MIAMI – Miami-native Orlando Mendez had been an aspiring actor when a pandemic shut down live entertainment in 2020. But the break gave Mendez a chance to embrace his love of county music and reinvent himself as the “Cuban Cowboy.”

After COVID-19 locked the world down, Mendez said he turned to YouTube and taught himself to play guitar. Once restrictions began to lift, the 28-year-old said he put a band together and started getting gigs in South Florida and other parts of the state.

“We brought country to a lot of bars that never had country before, a lot of these bars that are staples here in Miami but never really had a country act,” Mendez said. “We started playing country music, and I think it was just the right place, right time. Got a momentum and started building quickly.”

Mendez is returning to Miami this month to perform at the Country Bay Music Festival scheduled for Nov. 9-10 at the historic Miami Marine Stadium, just southeast of downtown on Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay.

“I grew up listening to country in Miami where the country scene wasn’t so prevalent, and just to see it grow in this city and in this market to the point where we can have a big-time country festival was really exciting for me,” Mendez said.

The headliners scheduled for the event are Zac Brown Band, Carrie Underwood, Dustin Lynch, Diplo presents Thomas Wesley, Chase Rice and Chris Janson. Other performers include Niko Moon, Gabby Barrett, Chayce Beckham, Parmalee, Chase Matthew, Redferrin, Owen Riegling, Willie Jones, RVSHVD and Dee Jay Silver.

After more than a year of playing shows around Florida, Mendez got his big break when he appeared on “The Voice” in 2022. He impressed judges with a cover of Luke Combs’ “Beer Never Broke My Heart” and joined a team led by pop singer Camila Cabello, a native Cuban who grew up in Miami. Mendez, a University of Florida theater school graduate, credits his acting background in developing his stage presence.

Mendez didn’t win, but the experience prompted him to make the move to Nashville. He released a single called “Motherland” earlier this year about his experiences as a Cuban American, and an EP with five songs dropped last month.

Mendez attended last year’s County Bay, and he’s looking forward to this year.

“It was an incredible festival with a lot of great sights and an incredible atmosphere, and this year, I’m expecting them to take a step up,” Mendez said.

Miami already is considered a hub for Latin, hip-hop and electronic music, but Country Bay organizer Nelson Albareda, the CEO of Loud and Live, said the success of last year’s event proves there’s a place for country and possibly even other genres. And a few more successful years might earn County Bay a permanent spot in Miami’s music scene alongside Rolling Loud and Ultra Music Festival.

“I think the city today is a global city,” Albareda said. “And we’ve had all this influx of people and culture, you can’t compare Miami on a global map to where it was at even five or 10 years ago.”

About half of last year’s crowd was people visiting from out of town, but the other half was from the Miami area, which is about 70% Hispanic. Albareda said more than a third of all country music fans in the U.S. identify as people of Latin descent.

“You could definitely see Miami representing at the festival,” Albareda said. “There were a lot of Hispanic faces.”

Country Bay is returning to the Miami Marine Stadium, taking advantage of the view across Biscayne Bay toward Miami’s skyline. The festival drew more than 20,000 people over two days last year, and Albareda said he’s expecting a similar crowd this year. And like last year, the festival also has been selling anchorage access passes enabling fans to attend the event by boat or yacht.

Albareda said the success of last year’s festival, with both artists and fans flooding social media with posts about the event, made it much easier to book performers this year.

“We were getting texts from agents while the festival was going on saying, ‘Hey, I don’t know what you guys did, but my artists are texting me, and everybody is loving the festival,’” Albareda said.

One of the new acts this year is central Florida native Chase Rice, who recently released two albums, “Go Down Singin’” and “Fireside Sessions.”

“I was born in Daytona Beach, so anything South Florida or anything Florida in general is a no-brainer for me,” Rice said. “And it’s late in the year, man. It’s cold up here. I’m ready to get down in the heat.”

Besides hosting musical acts on two stages, the Country Bay Music Festival will include a country-themed bar, food and carnival attractions.

“Line-dancing was such a hit that we’ve added a whole second stage with an entire area for line-dancing,” Albareda said.

MIAMI LAKES, Fla. – With the current mayor of Miami Lakes term-limited, three candidates are vying for the seat.

All are business owners; two currently serve on the town council, and the third is a political newcomer.

Local 10 News met with all three to get their take on the top issues voters will consider when casting their ballots.

“One of the things I’m most proud of is creating a senior rebate,” Vice Mayor Tony Fernandez, one of the candidates said.

Attorney and council member Josh Dieguez, co-owner of his family’s law firm, said, “I supported a 2-percent reduction in the property tax rate.”

“I’m also a lifelong resident of the town,” Dieguez added.

They are joined by Yuniett Gonzalez, who owns a financial consulting firm.

“Sidewalks and lighting are very poor in our town here today,” Gonzalez noted.

A top issue here continues to be the blasting from nearby rock mining.

Fernandez addressed the issue, “It is an issue that we have been working on for several years. I went to Tallahassee twice this past session to lobby on behalf of our residents. I think one of the things that needs to be explored further is maybe the state working with the miners to come up with ways that are less destructive.”

This local issue is complicated by state control of rock mining operations.

