"Tex-Mex" (combination of Texan and Mexican) is a term describing a regional American cuisine that blends food products available in the United States and the culinary creations of Mexican-Americans influenced by Mexican cuisine. The cuisine has spread from border states such as Texas and those in the Southwestern United States to the rest of the country. Tex-Mex is most popular in the Southern state of Texas. Tex-Mex is very different from the Southwest cuisine found in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah. In these areas, the preferred southwest cuisine is New Mexican cuisine. The southwestern state of Nevada and West Coast state of California tend to lie in the middle as far the preferred style of Mexican-American food. In some places, particularly outside of Texas, "Tex-Mex" is used to describe a localized version of Mexican cuisine. It is common for all of these foods to be referred to as "Mexican food" in Texas, parts of the United States, and some other countries. In other ways, it is Southern cooking using the commodities from Mexican culture. In many parts of the U.S. outside of Texas the term is synonymous with Southwestern cuisine.

Susan Michelle Rollin Torres (November 23, 1978 – August 3, 2005) was an American woman who made headline news all over the world, when she gave birth to a baby girl while brain dead, with Stage IV Malignant Melanoma, and on a life support machine.

Susan Rollin, was born to Sandra, and Paul Rollin, in Wichita, Kansas and raised in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston. Susan was raised as a Protestant but converted to Catholicism during her college career.

She was an outstanding student in school, and she attended the University of Dallas, a Roman Catholic college, from which she graduated cum laude with a B.S. in Biology/Environmental Science. She met Jason Torres and converted to Roman Catholicism. The couple married and moved to Alexandria, Virginia. She worked as a vaccine researcher at the NIH. In 2003, Jason and Susan Torres had their first child, Peter.

Susan had been diagnosed with melanoma when she was 17 years old, and a senior in High School. The melanoma was removed, and after 8 years she had been declared completely free of the cancer. On May 7, 2005, 17 weeks after she had become pregnant for the second time, she suffered a stroke, as a consequence of her cancer, which had returned.

Leonardo "Flaco" Jiménez (born March 11, 1939) is a Tejano music accordionist from San Antonio, Texas.

Jiménez's father, Santiago Jiménez Sr. was a pioneer of conjunto music. He began performing with his father at age seven and recording at age fifteen, as a member of Los Caporales. He played in the San Antonio area for several years, and then began working with Douglas Sahm in the 1960s. Sahm, better known as the founding member of the Sir Douglas Quintet, played with Jiménez for some time. Flaco then went on to New York City and worked with Dr. John, David Lindley, Peter Rowan, Ry Cooder and Bob Dylan. He appeared on Cooder's world music album Chicken Skin Music and on the Rolling Stones' Voodoo Lounge. This led to greater awareness of his music outside America and, after touring Europe with Ry Cooder, he returned to tour with his own band, and on a joint bill with Peter Rowan. Flaco, Peter Rowan and Wally Drogos were the original members of a band called The Free Mexican Airforce.

Jiménez won a Grammy Award in 1986 for "Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio", a song of his father. He was also a member of the supergroup Texas Tornados, with Augie Meyers, Doug Sahm and Freddy Fender. ' The Texas Tornados earned a Grammy Award in 1990, and Jiménez earned one on his own in 1996, when his Flaco Jiménez won the Grammy Award for Best Mexican-American Performance. In 1999, Flaco earned another Grammy Award for Best Tejano Performance (Said and Done, Barb Wire Records), and one for Best Mexican-American Performance as a part of supergroup Los Super Seven. Jiménez has also won a Best Video award at the Tejano Music Awards and earned a Lifetime Achievement Award from Billboard Latin Magazine for "Streets of Bakersfield" with Dwight Yoakam and Buck Owens.

Tim "Herb" Alexander (born April 10, 1965 in Cherry Point, North Carolina) is an American musician, best known as the former drummer for the rock band Primus. Tim played on the Primus recordings Suck on This to Tales from the Punchbowl, before leaving the band in 1996, only to rejoin in 2003 for the EP Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People. He was a member of, and toured with, Primus from early 2003 until approximately 2009 when he was replaced by Jay Lane. Although Alexander has been quoted saying he was originally inspired to become a rock drummer by legendary drummers like John Bonham, Neil Peart and Shaun O'Connor, Primus guitarist Larry LaLonde claims Alexander's drum beats are mostly influenced by African Jùjú music.

Prior to joining Primus, he played and recorded with Major Lingo, which at the time was a ska-based rhythm band that featured a lap steel guitar as the lead instrument, played by Tony Bruno. When Major Lingo toured through the Bay Area Tim met members of Primus and would go on to remain there trying out for the band.

James Lawrence "Jimmie" Vaughan (born March 20, 1951) is an American blues rock guitarist and singer from Dallas, Texas, United States. He is the older brother of the late Stevie Ray Vaughan.

A significant influence on Jimmie Vaughan's style was Freddie King, who advised him personally; from Albert King and B. B. King; as well as from Johnny "Guitar" Watson.

In the late 1960s, Jimmie Vaughan and Paul Ray were playing at an East Austin club when future blues legend^{[citation needed]} and Austin, Texas, native W. C. Clark sat in on bass guitar with the younger Austin locals. Clark was on tour as a member of the R&B Joe Tex Band at the time. After playing the session with Vaughan and Ray, Clark changed his mind about Austin blues having died, and two weeks later he left Joe Tex and moved back to Austin, where he then went on to develop his reputation as the "Godfather of Austin Blues."

In 1969 in Ft. Worth, Vaughan's band opened for The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Vaughan lent Jimi Hendrix his Vox Wah pedal. Hendrix broke it, and gave Vaughan his touring Wah pedal. In the 1970s Clark formed several Austin bands with various names, which included as members Jimmie Vaughan, Vaughan's brother, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Lou Ann Barton, Billy Gibbons and Angela Strehli.