News about American singer-songwriter Ivan Cornejo, known for his Mexican music, dying in a car crash has been circulating on social media since Tuesday, June 6, 2023, leaving netizens baffled. However, it must be noted that this is not true and the 19-year-old singer is alive and well.
The confusion started when Twitter user Gaby @gBaby_md, tweeted that she was pranked into thinking Ivan died in a vehicular crash.
In a recent trend, several Gen Z social media enthusiasts have been sharing videos of themselves reacting to being pranked by their families stating that their favorite celebrity has died. The fad is based on a similar TikTok trend where kids prank their parents by telling them their favorite musician is no more.
The rumors were further fueled when TikTok user Danny Cervantes, @bdn_danbro, shared a clip of dying in a car crash. However, one of Ivan Cornejo’s songs then brings him back to life.
Ivan Cornejo’s debut album, Alma Vacia won him the Regional Mexican Album of the Year award
The singer was born in Riverside, California in 2004 and was introduced to music at an early age. He learned how to play the guitar by watching tutorials on YouTube when he was just 8 years old. The first song he perfected was La Bamba by Ritchie Valens. According to an article by Billboard, the teenager had his heart broken in middle school, which inspired him to start writing lyrics.
While his music is based on Mexican roots, the singer grew up listing to and playing alternative rock songs on his guitar. Speaking about his familiarity with the genre, Ivan told Billboard:
“My brother would listen to alt-rock like Arctic Monkeys, Tame Impala, and my parents listened to Café Tacvba. Very on the alternative side.
The Californian released his first album, Alma Vacia, in 2021, which peaked at number 2 on the US Billboard Regional Mexican Albums chart, where it remained in the top ten for 35 weeks and number 7 on the Top Latin Albums chart. According to Billboard, his dark and real lyrics led him to peak on the Billboard Latin Songwriters chart for the week ending on October 30, 2021.
Furthermore, The New York Times named the album as one of the best of 2021. The single Está Dañada also went viral, making Cornejo a hit celebrity among Gen Z. Ivan Cornejo’s second album, Dañado (2022), debuted and peaked in the Regional Mexican Albums chart. He told Billboard:
“Social media has played a really important role on my music because without it, all the trends on TikTok have really helped build up my music.”
In his interview with Billboard, Ivan Cornejo credited his friends for introducing him to regional Mexican musicians like T3R Elemento and Grupo Los De La O just a few years ago. He added that he admires artist Junior H whose music has similar Mexican meets alternative tones.