out of here. I don’t belong here, and I want to change my life,’” he said.
When he returned, he made a total change, he said. Raya Rosas appreciated his teachers more, and he stopped singing about drugs, partying and similar topics.
“That made me see that if you do positive things, then you’re gonna get positive things in exchange,” Raya Rosas said.
After graduating in 2008, Raya Rosas traveled while working with railroad companies before returning to the Quad-Cities in the early 2010s. He began a five-year apprenticeship with Local Union 25 Plumbers and Pipefitters in Rock Island. Raya Rosas, a husband and father to four children, now works as a plumber with Crawford Company.
He has continued to produce, write and perform music. In 2021, he reached the finals of “Tengo Talento, Mucho Talento” a California singing competition that has run for 19 seasons.
‘I couldn’t believe it.’
In the first selection round, México Canta officials narrowed the field to 368 singers who got their songs released to the public. Then, officials narrowed the field to 48 semifinalists, with 24 from the United States and 24 from Mexico. Performers were split by region, with eight singers each from the western, central and eastern United States, and from the northern, central and southern regions of Mexico.
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In August, Raya Rosas learned he was chosen as a semifinalist for the United States’ central region. Competition staff visited his East Moline home and filmed an introduction clip about his life and family.
The competition flew Raya Rosas, along with his longtime music producer Juan Vasquez, to Mexico City. The first day, Raya Rosas underwent a strict schedule of interviews and recording. The second day, he filmed the semifinal, with four musicians serving as judges.
Raya Rosas was the only hip-hop artist on stage.
“When I performed my song, I kind of felt something because I could hear people going crazy, clapping, and then I see the judges crying,” he said. “I was not sure if I’m gonna make it, but I knew that I was happy with the performance I did.”
When Raya Rosas heard the judges announce “Blue Malboro,” he did not process the news at first.
“It took me seconds,” he said. “No way. Like, me? I couldn’t believe it.”
The semifinal experience was not easy, but the outcome was totally worth it, he said.
“You see yourself on TV, and you can see all the work you did, and you get all these messages from people who are like, ‘man, you made me cry,’” he said. “My biggest prize is receiving love from people watching and liking my songs and music.”
Raya Rosas said that in his hometown in Mexico, many people would laugh if a young man said he wanted to become a professional singer. That happens in Moline, too, he said.
“I feel so proud of representing Moline and my town,” he said.
Raya Rosas will be the only rapper in next week’s final.
Grand Finale
According to the México Canta rules, three of seven performers will become victors. The awards include a public vote for best song, as well as two separate jury and public votes for best overall performer. Each winner will receive a recording contract.
“They asked me a lot of times ‘What are you going to do if you get a contract?’ I don’t want to think about that. I just want to go and do my thing,” Raya Rosas said. “And whenever it comes to that, if that’s the case, then I’ll decide.”
Raya Rosas said contest organizers are still altering some details for next week’s final.
Raya Rosas was flying to Monterrey, and later Mexico City, on Monday, for five days of recording, interviews and the competition. During the first few days, Raya Rosas will work with music producer Toy Selectah — a former member of Control Machete, the same group Raya Rosas was listening to when he fell in love with hip-hop.
The grand finale will be held at the Esperanza Iris Theater in Mexico City, and broadcast Sunday, Oct. 5.
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