The music of DannyLux and Tornillo could not be any more different. Danny, whose real name is Daniel Balderrama Espinoza, sings Mexican regional guitar love ballads while Tornillo, whose real name is Osiel Armando Vázquez Pérez, makes hard-hitting rap songs that have been compared to Cuban-American rap group Cypress Hill.
However, if you ask them, there are more similarities than you'd think.
"What we have in common is that we both want to win, man," Tornillo said in an exclusive interview with The Latin Times alongside DannyLux. "We have very similar goals. We're both fighting to get on stage. It doesn't matter who wins, it's an achievement itself to be here," Danny added.
The "here" in question is the second 'Red Bull SoundClash' a musical competition that the energy drink brand uses to promote talent and in this case reach out to the Latino community of the United States.
Parallel Paths to Stardom
Sat backstage in the Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, the artists talked about love as one of the things that brings them together.
"All of our songs are made with love and we put all of our hearts in them... We put a lot of effort into it and through that, we give it love... We both have that in common..." Tornillo added.
Despite coming from different places, the two have a very similar rise to fame. Espinoza grew up in Palm Springs, California to Mexican parents. His dad, who worked as a waste collector, brought him a thrown-away guitar before his mom asked him to join the church choir, where he developed his skills as a singer and guitarist.
He would later start uploading guitar covers of famous songs on TikTok that went viral and got the attention of Eslabón Armado singer Pedro Tovar, who invited him to work on a song with the band which became a hit.
The son of a mechanic, Vázquez, a native of the city Soledad de Graciano Sánchez in the state of San Luis Potosí, learned to play the accordion at 6 years old, demonstrating his love of music from an early age. In 2020, he also tried his hand at social media to promote his got his big break a year later when fellow Mexican rapper Santa Fe Klan signed him to his label 473 and featured him on multiple songs.
The Same Crowd
The way that both artists perform in front of international crowds is also something they have in common. Unlike some other artists who strictly work within their demographic, Tornillo and DannyLux have immersed themselves in the multitude of nationalities in the immigrant community of the United States, Mexico, and other countries where their music becomes popular.
"When all is said and done, both crowds have the same passion. The ones who go to his shows or mine go for the love of the music, for the love of our songs, so it's all the same passion."
"It's the same culture, man. They just speak different languages." Tornillo added.
The Battle
The Mexican artists were gearing up for their second 'Red Bull SoundClash,' a concert where the artists would go on two different stages at the same time, and take turns performing in a competition judged by the audience.
While the two did it for the first time in Los Angeles earlier this month, the Mexican artists were preparing for their second and last one (for now) in Chicago's Aragon Ballroom, one of the city's most famous musical venues. Tornillo had won the competition in Los Angeles while Danny won that night in Chicago after four rounds of sets with the winner being judged on the loudness of each crowd.
Each round provided a unique challenge for both artists. Round one just consisted of performing a normal set which ended in a tie. The real challenges started in round two the cover round, where the artists would have to cover a song of a different genre where Tornillo won.
Round three is the takeover, where one artist would start a song and the other would have to finish it in their style which Tornillo also won. Finally, round four was the wildcard where the artists could call out surprise guests. For their guests, Danny brought out singer Calle 24 and Tornillo brought out Wisconsin hip-hop group Kinto Sol, much to thunderous applause and cheers which Danny won.
A Very Mexican Chicago
Chicago is also home to the largest Mexican-American community outside of the Western United States, a fact the area is very proud of as signs in Spanish and Mexico-influenced graffiti line the streets of neighborhoods like Pilsen in the Lower West Side of the city. There are also manhole covers designed like Mayan calendars and eagles resembling the one on the Mexican flag on traffic lights to further drive home the fact that the area is proud of its heritage.
Tornillo and Danny became aware of it through performing in the city, and are deeply grateful to the community for accepting them with open arms, Tornillo added, "We've always come here to perform and the people here love us very much... we've seen all kinds of Mexicans here from across the skin color spectrum."
Tornillo has often been seen sporting a Chicago Bulls jacket and took the opportunity to wear it during part of the show. He and Danny would also bring out and wear the Mexican flag in a demonstration of pride in their heritage.
When asked what they were grateful for ahead of Thanksgiving, Tornillo would say "I'm grateful for the people who are coming here to see us because it's a massive achievement to be here performing for people. At least for me, I'm from Mexico and to be singing here in the United States in a place like this and to fill it up as well is so amazing."
While the two would technically be competing against each other for the crowd's favor, the two were quick to reassure that there was no animosity between them and that these shows were done with love. Danny said, "There's nothing more to it than doing the best you can and doing it with love." To which Tornillo added, "We try to enjoy what we can, it feels great to be here."
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