Lydia Mendoza

Lydia Mendoza, a native of Houston, was one of the first and most famous singers of the Texas-Mexico border and Latin America. Mendoza’s 1934 recording of “Mal Hombre” for Bluebird Records launched her sixty-year career. She became famous for both her voice and skills playing the twelve-string guitar. During her career, she was known as “La Alondra de la Frontera” and performed at the inauguration of President Carter. She won numerous awards, including the National Medal of Arts in 1999, National Heritage Fellowship Award in 1982 and she was inducted in the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame, the Tejano Music Hall of Fame and the Conjunto Music Hall of Fame. Mendoza’s image was featured on a U.S. Postage stamp in 2013. Her career ended after she suffered a stroke in 1988.