MORE Johnny Pacheco, seen here in 2007, died at the age of 85 on Monday. Photo by Gareth Cattermole - Getty Images
Johnny Pacheco, one of the founders of the iconic Latin music label Fania Records, died Monday at age 85.
Pacheco had been hospitalized in New Jersey for undisclosed reasons, according to Alex Masucci, the brother of Fania co-founder Jerry Masucci. No cause of death was provided.
Fania Records revolutionized the sound of Cuban dance music in the 1970s. During that time, Pacheco was a prolific songwriter and musical arranger whose work helped fuel the careers of Celia Cruz and Ruben Blades. As a producer, his vast musical knowledge of various Latin musical genres helped ignite the rise of the Latin dance genre known as
Bandleader and songwriter Johnny Pacheco, who is widely credited with bringing salsa to the world as a co-founder of Latin music label Fania Records, died yesterday (15) in Teaneck, NJ at the age of 85.
His passing was confirmed by his wife, Maria Elena “Cuqui” Pacheco. Cause of death has yet to be given for Pacheco, who had been hospitalized for undisclosed reasons, according to Alex Masucci, brother of label co-founder Jerry Masucci. Get the latest jazz news straight to your inbox!
Fania, founded in 1964, became known as the “Motown of Salsa” for its work in popularizing Cuban dance music worldwide in the 1970s. The word “salsa,” Spanish for “sauce,” grew out of New York as a popular description of its infectious, percussive, horn-driven dance sound.
Photo: Gareth Cattermole (Getty Images)
Johnny Pacheco, Dominican bandleader and co-founder of the iconic salsa label Fania Records, died on February 15 at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, New Jersey. According to Dominican newspaper
Diario Libre, Pacheco had been hospitalized for complications from pneumonia. Fania Records confirmed his deathon social media with a statement that read, “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.” He was 85.
Johnny Pacheco, Influential Salsa Musician and Fania Records Co-Founder, Dies at 85 Variety 2/16/2021
Johnny Pacheco, the Dominican Republic-born flautist-turned-bandleader and the co-founder of the influential Fania Records, the label that brought salsa to the global mainstream, died on Feb.15 in Teaneck, New Jersey. He was 85. A cause of death has yet to be revealed; Billboard, citing sources, reports that Pacheco had “been hospitalized for complications stemming from pneumonia.”
A solo artist who released dozens of albums of his own since 1961, and as part of Pacheco y Su Charanga, he recorded and played live as part of the legendary Latin supergroup, the Fania All-Stars, and was awarded a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005.