¡Hola! The Cuban Cowboys have been around longer than many of you have been alive (thank you Old 97's) , starting out in Gainesville, FL back in 1998. Founder and frontman Jorge Navarro started the band while pursuing a Ph.D. in bilingual education. He cut his teeth in the Gainesville music scene's heyday, alongside the likes of Hot Water Music, Against Me!, Sister Hazel, and the assorted ghosts of Tom Petty. Weird things can come from a first-gen Cuban-American who takes to Rock before circling back to his Cuban roots; which is what happened when Jorge moved to NYC in 2000. He abandoned his dissertation, pulled a kickass band together and released Cuban Candles. The band blew up in NYC, toured extensively, got lots of press and eventually signed an ill-fated record deal. The deal went south, Jorge went west, became a dad and got clean. Two years after releasing Diablo Mambo to international acclaim, the band went quiet. The demands of fatherhood, and extensive international travel for an education non-profit were just too much. Since 2013, Dubai, Istanbul, Seoul, and Oslo and other far-flung places became as influential on Jorge's writing and thinking as the Pixies are to his music. The pandemic pulled him off the road and off his ass, artistically. Along with the popular !Ay, Jorge! podcast, the dude is working on a second edition and Spanish-language version of his memoir (based on the song Jinetero), releasing more singles like Niña and a new book in late 2024.