Texas Monthly

Latin music is ascending in the U.S. today. It’s the fastest-growing genre in the U.S., with Peso Pluma surpassing even Taylor Swift in YouTube views. In some surprising ways, much of the story behind this musical trend begins in Texas. In Texas thirty years ago, tejano and regional Mexican music were on the rise, and Johnny Canales’s musical variety show—most often recorded in Corpus Christi—was reaching audiences across the Western Hemisphere. Join J.B. Sauceda in Viva Tejano, launching November 12. Explore the influence of tejano music on today’s stars and enjoy exclusive early access for Texas Monthly audio subscribers. Tune in on Apple Podcasts or your favorite platform: https://txmnth.ly/4f2HDoi

Texas taquerias can take any form—a drive-through shack in an unincorporated community; a trailer next to a gas station in a quiet suburb; an upscale restaurant on a downtown block. Visiting as many of them as possible for our list of 50 best (which happened to be more than four hundred in about six months) was intimidating to taco editor José R. Ralat, but not exactly novel. In his five years with Texas Monthly, he's traveled constantly, searching the state for tacos that meet a certain level of craft, quality, creativity, and, especially, flavor. We present the fifty best tacos in Texas (with thirteen honorable mentions) and the taquerias that make them. See if your favorite made the list here: https://txmnth.ly/48jcbj7 📸: Isa Zapata

We have major news: Our editor in chief, Dan Goodgame, has decided to step down at the end of the year. Texas Monthly LLC Chairman Randa Duncan Williams has named as his successor Ross McCammon, a native Texan who became the magazine’s deputy editor last year. As deputy editor, McCammon has overseen the print magazine, where most of Texas Monthly’s narrative features first appear, and has edited many popular stories in its pages, including a captivating profile of actor Jesse Plemons and a feature on a Dallas-based doctor helping mostly uninsured bull riders behind the scenes at rodeos. He has also worked closely with Goodgame and other editorial leaders on journalistic projects across multiple platforms. As editor in chief, McCammon will oversee Texas Monthly’s journalism and lead the editorial strategy across the organization’s media efforts, which now include weekly TV programming, digital video, podcasts, live events, newsletters, books, social media, and Hollywood productions based on Texas Monthly stories.   "I grew up with Texas Monthly," McCammon said, "so I'm honored to build on the legacy of this singular institution and to lead such a talented group of storytellers. I'm grateful to Dan for his trust in me and to Randa for believing in and supporting Texas Monthly’s journalism so enthusiastically."   Read more below. https://lnkd.in/gxNkAdHR

By all accounts, U.S. representative Colin Allred is the underdog in this year’s U.S. Senate race. Texas, after all, hasn’t elected a Democrat to statewide office in nearly three decades. But Allred, who was born and raised in Dallas by a single mother and played football at Baylor University and in the NFL, says his “uniquely Texan” story will resonate with voters. He’s also playing up his willingness to go up against the Democratic establishment—as he did in January, when he joined congressional Republicans and a handful of Democrats to support a resolution condemning President Biden’s handling of the nation’s southern border. But what’s really boosting his campaign, he says, is the sentiment that he repeatedly hears from voters: they’re ready to move on from his opponent, two-term Republican senator Ted Cruz. Read more on Allred here: https://txmnth.ly/4dR0uBG 📸: Arturo Olmos

Join Texas Country Reporter in Grand Prairie at the Epic Art & Music Festival on October 19-20. Don’t miss the pop-up “mini” TCR Fest complete with familiar faces from the show, a chance to meet J.B. Sauceda, new TCR merch, and photo opps. The weekend will feature live art demonstrations, an artisan market, and live music beginning at noon each day. The event is free and family-friendly. See you there! Learn more and RSVP: https://txmnth.ly/4dwBL5i

REMINDER: Only 3 days left until voter registration closes. Are you registered? Here's how to make sure: https://txmnth.ly/4ePQpFP

Spearfishing, a niche sport and one of the most ancient forms of hunting, is for now the most effective, environmentally friendly way of removing armored catfish. Atlas Environmental’s semiannual polespear tournament, held every February and November in San Marcos, works with the city to remove invasive fish species from the Comal and San Marcos rivers. Participants compete over a two-week period to skewer invasive fish (tilapia have also arrived in the river, but they’re not nearly as numerous as armored catfish) with a polespear—a five-foot-long rod with three pronged and barbed tips. The tournament, which began in 2014, draws about sixty spearers. Participants are credited with removing about 3,500 pounds of armored catfish and 450 pounds or so of tilapia in that ten-year period. Texas Monthly's Joshua Alvarez practices and competes in the polespear tournament, and learns it's not as easy as it may look, here: https://txmnth.ly/4dvaMqC 📸: Bill Sallans

More than 96% of Texas land is private. Why? Read all about it: https://txmnth.ly/3XRNMxG

Abortion is illegal in Texas. Now extremists entering the Legislature want to make it a felony for patients, punishable by death. Nationally, these are the best of times and the worst of times for opponents of abortion rights. The Dobbs decision has provoked a tremendous backlash. Blue states have strengthened their laws protecting reproductive rights, while voters in traditionally red states, including Kansas and Ohio, have approved ballot initiatives protecting abortion access or struck down ones adding new restrictions. Democratic candidates have won election after election campaigning on the issue. Trump has been flummoxed by the fallout. Under pressure from the former president, the party’s national platform abandoned calls for a coast-to-coast ban, instead advocating for leaving abortion policies to individual states. The climate in Texas is quite different. For more than a decade, Republicans here have chipped away at reproductive rights. In 2013 then-Democratic senator Wendy Davis became an overnight star by filibustering legislation designed to shutter abortion clinics but lost her 2014 bid for governor by twenty percentage points to Greg Abbott after her opponents tagged her Abortion Barbie. In 2021 the Legislature passed the so-called bounty law, which empowers private citizens to collect a cash reward if they successfully sue someone who “aids or abets” an abortion. No meaningful electoral backlash has followed. Swipe to learn about the legal status of abortion in Texas, and visit our page for in-depth coverage on the future of legislators who oppose abortion rights in the state. https://txmnth.ly/3XSypVv 🎨: Chloe Cushman

“I thought of doing a book of just cows, but it seemed a little niche,” photographer Randal Ford said. “But then I thought, ‘Why not do fashion-inspired takes on farm animals?’ ” ✨🐄🐎🦆🐐✨ The result is "Farm Life: A Collection of Animal Portraits," a book of gorgeous images that will make you look at horses, chickens, and, yes, cows in new ways. A majority of the photographs were captured in Texas. Ford, who is based in Austin, often drove to the farms where the animals lived and set up mini studios inside their barns. He documented the process on his Instagram feed, which includes videos of him shooting his subjects while cows low in the background. “It’s fascinating to look in the eyes of other animals,” Ford said. “There’s something more there than what we at first see.” Read more about the process of making his new book, and how messy the process can be, here: https://txmnth.ly/3B9Z4V8 📸: Randal Ford ✍️: Joshua Alvarez