Dieguez explained, “Any claims related to rock blasting have to go through a separate legal process known as the Department of Administrative Hearings, not regular court. So, I am proud to say that one of my proposals from 2018 that I continue to advocate for is to return jurisdiction for those claims back to the regular circuit court.”

“It is a pressing issue here in town,” Gonzalez said, explaining one of the reasons she decided to run for office. “I plan to develop better alliances with county, state, and federal levels that will lead us to finding a solution to the problem.”

A spokesperson from the Miami-Dade Limestone Products Association, Inc. had this to say:

“The Lake Belt Region is Florida’s largest source of aggregate—a critical component for virtually every construction project, from roads and bridges to homes and hospitals. Miami-Dade County’s limestone products industry supports over 10,000 jobs and supplies nearly 50 percent of Florida’s aggregate. Without this supply, housing costs would rise significantly, further exacerbating Florida’s housing affordability challenges.

Decades of independent studies at the local, state, and federal levels confirm that blasting within regulated limits does not harm nearby structures. In fact, a 2018 study commissioned by the Florida Legislature described current limits as “overly restrictive” and concluded: “The current blasting vibration limits in Florida continue to be protective of residential structures.”

Next up is traffic.

Gonzalez discussed specific policy ideas: “That includes synchronization of lights and a new caliber of traffic lights.”

Fernandez added, “Increasing the amount of options that we have to get on and off the highway. There’s an opportunity to I-75 to create on ramps and off ramps.”

Dieguez suggested, “Try to get more highway access at both the easternmost and westernmost ends.”

All three candidates participated in a recent forum. View the video to learn more about them.

The most intimidating and consequential matchup on the Duke football schedule has arrived.

The Duke Blue Devils, fresh off a heartbreaking overtime loss to the SMU Mustangs, hit the road for a Saturday afternoon game against the Miami Hurricanes. Head coach Manny Diaz came within a blocked kick on the final play of regulation from seven wins over his first eight games with the Blue Devils, and now he gets a chance at revenge against the program that fired him three years ago (although Diaz downplayed the idea of any remaining resentment during his Monday press conference).

While Duke’s defense leads the ACC in passing yards allowed, there hasn’t been a challenge like Miami yet because there isn’t a challenge like the Hurricanes to be found. Quarterback Cam Ward, a leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy, has thrown for 343.3 yards per game this season with 24 passing touchdowns, 3 rushing touchdowns, and five interceptions.

Do the Blue Devils have what it takes to slow down the superstar on his home turf? Here’s what our staff thinks.

Ryan Haley, Duke Wire staff editor

There’s clearly a path to getting ahead of schedule against the Hurricanes. Virginia Tech led the Hurricanes by 10 points with nine minutes to play. The California Golden Bears built a 35-10 lead deep into the second half. While Ward and his offense have crawled out of each hole, teams can only play with fire for so long.

However, the Hokies and Golden Bears are averaging 377.0 and 399.6 yards of offense against FBS opponents, respectively. The Blue Devils have only managed 334.0. Wide receiver Jordan Moore looks progressively healthier every week and the passing offense will get a major shot in the arm when he’s at full throttle, but we’re less than two weeks removed from Maalik Murphy throwing for 70 yards on 24 attempts against the Florida State Seminoles.

The Hurricanes, surprisingly, are second in the conference in yards allowed per pass attempt. While the optics of nearly beating SMU in regulation look great, six turnovers in a single game are a staggering and unrepeatable number even against Ward, who can occasionally struggle with ball security. I don’t think 21 points in regulation, even with two missed field goals, fully sold me on the problems being fixed.

Miami 38, Duke 17

Bryant Crews, Staff Writer

Duke fumbled an incredible opportunity last weekend to check even more boxes on an otherwise excellent season. The loss to SMU probably killed any fleeting hopes of making it to the ACC Championship game, and it also cost them a likely addition to the US LBM Coaches Poll.

Duke played outstanding defense (yet again) and forced SMU to make some big mistakes. Couple that with SMU’s blunders, and Duke had six turnovers and didn’t score on any of them. Before we proceed with the rest of this prediction, Jonathan Brewer’s job should be in question come December.

Duke will have to turn the page, prepare to make a trip to Miami, and take on a top-10 Miami team that looks destined for an ACC Championship game behind potential Heisman winner Cam Ward’s arm. He’s been surgical all season long, and he’s far and away the best quarterback Duke will see this year.

The Hurricanes have some terrific skill position talent, and their defense has multiple guys who will be playing on Sunday next year and in the future. It’s the best Miami team in quite some time, and Duke will not have the horses to win. The defense will be enough to give Miami fits for a half, but Duke’s lack of punch offensively will doom them in the second half.

Miami 34, Duke 16

Josiah Caswell, Staff Writer

This weekend, Duke will face the toughest team they’ve faced all year and the toughest they’ll face for the entire season as a whole. Miami has been a force this year, holding one of the best offenses in the nation led by Cam Ward.

The Blue Devils’ secondary and defense as a whole will need to play their best football. Simply put, Chandler Rivers and company will have their hands full.

The thing is, the Canes’ defense isn’t unstoppable. Whether it be through the air or on the ground, Miami’s defense has been susceptible to big plays. If Duke wants to win, they’ll need to avoid the Canes’ strong pass rush and string together big plays. If they can do it, it could be a four-quarter fight. If not? It could get ugly.

Miami 41, Duke 20