Lola Beltrán was a singer, actress, television presenter and icon of the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, best known for her commanding voice and timeless contributions to ranchera music. Born María Lucila Beltrán Ruiz in 1932, in El Rosario, Sinaloa, she made her big-screen debut at eight in an Argentine film titled El cantor del circo and performed in small roles throughout her teens before relocating to Mexico City, where she found work as a secretary at popular radio station XEW. In 1954, she was discovered by radio announcer Raul Mendivil and took the stage name Lola Beltrán before launching a screen career spanning decades and dozens of films. She also frequently sang with mariachis, like on the classic “Cucurrucucú Paloma” (featured in the 1965 film of the same name) and “Soy Infeliz”, which became the mournful centerpiece of Pedro Almodóvar's 1988 movie, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. In 1994, Beltrán celebrated her 40-year career with a historic concert at Mexico City's Palace of Fine Arts, immortalising her grand legacy before her passing two years later.