Skip to Content
Music

Listen to the Next Essential Cumbia Christmas Rola From Chicano Batman’s É. Arenas

"I hate Christmas music, so I decided to make my own," Arenas tells L.A. TACO. "The song is rooted in Bronco, dipped in Twin Peaks, and finding yourself lost and found on Christmas morning in a 3 A.M. warehouse dance party."

You've seen Home Alone and reveled in your nostalgic yuletide G-spot as "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" by Brenda Lee played in the background.

You've sipped on ponche con piquete with family and friends while "Burrito Sabanero" blasted in the background. Maybe you've even unconciously bobbed your head to Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You" while waiting in line with your cart full of bargain buys at T.J. Maxx.

What now?

You can shake off your good ol' two-step and listen to É. Arenas' new Christmas cumbia banger, "Tuki Tuki." That's what.

Arenas, a founding member of Chicano Batman, has steadily been growing his solo project portfolio, quietly composing the cumbia-esque music to podcasts like this one. Now, he has just the cumbia track we all need to shake off our holiday rust.

"I hate Christmas music, so I decided to make my own," Arenas tells L.A. TACO.

"This single follows my summer single release, 'Takis,' and builds on the grotesque, fun, big bounce, [and] dramatic personality of my latest cumbias," he says about his inspiration for the song.

Arenas has been dropping a new cumbia every Christmas for the last seven years, but for the first time, he features other vocalists, including Austin Ford (Big Fun), Lilo Sanchez (Señor Loop), and Angélica Garcia.

"The song is rooted in Bronco, dipped in Twin Peaks, and finding yourself lost and found on Christmas morning in a 3 A.M. warehouse dance party," he says.

Listen to the full single as we enter the peak Christmas season in Los Ángelestitlán below.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from L.A. TACO

Opinion: Senator Padilla’s Arrest is Proof Trump Wants to Silence Truth At All Costs

At the moment of Padilla’s arrest, he was no longer a sitting senator, or citizen of this country, he became just another Mexican. Trump is primed to lose the Battle for Los Angeles, not because he lacks resources or loyal followers, but because he doesn't even understand the battlefield itself. 

13 Arrested As Protest Against Palantir Occupies Sunset Boulevard Lobby of Thiel Capital

"Palantir represents how billionaires make a profit by hurting families," said one protester at the demonstration. "We have to remember: this is just the first step."

June 13, 2025

Can Anti-Surveillance Makeup Protect Protesters from Facial Recognition Software?

Known as Computer Vision Dazzle, or CV Dazzle, this abstract style of makeup was created by artist and researcher Adam Harvey for his 2010 master's thesis at NYU. While traditional camo is designed as a disruptive pattern meant to hide the wearer from the human eye, CV Dazzle was created to break machine vision systems.  The name comes from “Dazzle,” a type of camouflage on battleships in WWI and WWII that used complex patterns of contrasting geometric shapes to make it difficult for enemies to determine their speed and distance.

June 13, 2025

BREAKING: ICE Confirmed Abductions at Taco Truck in East L.A.

"They snatch you like a dog. The streets ain't safe, that's all I gotta say," says the Jason Devora after witnessing it all and still in shock about it.

June 12, 2025
See all posts