From Tandil, Argentina, Ángela Leiva breaks musical boundaries and takes her voice to the heart of Tex-Mex. With his re-release of “Amiga Traidora” in an explosive Cumbia Tex-Mex format, he demonstrates that the passion for music knows no geographical limits. This new version marks not only a tribute to Mexico, but also a bold leap towards the internationalization of his career.
After the successful closing of her “My Voice for the World” tour, which took her to several countries and even to Spain, Ángela establishes herself as an artist who seeks to conquer new stages and conquer global audiences. In this interview, she talks about her relationship with Mexican music, her Argentine roots and the excitement of reinventing a classic that has accompanied her since her beginnings.
“Traitor Friend” is one of your classics. What prompted you to relaunch it now in this new Cumbia Tex-Mex format?
I think it is a kind of tribute to Mexico, which has always conquered me with its popular music. I consume a lot of Mexican music: ballads, cumbia, norteño, mariachi… the truth is that I love everything.
When the opportunity arose to sign with FONO—something that for me is highly anticipated, because I worked for many years of my career to reach this moment and be on a label like FONO—, they proposed to me to re-release this song, which is a classic, and they told me: “Well, let’s do it in Tex-Mex.”
And I was like, wow, I prepared my whole career for this moment, because I really, really like Tex-Mex. I always listened to Selena, Alicia Villarreal, Límite. So, when I went into the studio to record it—being a song I’ve been singing for 16 years—I suddenly found myself singing it with total freshness, as if I had never sung it before, or as if it had always been Tex-Mex.
I received very good feedback from people who understand a lot about the genre, so the truth is I’m very proud, very happy and excited. I really want to sing it live and visit them to share it face to face.
What emotions or nuances did you want to highlight with this Tex-Mex twist that weren’t present in the original version?
It’s a difficult question, because the original version has a very strong emotional charge. It’s my first song, the first one I had, so it has a huge emotional connotation; It’s like a little son that you take care of for 16 years. He’s already a teenager.
In this version I wanted people to interpret the story from a very dramatic place, as something that really happens. Over the years I have been told many stories of betraying friends, and not just friendships: also stories of intra-family betrayal.
Then the song transforms into a story of total betrayal, sung from a place of great pain. And those are the songs that I like and that I identify with: testimonial songs that tell real stories.
I want people to understand this song for what it is: a song that hurts. It hurts, but it also makes you want to dance to it, listen to it and sing it… out loud.
Being Argentine, how does your musical identity coexist with a genre so representative of northern Mexico?
It coexists very well, because in my musical universe—in the music that I listen to—Mexican music has always been present. Since I was very young.
In Argentina, Tex-Mex cumbia was heard a lot: Límite with Alicia Villarreal, Selena, then the Norteño, Bronco… we have many references that the Argentine public loves.
In my universe all that connects naturally. I feel like I was always preparing for this moment and I want to continue doing it: continue paying tribute to Mexican music and fusing it with my Argentine roots.
Today music has no borders; The public has been accustomed to the fusion of genres for years. Furthermore, I think that cumbia is at its best: it is a popular rhythm that moves the masses. The United States, Mexico and all of Latin America are more than ready to dance a good cumbia and sing it, as I say, loudly.
You participated in “Tributo a Una Leyenda Vol. 2” with Grupo Cañaveral. What made you interpret “Regresa Mi Vida” within such an emblematic genre?
A lot of pressure and a lot of responsibility. Grupo Cañaveral is a band that plays a lot here, and being invited to participate in this tribute to the great Humberto is an enormous privilege, not only as an artist, but as a popular artist.
It was a wonderful experience. They are very warm people, a beautiful family that welcomed me incredibly. I traveled to Mexico to record the music video and the official video, and it was a truly unforgettable experience.
Looking at your career, from your beginnings with pop ballads and your first stages with “Angie y Los Fieles”, what remains intact in your essence as an artist?
The passion. The desire to sing. I want to sing every day of my life, and that is something I value very much. It is the engine that pushes me to move forward.
This career that I have managed to build, and that is now enhanced with the support of FONO, gives me even more life. It’s what sustains me and drives me.
Was there a key moment that marked a before and after in your international projection?
Yes. In recent years I began to clearly express my desire to be an international artist. I recorded songs where the phrase “my voice to the world” appears, that’s also what I called my tour, which just ended and which I toured throughout this year.
I think it’s also a way of telling the universe what I want: for my voice to reach the world. And I feel that this new stage is just beginning.
After this relaunch and such a significant year, what excites you for this new stage and looking towards 2026?
I’m very excited working on my new album. It is an album that is being created from love, from intact passion and the emotion of a new beginning. This international projection will be reflected in the songs.
We are already creating beautiful themes and many more to come. The creative process is exciting, but it also requires focus: knowing what you want and what you don’t. Sometimes people believe that the artist just goes on stage and sings, but there is a lot of work behind it.
In my case, I work a lot on myself to be a better artist. That is the great challenge of this year: to make an incredible album that reaches everyone’s hearts. And I think that’s how it will be.
