Nacha Mendez

Born Margarita Cordero in Chicago — Gila Apache (Chihene Nde Nation) and Chicana — Nacha Mendez was raised in the border town of La Unión, New Mexico, and has performed across the state since 1978. Her eclectic, pan-Latin songbook refuses a single genre: norteño, Cuban son, tango, rumba, flamenco, bolero, ranchera, cumbia, salsa and bossa nova braid together through her powerful voice, often shifting style mid-set. She studied classical voice and electronic music at New Mexico State University before moving to New York City to study flamenco guitar with Manuel Granados of the Barcelona conservatory. A fixture of the Santa Fe scene, she was voted Best Female Vocalist in Santa Fe (2009, 2010, 2015), received New Mexico's Platinum Music Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018, and was honored with the 2025 New Mexico Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts. She plays a weekly Sunday residency at Taberna La Boca in Santa Fe.