The White House's annual Cinco de Mayo event is getting an authentic Mexican infusion, with popular rock band Maná set to perform on May 5.
"Wow, if you had told me 25 years ago that one day the band Maná would play in the White House, I wouldn't have believed it," said frontman Fher Olvera in a statement to BuzzFeed News. "We feel proud to share our music and culture that without a doubt is an integral part of the United States."
The White House hailed the band from Guadalajara, Mexico as iconic and see the event as a way to unite the community and show support for Mexico, Mexican-Americans and Latinos at large, noting that the band has been "super" supportive of President Obama and he is "a big fan."
The top-selling Latin rock band of all-time, which supported Obama's reelection campaign in 2012 at a Las Vegas concert, inserted itself into the 2016 election when it denounced Donald Trump's comments early in his campaign last summer.
It dedicated a song to him entitled "Somos Más Americanos," "We Are More American," at a Staples Center concert in Los Angeles, where they hold the record for most sold-out shows.
"There is a character named Donald Trump, who made very violent declarations with great hatred of Mexicans and Latin Americans and called us rapists, criminals, drug traffickers," Olvera said at the time, calling him a racist. "This is all trash."
They really don't like Trump — at the Latin Grammy's four months later, using music as a "weapon of protest," they held up sign that read "Latinos United Don't Vote For Racists!"
The Latino community and immigration in particular have once again become a major part of the election, with Democrats hoping to maintain gains made by Obama at the presidential level, and hoping that Trump's rhetoric will help in that pursuit.
The prolific band, known for rock hits like Oye Mi Amor and love songs like Labios Compartidos, has also written songs about Mexican politics and gotten involved in Get Out The Vote efforts in the U.S.
Maná also performed at Obama's inaugural ball in 2013 and will play five to seven songs, though the song list has not yet been determined.