La Mafia is one of the last remaining stars in the Tejano genre. It was one of the first Mexican-American groups to tour throughout the United States, Mexico, Central and South America plus Europe.

The group was named one of Billboard's top 25 Latin artists of the past 25 years. La Mafia also got a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Tejano Music Awards.

Joe Gonzales, who was with the group for 13 years, recently decided to leave for a full-time, special education teaching position in Corpus Christi, South Texas. Comments the drummer:

"I have nothing but respect for the institution that is the La Mafia family. It's allowed me to finish my degree, and leaving is bittersweet. I love my second family and will miss being on the road with them. They are a class act."

The current La Mafia lineup includes Oscar De La Rosa, Armando Lichtenberger Jr (keys, accordion, production), David De La Garza (keyboards, vocals), Tim Ruiz (bass) and Viktor Pacheco (guitar).