© Latinas in History 2008
"People say I'm the mother of Tejano music, but I don't think I even heard the word, knew what it was, until many years after I started. . . . People watched what I was doing -- singing and playing guitar -- and that inspired them. Lydia Mendoza, Chicago Tribune in 1996.
Since she was four years old Mendoza aspired to a career in music and to follow in the footsteps of her talented entertainment oriented family. Following years of touring with the Mendoza family throughout the Southwest and Midwest, Lydia Mendoza became the star attraction. The radio program, La Voz Latina, brought Mendoza to a wider audience and, eventually, to a record contract with RCA Victor’s Bluebird label. She recorded her first solo hit, “Mal Hombre” in 1933 which led to a thriving career that spanned six decades in show business. Mendoza is in the Tejano Conunto Hall of Fame, the Tejano Music Hall of Fame, and the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame, and the Tejano Roots Hall of Fame.
