That Mexican OT

Biography

Virgil René Gazca (born February 2, 1999), known professionally as That Mexican OT (with OT standing for Outta Texas), is an American rapper from Bay City, Texas. He is best known for his 2023 single "Johnny Dang" (with Paul Wall and Drodi), which entered the Billboard Hot 100 and led him to sign with Interscope Records. The song preceded the release of his debut studio album, Lonestar Luchador, in July of that year.
That Mexican OT's music takes influence from hip-hop and Chicano rap.

Early life

Virgil René Gazca was born in Bay City, Texas, in 1999. His mother, Sophia Ann Gazca, was killed by a drunk driver in 2007. His father was incarcerated when Gazca was a child and was seldom involved in his life when he was out. Shelby Stewart of the Houston Chronicle stated that Gazca "faced the hardships of life in the ghetto...faced betrayal from his own kin, and he's even had his own battle with drug abuse".

Career

As a performer, Gazca adopted the stage name That Mexican OT, short for "Outta Texas". After graduating from Stony Point High School, Gazca began recording hip-hop songs independently for online release. This led to him releasing a number of mixtapes in the early 2020s, including South Texas Project (2020), Southside Steppin (2021), 1 Double 0 (2021), and Nonsense and Mexican Shit (2022). His independent releases and remixes of other artists' material led to him gaining further exposure.
He released his next album Lonestar Luchador on July 28, 2023 through Good Money Global. The album includes his breakthrough single "Johnny Dang". The song is a reference to the jeweler Johnny Dang, and features guest appearances by Paul Wall and Drodi. Upon release, the song went to number 65 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving both That Mexican OT and Drodi their first chart appearances. In addition, the song's music video has been played over 97 million times on YouTube and the song itself streamed over 194 million times on Spotify. Lonestar Luchador charted at number 59 on the Billboard 200 upon release. Nadine Smith of Pitchfork described the album as "a brightly colored spectacle, a freestyle brawl of rap styles and regional flavors." Collaborators on Lonestar Luchador include Ralph Barbosa, BigXthaPlug, Lefty Sm, Maxo Kream, and Big Yavo.
Following the release of "Johnny Dang", That Mexican OT began a 20-city tour of the United States in October 2023. In January 2024, he released the song "02.02.99", the lead single off of his mixtape Texas Technician, which he released on March 1, 2024 on Manifest/Goodtalk/Good Money Global/Capitol.

Influences

Gazca was influenced by a number of musicians in his youth, ranging from rapper Big L to country singer George Strait. He told Shelby Stewart of the Houston Chronicle that he had wanted to be a rapper since he was four years old, and would sing along to rap videos he saw on 106 & Park. He also thought that his music showed influence of his Texan and Mexican ancestry through the lyrics of songs such as "Hardest Ese Ever". David Crone of AllMusic wrote of That Mexican OT's style that it contains "bold lyricism and a relentless flow while melding trap and mariachi guitars". Billboard similarly stated that Lonestar Luchador contained Tejano music influences as well as hip-hop. Gazca told Billboard that the inspiration for the song "Johnny Dang" was the works of Slick Rick, and that the album's title was inspired by lucha libre, a Mexican style of wrestling.