I love Tejano  music and Tejano music was something that gave me life. Tejano music was something that motivated me, that inspired me. I went to sleep listening to Tejano music, woke up listening to Tejano music. And kept going throughout the day, and that music was part of it. And it still is. It still is. But it’s no longer Tejano music.

When I retired from the Navy, my intention was to come back to Corpus Christi and get involved in the promotion of Tejano music. That was my, that was my, I guess, my dream, so to speak. But when I got here to Corpus, I started hearing Norteño music, all this Norteño stuff. And I says, well wait a minute, you know? What's going on here? And before long, that's all you would hear. You wouldn't hear Tejano music. You would hear Norteño music. And I would call the radio stations and tell them, you know, complain, you know, like, why are you playing only Norteno stuff? You know, this is - they said, “Well, that's part of what it is.” No, that is not part of what it is. They said, “Well, this is the more, these are more popular. ” I says, no. And so gradually, gradually all the stations with Tejano music started playing only conjunto, rather Norteño music. No more Tejano music.

And I started feeling bad. I was just like a blooming, beautiful plant that starts dying because, it just started dying. That's how I can look at myself and see myself. And getting upset because I was listening to the radio and all of a sudden I would hear Norteño stuff. And I would say, look, if you want to hear that music, go to the Mexican stations and listen to that. Leave the Tejano music alone. Leave us alone. But no. And for me to be experiencing that and for other Tejanos not to be paying attention to that, it was horrible. But we didn't pay attention. The majority of the Tejano population did not pay attention that the Mexicano music was invading our Tejano music airwaves. And they did. They took over and and spread throughout Texas and beyond the borders of Texas. Now you have Mexican stations all over the United States.

You know, and I never, never said that, “Well, I don't like the Mexicans. I don't like-” No. Never. I never really felt comfortable with Mexican groups, because we didn't, we didn't connect. There was, there was a, there was a disconnect and it's it that's just the way it is, you know?