Daily Inspiration: Meet Rico Del Oro

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Rico Del Oro.

Rico, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My chosen name and stage name is Rico Del Oro – which translates to “Rich of Gold.” Derived from my last name ‘Orona.’

I was born in 1998 and raised as Kevin Alberto Orona in Fort Worth, Texas, by my mother and father, who are both from Mexico. My mother is from the City of Celaya, Guanajuato, and my father is from a small ranch town in Durango, Mexico, called “San Juan De Guadalupe.” They moved down to the States early on in their lives and have since become US citizens, but I still remember the effects of the process of immigration early on in my childhood.

I left the States to live with my mom in her hometown for about a year when I was approximately three years old, and this would effectively impact the rest of my childhood and influence the way I interacted with the world when I moved back to the States to start school. Spanish was my first language, but I was fortunate enough to go to a school in Fort Worth that helped Spanish-speaking kids learn English in Pre-K.

During the holidays, I would often visit Mexico with my parents to see family in their hometowns- I cherish these trips that would inevitably influence my music and songwriting. I’d say my music is the reflection of the combined influences of rural and urban Mexican cultures.

I also grew up in a somewhat religious household; both my parents are practicing Jehovah’s Witnesses, and although I was raised in that environment, I broke away and pursued my own path in my teenage years. This created a bit of a rift between my family at the time but again would undoubtedly influence my artistry in the years to come – I believe in the spirit of the rebel, it’s important to me to question everything when in pursuit of justice, empathy and compassion in our communities.

It was very rare when someone from my family would sit down and show me a piece of music that was significant to them, but I would *always* be in proximity to their tastes. Including the genres of Boleros, Rancheras, Mariachi, and even some more contemporary artists. A few examples of those genres: Vicente Fernandez, Los Panchos, José José and Los Ángeles Negros, to name a few.

My mother’s side of the family has always loved singing. Mom was a singer in her early twenties and even traveled to LA to record with her music group (something she ultimately gave up for her faith), and my grandma, although she never pursued a career in music, has been singing for almost her whole life. Picking up the torch has been a big motivation for me as I navigate through my own career.

I started writing songs in 2019 with no plan other than fulfilling the muse of making my first album, “TAURO.” With no prior songwriting experience, I began composing melodies and song structures in my parent’s house with just an acoustic guitar. At this point, I had been going to college for Graphic Design, and when the pandemic rolled around in 2020 (and after years and years of blue-collar and retail jobs), I dropped out of college to pursue what I really wanted to do: music. I had no idea what this would look like, but as I crafted demos for my songs with a friend and started a social media career on TikTok, a series of viral videos changed my life forever.

I made a few online friends in Nashville, and one spontaneous trip from Fort Worth to Music City showed me the potential and talent that could be found there. After traveling back and forth from Texas to Tennessee in 2021, I would finally record “TAURO” at the ‘Welcome to 1979 studio. At the beginning of April 2022, I made the big move to Nashville to finish what I started. By the end of that month, I released my first single, “Vida,” and officially claimed my artist name, “Rico Del Oro,” after years of the “Rico” nickname. The single was succeeded by “Wysteria” and “Sol y Luna,” and by the end of that year, I had my live performance debut solo with a band.

In 2023, I performed at a few notable local venues and even in Americana Fest at Jack White’s The Blue Room, and finally released “TAURO” in September- A project that consists of 7 songs about love, loss, a shift in faith and the search for divine love. This is an album that aims to resonate with the outcasts and underdogs of the world and to touch those with a profound sense of loss in their hearts.

The Western landscape is something that has been called out to me for a long time, and as someone who likes to create music with a visual sense, it is important for me to keep creating a world that is cohesive in storytelling and visuals. Creating albums with a “Film” like approach- I’m currently working on album #2, or “the sequel,” which will revolve around themes of death and transformation- getting back up and trying again. Themes that have represented my journey ever since uprooting my life in Texas

Since then, I’ve doubled down on the Spanglish songwriting, being bilingual, I’ve always found strength in the language that I first learned to speak. I’m proud of my Mexican heritage, but going forward as a reconnecting indigenous person and artist- it’s vital to recognize the deepest of my ancestral roots in the hopes that my stories can inspire and maybe even help heal other people who resonate with what I have to say

In the present, 2024, I have amassed over 67,000 followers on my biggest platform, TikTok, and cultivated a Spotify audience of over 8,300 monthly listeners, which translated to over 215,000+ all-time streams on my debut album. All of these have been grassroots movements- without labels, publishing, or management. As far as big upcoming performances, I’m set to play at the Muddy Roots Music Festival this upcoming Labor Day weekend.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I think the biggest obstacle for most of my adult life was myself. I was too afraid to take chances and take risks. To change. Getting out of my own way changed the entire game for me. Even getting over excruciating social anxiety and stage fright to become the performer I am now, all it took was believing in myself and just taking the leap.

But overall, I’d say the bumps in the road have all taught me so much about being an artist. Things like getting no response from emails, closed doors, or opportunities that have fallen through are things that, to me, have been crucial to learning perseverance in this journey. It doesn’t make me special. Many of my peers on the music path and many of the Greats have faced similar obstacles or worse.

But just like the time when I lost all the progress I made crafting demos for my debut album, I had to make the decision to keep going, start again, and even do something different. Innovating and reinventing myself in small and large ways has made the journey interesting enough to keep learning and rolling with the punches. Which in turn has smoothed out the perceived road itself.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
The Western landscape is the primary canvas I use for my songwriting. I have this longing if you can call it that, to create a colorful yet sometimes dark and mystical world where people can be lost and found.

Where do people feel they belong? “Where do I belong?” This is a question I often asked myself when I was growing up, often feeling like I didn’t fit in anywhere, whether it was because of how much bigger I was than the other kids in my age group or feeling alienated from classmates because of the beliefs imposed by religion, I found myself spending a lot of days in my imagination and daydream. As an adult- learning to turn daydreams and imaginations into art has been a very healing process. Being able to not only pour my emotions into a song but also embrace my Mexican roots has helped me build a world where people feel they belong.

Even if it’s just temporary. Receiving comments from strangers on the internet like “all your music makes me pine for the unknown.” “Music so powerful it brought tears to my eyes.” “my mom and I love your music” have made it all worth it. And to quote my own mother, “Even if you don’t reach the level that you’re thinking of, look at all you’ve accomplished. You already made it.”

Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I’ve been lucky to find other great artists who have been able to help me bring my vision to life. It isn’t every day you meet those special people who make you feel like you were meant to cross paths, and when you do, and you get to collaborate, it’s as if magic is in the air.

The right place and right time are the ways I like to see things. Even if it doesn’t feel like it in certain moments, even with the obstacles and setbacks, I’ve always been able to look back with gratitude because I’ve always ended up exactly where I needed to be to keep growing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/ricodeloro
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ricodeloroo?igsh=MXQzOXk4ejJ5YnRuZg==
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/zoeV9eSBOQ8?si=9pk_q7Qv9USJ6U9O
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/16nT5ZIXtMCcLXOttxkH7n?si=rCG6BolNSsOv97T2LkFsrA

Image Credits
Adrian Lopez, Betsy Black, Gina Binkley, and ARi Lyon