Photo Credit: Getty Images
The Mavericks have lost their lead singer. Raul Malo, who co-founded the band with Paul Deakin, Robert Reynolds, and Ben Peeler in 1989, died on December 8 after a battle with colorectal cancer, his family said. He was sixty.
Betty Malo, the father of our boys, passed away at 8:52 p.m. on December 8, 2025. He was a beloved son, brother, and friend to many. His wife posted the news on Instagram. "He was called to do another gig—this time in the sky—and he's flying high like an eagle."
Betty, with whom Raul had sons Dino, Victor, and Max, went on to say, "No one embodied life and love, joy and passion, family, friends, music, and adventure like our beloved Raul." Now he will look down on us with all that heaven will allow, lighting the way and reminding us to savor every moment."
Raul was initially diagnosed with colon cancer in June 2024. In September, the musician revealed that he had leptomeningeal disease, which means the cancer has spread to the membranes that surround his brain and spinal cord.
"It's a very unpredictable and indiscriminatory disease," he said on Facebook at the time. "But I want to let everyone know that I am not alone or terrified. I have an incredible wife and sons, as well as a beautiful family, team, road crew, band, friends, and fans. I don't have enough words to express the love and support I'm receiving right now."
He continued, "We don't know what this will look like in a few months, but we're going into it the same way we've done everything else. Full steam ahead. Fight, recover, rest, repeat.”
Following Raul's death, his bandmates, including fellow original Paul and subsequent arrivals Eddie Perez and Jerry Dale McFadden, lauded him as a "force of human nature."
"Over a career of more than three decades entertaining millions around the globe, his towering creative contributions and unrivaled, generational talent created the kind of multicultural American music reaching far beyond America itself," they wrote in an Instagram post on Dec. 9, 2018. "Though his earthly body may have passed, Raul's spirit will live on forever in heaven and here on earth through the music, joy, and light he brought forth."
The band noted of Raul, "His contributions to American and Latin music will be timeless, as his songs and voice touched fans and fellow artists across the world."
