It’s been over ten years since Kacey Musgraves first performed at Gruene Hall, the historic venue in Central Texas where she wrapped up a three-night residency on Tuesday to celebrate her new album, Middle of Nowhere.

Back in 2014, Musgraves was on the rise. She had a critically praised debut album and a couple of Grammy Awards to her name. But she was still three years away from the career-defining success of Golden Hour—and the arena tours, red carpet moments, and mainstream country stardom that came with it.

Gruene Hall isn’t a fancy place. It’s a low, white wooden dance hall built in New Braunfels in 1878, with a tin roof, wire-mesh windows, and no air conditioning—in a state where temperatures can hit nearly 90 degrees by late April. But it’s iconic. It’s where George Strait found his sound, and where artists like Nanci Griffith, Robert Earl Keen, Miranda Lambert, and Lyle Lovett got their start. It’s where country stars are made, and where they return once the rest of the world has noticed their shine too.

So it makes sense that with Middle of Nowhere—an album that’s largely a love letter to her roots—Musgraves would come back to Gruene Hall. But this time, she wouldn’t be performing alone. She was joined by The Mariachi Brothers, a family group from McAllen, a city nearly 260 miles south of New Braunfels, on the Texas-Mexico border.

Just two months ago, the brothers—18-year-old Antonio Gámez-Cuéllar, 15-year-old Caleb Gámez-Cuéllar, and 12-year-old Joshua Gámez-Cuéllar—were detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), along with their parents, in nearby Edinburg. The family had been going through the asylum process since 2023. Their detention made national headlines and sparked public outrage, leading to their release two weeks later. Musgraves asked them to join her in New Braunfels soon after.

In Texas, Mexican culture is woven into the state’s identity—from our names to our music, our food, and our history. But you wouldn’t always know that from listening to most of the country music Texas produces. At its heart, country music is a classic American genre. It leans into nostalgia and (whitewashed) cowboys rather than vaqueros, glossing over the country’s deep flaws and the contributions of Black, Mexican, and Native American people who helped build it.

Over the decades, Latinos have made their way into country music. Artists like Linda Ronstadt and Tejano singers Freddy Fender and Johnny Rodriguez had hits on Billboard’s country charts. But to this day, there are no Latino members of the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Country music, like America itself, often defines itself by its borders. But reality has a way of sneaking in.

For Musgraves, those boundaries don’t match the world she grew up in. Her home state isn’t about neat lines and clear divisions. It’s the only place in the world where bluegrass, zydeco, Tejano, western swing, and Mexican rancheras all exist together—and sometimes even blend.

Like many of Texas’s greatest musical exports—Selena, Willie Nelson, Beyoncé—Musgraves enjoys pushing past made-up limits to let other sounds influence her work. (And it’s easy to see why she might feel drawn to Tejano, Norteño, and ranchera in particular—they’re dramatic and heartfelt, full of emotion, wit, humor, pain, and sorrow.)

That’s clear on Middle of Nowhere tracks like “Horses and Divorces,” “Uncertain, TX,” and the just-released, short-and-sweet bonus track “Caballero.” But Musgraves also showed her admiration for Mexican culture by inviting The Mariachi Brothers to perform with her.

On both sides of their family, the Gámez-Cuéllar brothers are surrounded by musicians—all of them mariachis. Their choice to follow that path is both a continuation of tradition and, in today’s political climate, a bold statement.Though it wasn’t their original intention, after being detained, their art has become a way of showing that their culture and their family belong here. They are now part of this state’s story.

As Musgraves said when she brought the brothers onstage Tuesday night: “This is Texas at its best. This isn’t a performance—this is generational wealth.”

A few hours before the show, after finishing soundcheck—their set would include covers of the classic ranchera song “Volver, Volver” and Selena’s “Tú Sólo Tú”—the brothers returned to their dressing room and talked to Vogue about what the residency meant to them. Not long ago, they were leaving mariachi practice in McAllen when their parents told them the news.

“I just feel so proud that all these stereotypes are breaking,” says Antonio, the oldest brother and the group’s trumpet player. “People might think we don’t deserve to be here, or they might have certain ideas about what we’re like, but in the end, we get to show them through music that we’re all the same.”

He admits a bit shyly that he didn’t used to listen to much country music. That’s changed now, thanks to Musgraves. “Mariachi, for us, that’s our music,” he explains. “But we’ve seen how people respond to country, and it’s the same thing. Both bring us closer together, create connection, and open up our emotions. Like Kacey says, ‘with music, language doesn’t matter.’ It’s true.”

With Middle of Nowhere serving as a kind of homecoming, it’s meaningful that Musgraves has been so open about the influence of Regional Mexican genres on country music. She had originally planned to have legendary Tejano accordionist Flaco Jiménez on the track “Uncertain, TX” before he passed away last summer.

Near the end of Tuesday’s show, Musgraves gave a shout-out to Arthur Jiménez, the son of Flaco Jiménez. “If I could have had Willie and Flaco [on the album], that would’ve been a Tex-Mex dream,” she said. “I did my best to put just a little bit of that Flaco spirit into this song, so this one’s for you and your family tonight.”

Under one roof, Musgraves’s grandparents, childhood friends, a family of mariachis, Jiménez, and a full house stomped on the wooden floorboards as she made her way through Middle of Nowhere—800 people brought together by music, as if to say, “this is Texas.”

Photo: Cat Cardenas

Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about the specific event pairing Kacey Musgraves and The Mariachi Brothers at Gruene Hall covering the context music and experience

BeginnerLevel Questions

Q Who are The Mariachi Brothers
A They are a professional mariachi band from Texas known for blending traditional Mexican mariachi music with modern country and pop sounds

Q Why is this pairing considered Texan magic
A Because it combines two iconic Texas sounds Kaceys modern sharp country songwriting and the rich celebratory energy of mariachi music It feels authentically Texan

Q Did Kacey Musgraves actually perform with a mariachi band at Gruene Hall
A Yes this describes a real or conceptual performance where she collaborated with The Mariachi Brothers at the historic Gruene Hall in New Braunfels Texas

Q What is Gruene Hall
A Its Texas oldest dance hall built in 1878 Its a legendary intimate venue where many famous country musicians have played

Advanced Questions

Q How does mariachi music complement Kacey Musgraves songwriting style
A Kaceys lyrics often tell stories of heartbreak smalltown life and independence The Mariachi Brothers horns and strings add a dramatic joyful or sorrowful layer that amplifies those emotions without overpowering her voice

Q What specific songs from Kaceys catalog would work best with a mariachi arrangement
A Songs like Slow Burn High Horse and Butterflies would translate especially well

Q Is this a common collaboration in Texas music
A Yes but its special Many Texas country artists have dabbled in mariachi But Kaceys polished popcountry sound with The Mariachi Brothers traditional roots creates a unique modern fusion

Q What is the acoustics like at Gruene Hall for a mix of country and mariachi