Rebekah Del Rio, ‘Mulholland Drive’ singer, dead at 57

Rebekah Del Rio, the singer best known for performing “Llorando” in David Lynch’s film Mulholland Drive, died on June 23 at her home in Los Angeles. She was 57. No cause of death was given.

Born in Chula Vista, CA in 1967, Rebekah moved to Los Angeles in 1989 to try and make it as a singer. After gaining attention for “Llorando,” a Spanish language version of Roy Orbison’s “Crying,” she signed a record deal with Giant and moved to Nashville in 1994, the same year her debut album, Nobody’s Angel, was released.

It was somewhere around this time that David Lynch was introduced to her music, and he had her perform “Llorando” a capella in a scene for a TV pilot he was working on called Mulholland Drive. When the pilot didn’t get picked up, he turned it into a feature film, released in 2001, and Rebekah’s scene became the unforgettable emotional climax of the film.

Rebekah Del Rio also performed “The Star Spangled Banner” in Richard Kelly’s 2006 film Southland Tales, and her music was featured in the films Sin City, Man on Fire, and more. She worked with Lynch again on Twin Peaks: The Return, performing “No Stars” with Moby in the series’ 10th episode.

Rest in peace, Rebekah.