Janet Cortez

“Perla Tapatía”

Born in 1931, Perla Tapatía (Janet Cortez) was raised on Matamoros St. in the Westside of San Antonio, Texas. Her career began after Meme Reyes, a well known comedienne and actress, heard her sing at the Cabana Nite Club in San Antonio. In the audience that night was Manuel Leal, el Locutor de Radio, who asked Perla if she wanted to sing at the Municipal Auditorium in a show with the comedian Tin-Tan. The mariachi group “Los Michoacanos” saw her perform that night and asked Perla to travel with them to perform in San Francisco. She accepted, and under the stage name “Perla Tapatía,” she began singing professionally at the age of 24. After a successful start to her career, Perla was struck with throat cancer in 1973, at the age of 41. Her doctor performed a new procedure to remove half of her voice box and two of her four vocal cords. While the operation was a success, she later underwent over 39 operations for cancer-related problems. Her doctor told her that she would never be able to sing again, but after two years she regained the ability to speak and even sing for her family and friends.While in her 80s, Perla continued to sing with Las Tesoros de San Antonio, possibly the only singer who sings with a tracheotomy. In 2014, the San Antonio community lost Perla at the age of 83.