Acapulco star Bayardo De Murguia wants to talk about jazz.
Bayardo De Murguia is one of season two's additions to the incredible cast of the hit series Acapulco. The actor takes on the role of Fabian Solares: a Perez Hilton type gossip reporter, searching for the most salacious gossip and piping hot tea at the resort. He adds another layer of intricacy and intrigue to a show that is already filled with humor and heart.
Every part of Acapulco contributes to the depth, complexity, and layers of the story. This is certainly due in part to the actors themselves: each fascinating, well rounded people who bring their own varying interests and life experiences of the supportive cast. De Murguia certainly adds to this fabric.
I got the opportunity to sit down and talk with the star about his life and experience joining the cast of the incredible show. As the interview was beginning to wind down, I got the opportunity to ask the performer my favorite question: "What is something that you wish people would ask you about more?"
To put it simply, his answer was jazz music.
"I have a very strong love of jazz music," Bayardo De Murguia shared. "I wish I had more conversations with people sometimes about that. I would say that would be my answer. I played saxophone when I was a kid, and sometimes I still do. I would say jazz and talking about Coltrane and Miles Davis and Duke Ellington, stuff like that; to be in more conversations like that, especially with people younger than me. That'd be awesome."
I then went on to ask him why he specified the desire to speak with people younger than himself about jazz music. He went on to share, "People under 35, I would say, because I don't want it to die. I don't want it to be forgotten, in a way. So now I would say I just hope that anyone under 35 keeps amazing music, such as jazz music, going."
With all of his interests and passions, Bayardo Murguia values longevity over speed. The actor also has a strong love of motorcycles. He shared:
"When I was young, my dad got the family a Vespa, and that's how I learned the concept of riding on two wheels. And then I fell in love with motorcycling. I told my parents I wanted to ride a motorcycle at seventeen, and they were like, 'We can't say no because your mom and I both rode motorcycles throughout Mexico, and your mom would still have one if your Aunt didn't crash it, but we're not gonna buy you one, you're going to pay for it yourself, but we're not going to say no, that's it because we love motorcycles, too.'
"At seventeen-and-a-half I bought myself my first motorcycle, and I've been riding ever sense. And it's kind of my form of therapy, and riding on two wheels is amazing. And so I have been an avid motorcycle rider since I was about seventeen years old, and I still do it to this day. I hope to continue doing it."
This love of motorcycles has led De Murgia to a mantra that he has carried with him through his life. "There's a friend of mine who, in terms of being a motorcycle rider, 'I don't want to be the most amazing, I don't want to be the fastest, but I want to be the oldest motorcycle rider because I want to be able to continue riding into my old age,'" De Murguia reflected, "and that's kind of become my mantra as well."
This motorcycle-mantra is greatly indicative the actors quest for longevity. He wants to ride motorcycles for as long as he can. He wants jazz music to continue on with the same strength, appreciation, and vivacity as when it began. This is even representative of his path to becoming an actor.
Bayardo De Murguia found acting late. He joined his first acting class in college, largely because no other classes were available to sign up for. While he had always had an interest in trying it out, he never had the time or opportunity before this point. Prior to this class, there were many different versions of the life he could have envisioned for himself.
When asked what the plan was had he not found acting, De Murguia laughingly remembered:
"I thought I was going to study international business, and, to this day, I probably have no idea what that means- just business, business...My other major was in journalism so I did study journalism and communications– well, communications but it was an emphasis on journalism. That, I think, still lives within me, you know? Especially like learning the news, but that also comes in part with being an actor: being observant of the world and people around us and what is going on and being topical. So I think there is a possibility that I could have jumped more into journalism or been business guy doing business on the business street in whatever city has business."
Even though his pursuits as an actor may, at first glance, seem entirely divided from his original plans for his professional life, De Murguia's character on Acapulco is a gossip reporter– once again giving the actor a taste of the life that he had originally thought he may have led.
When asked if he thought his past experience with journalism had any impact on playing Fabian he readily answered, "You know what? Yes. I think that there is a little bit of that in there. And I think being able to dive into the mindset of someone who is a journalist kind of helps because, you know, there's a little part of me that is in there. I think that definitely helped create Fabian. 100%."
"When I moved to LA, I was in my late twenties, early thirties. So, in a way, it was like, I know that I'm older. I know that I could've moved to LA when I was eighteen or younger, but I also believe that everything I've gone through has shaped who I am, you know? So it's made me who I am. So had I moved at eighteen I would have been a completely different person, and so ultimately, when I look back, I think we all have separate journeys and different time lines, and we have to learn to embrace it. Focus on what we can focus on, and not focus on what we can't control."
Bayardo De Murguia's trajectory as an actor has been a lot like jazz music. It is exciting and unpredictable. It has taken many turns and has been filled with unexpected but exciting riffs that have turned into fantastic and lasting art. Jazz is a welcoming of the unexpected and an appreciation of the journey.
Let's talk about jazz. Check out the full interview above!
