Lucha Reyes debuted in a show named El Sentir de los Barrios (or "The way the Neighborhoods Feel") singing the cultural standard "Abandonada" by Sixto Carrera, a song with lyrics that resembled her own experiences on the streets.

Lucha performed in various acts, living on art in a bohemian style, and produced music favored by the military nationalist government, who encouraged the diffusion of the Peruvian cultural expressions through mass media.

On the following day, October 31, 1973, Lucha Reyes, "La Morena de Oro del Perú" (Peru's Golden Black Woman) died.

Lucha Reyes and the ensemble Los Morochucos made a name for black performers among the leading interpreters of the vals criollo and marinera genres.

The music is not originally African -Peruvian, but was converted by phrasing lyrics and playing the vals criollo with slightly off-beat accents.

Marinera songs honor the sailors who fought in the war with Chile and are played with two guitars, a cajón, and accompanied by hand clapping.

October 31, the anniversary of her death, coincides with the annual celebration of the "Día de la Canción Criolla" (Day of the Creole Song) in Peru.