Salsa trailblazer Johnny Pacheco is dead. The Dominican icon died on Monday 15th February after being hospitalized for pneumonia, according to the Dominican Republic’s Diario Libre.
Meanwhile, the day before, his wife Cuqui asked fans to pray for the star, the newspaper reported. He was 85.
A winner of the lifetime achievement award at the 2005 Latin Grammys, Pacheco was a trailblazer in the genre of salsa. He founded Fania Records and led the salsa scene in New York in the 60s and 70s.
Fania Records also tweeted that the musician was “the man most responsible for the genre of salsa music. He was a visionary and his music will live on eternally.”
See tweet below
It is with profound sadness we share the news of the passing of Johnny Pacheco. He was one of Fania’s founders and the man most responsible for the genre of Salsa music. He was a visionary and his music will live on eternally. 🕊 https://t.co/zpGg9B2znV
— FANIA RECORDS (@Faniamusic) February 15, 2021
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With more than 150 songs under his name, Pacheco was also the creator and a member of the Fania All-Stars, a musical group that saw the likes of Willie Colón, Celia Cruz, Héctor Lavoe, and El Conde Rodriguez.
“RIP my dear friend and teacher. Founder of Fania Records, Johnny Pacheco. Único,” wrote Willie Colón on Twitter.
See tweet below
DEP mi querido amigo y Maestro. Fundador de Fania Records, Johnny Pacheco. Único… pic.twitter.com/FK70J58G3Y
— Willie Colón (@williecolon) February 15, 2021
Pacheco’s albums 1979’s” Cross Over” and “Eternos”, 1985’s “De Nuevo” and 1988’s “Salsobita” were all nominated for Grammy Awards. He also recorded an album with the late Celia Cruz, titled “Celia & Johnny”.
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