La Mafia is a four-time Grammy Award-winning musical group. It has its roots in the near-northside neighborhood of Houston, Texas and has charted a course as a Latin Music band.
La Mafia was founded in 1980 by Oscar de la Rosa, and Armando Lichtenberger Jr. at Henry’s Night Club, a bar owned by Oscar’s family. De la Rosa, as vocalist, and Lichtenberger, as keyboardist, accordion player and the band’s producer, were joined by Tim Ruiz Jr. on bass in 1996, Joe Gonzales on drums in 2003 and Viktor Pacheco on Guitar in 2007. The band’s original name was Los Jovenes.
La Mafia, seeking to expand their musical horizons, began touring extensively in Mexico and Latin America beginning in the late 1980s. The practice of Hispanic-American artists performing in Mexico on a large scale was unheard of before La Mafia. Back home, La Mafia has performed in front of three record-setting crowds at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo at the Houston Astrodome.
