[5] They have toured internationally and performed at venues that include Red Rocks Amphitheatre and for President Barack Obama at The White House.

Their parents listened to flamenco, jazz, and rock music, and they both enjoyed heavy metal bands like Metallica, which later proved influential to Rodrigo and Gabriela.

[8] In the early 1990s, Sánchez formed a heavy metal band called Tierra Ácida (Acid Earth) with his brother.

"[8] Growing frustrated with the limited scope of the domestic Mexican rock scene, the duo moved to Europe.

[8] In the first half of 2001 they recorded a 9-track demo called Foc of their own material supplemented by some covers, also featuring an appearance by Zoe Conway.

[9] As interest in the band grew, it was decided to re-record the songs on the demo as re-Foc in 2002 with a number of friends, including Lisa Hannigan who provided vocal stylings and Conway, who by now also was a feature of the live set-up of the duo.

[11] As interest grew, the duo were offered further support-slots, which resulted in an eight-track live-album recorded in Dublin and Manchester, released in 2004.

Rodrigo y Gabriela, which was produced by John Leckie, includes covers of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and Metallica's "Orion".

The duo lists Metallica as being among their key influences, alongside other heavy metal bands such as Megadeth, Slayer, Testament and Overkill.

The duo had their national American TV debut on Late Show with David Letterman on December 18, 2006, performing "Diablo Rojo".

Upon the release of the new album, they received much mainstream American popularity and were the featured music on Monday Night Football on October 12, 2009, as they celebrated Latino Heritage Month.

They headlined the West Holts stage on the Sunday night at Glastonbury 2010[19] and played the King Tuts Tent at T In The Park on 10 July 2010.

[21] In 2010, Rodrigo y Gabriela contributed a live version of their song "Hora Zero" to the Enough Project and Downtown Records' Raise Hope for Congo compilation.

In September, 2010, the duo announced a hiatus from touring due to stress injuries caused by Gabriela's heavily percussive style of playing.

On January 20, 2011, Rodrigo y Gabriela entered the studio with Hans Zimmer to write and record sessions of the score from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

During 2011, Rodrigo y Gabriela recorded in Havana, Cuba, with C.U.B.A., a 13-piece Cuban orchestra, and special guest musicians (Anoushka Shankar on sitar and Le Trio Joubran on oud).

[33] Their fifth studio album Mettavolution was released by ATO Records on April 26, 2019 and includes a cover of the Pink Floyd song "Echoes".

[43] They had a world tour the same year to promote the album, playing in venues such as Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Auditorium Parco della Musica, and at the 2023 Montreal International Jazz Festival.