It’s not every day that you see a bonafide Mexican party on an arena stage in Miami. But fans got that in spades during Grupo Firme’s stop of their La Ultima Peda (The Last Drunk) tour at the Kaseya Center on Saturday (June 1).
The three-plus hour show felt like a gigantic carne asada party for 10,000 of the group’s closest friends, punctuated by a norteño band, a full horn section, non-stop drinking onstage and lead singer Eduin Caz’s undisputed star power. Few, if any Mexican music stars exude such rock ‘n’ roll attitude onstage. The man can sing, dance and party hard, without missing a beat.
It was Firme’s second time in Miami and the performance highlighted not just this particular group’s popularity but the growing popularity overall of regional Mexican music in cities that have not traditionally been hotbeds for the movement. Grupo Firme will also take their 30-plus date U.S. tour to Tampa, New York and Charlotte, for example.
But the Miami stop was special. The city holds a special place for the group, who spent several days in Miami, hosted a get-together for fans and press and even found time to film two music videos.
Onstage at the Kaseya, Firme brought out not only musicians, but also dancers with tons of attitude, and Caz took the opportunity to showcase his ballad/bolero vocals chops with an emotional performance of the group’s new single, “El beneficio de la duda.” It was another breakthrough moment for the group that’s helped pave the way for the new wave of regional Mexican music.
Here are five memorable moments from Grupo Firme’s show at Miami’s Kaseya’s Center on June 1.
You heard that right. Aside from finding space for the band, Grupo Firme finds space for a bona fide bartender, and the rule is, every guest who goes onstage takes a shot. When it comes to Eduin Caz, his favorite drink is whiskey.
In this tour, Caz has made his family priorities clear and has been traveling with his wife and three children. Backstage prior to the show, Eduin Caz’s oldest son, 8-year-old Gerardo, kept asking if he could go onstage and sing with his dad, something he already did in a previous stop. In Miami, he encored, performing “Alaska,” the hit Grupo Firme recorded with Camilo. Gerardo brought the house down, singing and dancing in perfect choreography.
There were plenty of guests at the arena. Beyond family, rising regional Mexican star Xavi was seen backstage, paying his respects, and Kim Loaiza and JD Pantoja (and his children), were seen seated among the audience.
Grupo Firme pal Codiciado made his Miami debut performing onstage with the group. Firme and Codiciado had previously collaborated when the singer was part of Grupo Codiciado, but the Miami performance heralds a new collab with Codiciado as a solo act.
Grupo Firme likes to ask fans to take shots and toast throughout the show. But the Kaseya Center stopped serving alcohol around 10 p.m., when the concert was in full swing. No problem. Eduin Caz started sharing beers with fans from the group’s cooler onstage.