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Emo Subculture Shows Its Strength at Casa de la Cultura's Emo Night
- Stevie Quilo
- Mar 24
- 4 min read
Casa de la Cultura traded its traditional color palette for shades of black on Saturday night, hosting a packed Emo Night on March 15, 2025. Amps pumped out emo anthems, old and new. The event showcased the surprising strength of the emo subculture in Del Rio, a stoic city more often associated with indigenous, military, or cowboy cultures. Emo presence at La Casa signifies the broadening of cultural expression and a recognition of the diverse needs of Del Rio's youth.
The event was organized by Pete Ortiz, his brother Joe Ortiz, and his niece April Portillo. April's vision was brought to life with Pete's extensive experience volunteering at the Casa de la Cultura, and Joe as DJ. Together they transformed the cultural hub into a social safe space for edgy, emotional expression and judgement-free abnormality. April said, “I’m so grateful, the emo community here really shows up for each other.”
Young adults flooded to the Casa for Emo Night; a demographic typically underrepresented at Del Rio cultural events. “Some people box, some people play sports, some people work out, some people listen to music,” said Pete. Band tees, studded belts, and a surge of alternative-music aficionados filled the space, a stark contrast to the venue's normal crowd. Emo night achieved the impossible – It is not an easy feat to appeal to young adults; the Casa tends to attract older adults, or families with little kids.
Emo night is a space where you can scream along to the music, cry during your tattoo session, and fist-pump with friends, without fear of being mocked. “But I would say that these people are just expressing something. It's not anything violent or anything. Even though some of the music might sound violent, has nothing to do with that,” said Pete.
One event attendee explained why the emo community thrives in Del Rio: “the pressure to fit into your role is a lot, it’s so machismo here, we need an outlet… somewhere to come together where you see emotions as a strength, not something to hide.” They went on to say, “being emo doesn’t mean that you reject your heritage, it’s just like creating a space to express yourself, on your own terms.”
A mobile tattoo studio serviced at least 100 people eager for $40 flash tattoos. A spirited lip sync battle ignited the crowd. Vendors offered refreshing Aguas Frescas, nostalgic memorabilia, and grunge accessories. The scene was a blend of elder millennials and Gen-Z, motorcyclists and skater kids, artists and cosplayers, mingling in a sea of all-black attire. It was nostalgic for the 90s adults to see the tradition passed onto the next generation.
Emo is much more than just preference in a music genre. Emo is centered around deep feelings and a sense of self-expression. “It includes all forms of self-expression, from fashion, to makeup, to attitude,” said Pete. Emo Night provided a social space where vulnerability is celebrated, a vital resource for those seeking an alternative to the local norm. “They definitely feel their emotions a little bit stronger than most people. They're not afraid to show their emotions,” said Pete.
Pete invited the whole region, “We're not just Del Rio. I reached out to Uvalde, Comstock, Brackettville, Eagle Pass, I reached out to Acuna. I wanted to make sure that all those folks know that there's a place they can come to, even if it's just for one night, where, hey, you can come out here, listen to the songs that you like as loud as you want with a bunch of people that also like that music, it’s just about sharing with them,” said Pete.
Emo’s roots are traced back to the mid-1980s hardcore punk scene. While the genre initially emerged in large cities on the coasts, by the mid-2000s, its influence had spread across the country, reaching so far as the borderlands of Texas and Mexico. When emo music popularity started to rise in the early 2000s and 2010s, emo was a separate genre from rock, goth, punk, metal, and screamo. Since the rise of the emo scene, Mexicans and Mexican - Americans have played a large role in the subculture.
Today’s “emo” has evolved into a broader definition that includes all forms of alternative music and people. The new definition of emo helped bring niche groups together to form a larger unit, a community. The big link between the diverse range of musical styles is that “the emo subculture is more based on an emotional angst, a lot of the music specifically has to deal with teenage angst or heartbreak,” said Pete.
This was the 2nd annual Emo Night, but event organizers hope to increase the frequency of occurrences. Last year’s event drew a crowd of 200 attendees, and this year looked even bigger. “We're not even charging vendors a vendor fee. There's no entrance fee. Like it's not even for us. It's not about making money or anything like that. It's literally just to give these people a space to get together,” said Pete.
The success of Emo Night made one thing clear, emo subculture is alive and well. It’s no longer just a phase; it’s woven into the fabric of modern Tejano youth culture. Emo, in all its multifaceted glory, represents a fusion of identities: a blend of the old and the new, the tough and the tender.
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