US EditionLegendary salsa musician Willie Colón dead at 75, family says on social media
- On Saturday, Willie Colón's family confirmed the salsa musician died at 75 in a social-media announcement.
- Receiving medical attention for respiratory complications, Willie Colón was under care as the Puerto Rican artistic community asked for prayers on Friday.
- His discography shows over 40 albums, nine Gold and five Platinum records, eight Grammy nominations, and he introduced Rubén Blades to the recording industry.
- Colón's activism and endorsements meant his sociopolitical activism matched his musical renown and his endorsement was coveted among New York politicians, while his stage remarks resonated in Latino neighborhoods.
- Born April 28, 1950 in the South Bronx, William Anthony Colón Román began musical training early and last performed in Puerto Rico on August 9, 2025 with the Puerto Rico Philharmonic Orchestra.
255 Articles
255 Articles
Willie Colón: 14 Essential Songs and Albums
The music that the world now knows as salsa would probably not exist if not for the vision of Willie Colón. While Eddie Palmieri’s La Perfecta had been plying the two-trombone sound for years, Colón made the instrument central to his band, and the instrument’s ornery, sarcastic, yet often uplifting sound defined not only salsa’s break from the Cuban tradition, but the Nuyorican generation’s countercultural moment. Colón, who died on Saturday at …
The Salsa icon Willie Colón is dead. Colón died "peacefully" on Saturday, he told his family in a statement without mentioning a cause of death. Colón was 75 years old.Colón was mainly known as a trombonist, but he was also a band leader and producer. He was born in 1950 in the Bronx in New York and was known for combining the Puerto Rican music of his parents and grandparents with the jazz of his hometown.Colón played already at the age of 15 i…
Born in the Bronx in a family of Puerto Rican origin, he was one of the main figures of this musical genre. He was 75 years old.
Trombonist Willie Colón, a historical figure of salsa born in New York in 1950, died on Saturday 21 February, announced his family in a publication on social networks.
Boston Herald
Independent EspañolBy The Associated Press Willie Colón, architect of the urban salsa nominated to Grammy and social activist, he died on Saturday at age 75. His career extended for decades in which the thrombonist, composer, arranger and singer, produced more than 40 albums that sold more than 30 million copies worldwide. He collaborated with great artists and groups, such as the Fania All Stars, Héctor Lavoe, Rubén Blades, David Byrne and Celia Cruz. His celebra…
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