In Memoriam: Raul Malo (August 7, 1965 – December 8, 2025)

On Friday and Saturday nights, December 5 and 6, 2025, the Mavericks played a special show at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. Although the band was carrying on an annual tradition, this year’s shows were bittersweet, for their co-founded Raul Malo, who had been struggling with colon cancer and was in the final stages of that struggle, was absent. Joined by a host of friends and special guests including Rodney Crowell, Maggie Rose, Jim Lauderdale, Steve Earle, and Jeff Hanna (of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band) who each performed with the band using Malo’s microphone, the Mavericks dedicated the two nights to their co-founder whose soaring vocals could turn tender and hushed on a love song or turn playful on the swaying rhythms of a dance number.

On these two anointed evenings, several of the artists offered homages to their friend. Jim Lauderdale expressed his gratitude to Malo, going on to say, “You’ve created one of the greatest bands ever.” Rose called Malo the “best singer Nashville has ever seen.” Such accolades poured in throughout the night, as the band and the special guests celebrated their friend, sending a musical love letter and a series of warm embraces to Malo. On Friday night, Malo was awarded the National Music Council of The United States’ American Eagle Award. Although he could not be there to accept it, he sent an acceptance letter the band read. “Music has been the guiding force of my entire life. It carried me from my Cuban American childhood in Miami to stages across the world. It introduced me to my brothers, the Mavericks. It gave me a home in Nashville, Tennessee. It allowed me to raise my three incredible sons, Dino, Vincent, and Max, who are my greatest pride and joy. And it connected me to you fans whose love has sustained me through every chapter of this journey.”

These two nights turned out to be a fitting musical farewell to Malo, who died on Monday night, December 8. The cause was confirmed as cancer.

Raul Malo was born in Miami on August 7, 1965, to Cuban parents who had moved to the U.S. to embrace the American dream. Throughout his career, Malo generously opened his arms to others, inviting his audiences to embrace and dance the night away to sounds that combined country, rock, Tex Mex, and Western swing. In 1989, he founded the Mavericks with bassist Robert Reynolds and drummer Paul Deakin. For the next nine years, the band released five albums—The Mavericks (1990), From Hell to Paradise (1992), What a Crying Shame (1994), Music for All Occasions (1995), Trampoline (1998)—rising in popularity and on the charts with each new release. Malo’s soulful vocals lent a signature sound to the band, as they raked in nominations and awards from the Grammys, the Academy of Country Music, and the Country Music Association.

The Mavericks broke up in 1999, and Malo pursued a solo career, releasing the album Today, which contained the single “Every Little Thing.” Although a 2003 reunion of the band faltered, they band reunited in 2011, eventually releasing In Time (2013) and Mono (2015), which contained hits such as “Back in Your Arms Again” and “Let It Rain (on Me).” In 2024, the band released its thirteenth and final album, Moon & Stars, which featured unrecorded songs. After making the album, Malo was diagnosed with colon cancer. The Mavericks received the Trailblazers Award from the Americana Music Association in 2021.

Malo will be remembered for his hearty laughter, his generosity toward others, his openness to various musical traditions, his ability to lead a band, his guitar playing, his deep love for his family, and for his towering vocals. In a statement released after Malo’s death, the band recalled: “Anyone with the pleasure of being in Raul’s orbit knew that he was a force of human nature, with an infectious energy. Though his earthly body may have passed, Raul’s spirit will live on forever in heaven, and here on earth through the music, joy, and light he brought forth. His contributions to American and Latin music will be everlasting, as his songs and voice touched fans and fellow artists around the world.”

Malo’s wife Betty sums up best Raul Malo’s meaning to her, their family, and to the world of music: “No one embodied life and love, joy and passion, family, friends, music, and adventure the way our beloved Raul did. Now he will look down on us with all that heaven will allow, lighting the way and reminding us to savor every moment.”

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Below are a few of our Raul Malo & Mavericks favorites.

“Moon & Stars” (with Sierra Ferrell)