He is one of the architects of the alternative corrido movement. Born in Los Angeles and raised in Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico, he made his full-length debut in 2009 with the live album En Vivo las Tundras on Del Records. The following year he made his major-label studio album debut with Ni Hoy Ni Mañana. Featuring numerous hit singles ("A la Moda," "En Preparación," "El Trokero Lokochón," "La Última Sombra"), Ni Hoy Ni Mañana was released in association with Sony Music and reached the Top Five of the Billboard Top Albums chart. The live album En Vivo Desde el Gibson Amphitheater followed in 2011, a studio effort, Primer Ministro, appeared in 2012, in which he began to grow and change focus, including some artful romantic ballads that were popular even with longtime fans.

Ortiz took even more chances on 2013's Archivos de Mi Vida, which included mariachis and cumbias in the mix. It became his fifth straight album to hit the top of the Mexican Regional charts. Encouraged by the success, Ortiz dropped the pre-release single "El Cholo" in early 2015, which charted in the Top Five, followed by the full-length Hoy Mas Fuerte. The album hit the number one spot within two weeks of its of May release.

In January of 2016 Ortiz was the subject of two different television programs on different networks. The concert film Como Un Sueño that showed in theaters the previous year made its TV debut on Telemundo. It was followed by the four-episode biographical documentary, Gerardo Ortiz: Sin Censura for NBC Universo, that focused Ortiz's daily life off the stage. ~ Jason Birchmeier