What does Iván Archivaldo Guzmán’s voice sound like? This is the corrido by Panchito Arredondo that reveals it.

One of the greatest mysteries about drug trafficking leaders in Mexico is what the voice of Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar, leader of Los Chapitos and son of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, sounds like.

Although he was detained a few years ago and later released, official recordings of his voice have never been leaked. This absence has given rise to multiple speculations and fueled all kinds of legends. In this void, popular music—especially corridos—has become the main clue as to what one of the “heavyweights” of organized crime sounds like.

One of the most notorious examples is the corrido “El llamado del 19,” which became popular in 2020 and was performed by Panchito Arredondo. The song features fragments of alleged radio communications attributed to members of Los Chapitos and, for many, represents the only known record of how the elder Guzmán Salazar expresses himself.

The context of this corrido is the so-called Culiacanazo: on Thursday, October 17, 2019, after the capture of Ovidio Guzmán López in Culiacán, Los Chapitos operatives launched an operation that caused chaos, blockades, and armed confrontations throughout the city.

During those critical hours, audio recordings extracted from radio frequencies allegedly used by the Sinaloa Cartel began circulating on social media. Threats and direct orders can be discerned in these recordings. A voice, later identified by Panchito Arredondo’s corrido as that of Iván Archivaldo Guzmán, challenges and pressures for his brother’s release: “Come on, dude, are you going to let him go, or what’s the matter, my boy? How do you want to dance?”

In the recording, the voice of Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, “El Nini,” Los Chapitos’ security chief, can also be heard, apparently addressing a military commander: “Answer me, son of a bitch, they’re talking to you, they’re talking to you nicely. Let him go and go quietly, and nothing will be done to you, otherwise you’ll be screwed.”

Then the leader of Los Chapitos addresses his hitmen: “All the kids you have located, locate his family, damn it,” and then continues against the commander they had detained, “Just don’t let him go, he said, you son of a bitch, you’ll see, you son of a bitch, for not answering properly.”

The corrido that confirmed it

The corrido “El llamado del 19,” released a year after Black Thursday, consolidated the most well-known version of Iván Archivaldo’s voice and role in the Culiacanazo in the popular world.

The official video—which has over a million views on YouTube—repeats the threats from the audio recordings, although it slightly modifies what the boss allegedly said:
“What’s up, kid? Are you going to let my brother go? Or we’ll all kill each other here,” that was Chief Iván,” is heard in the song, and then a fragment of that radio frequency is heard.