The Pop Corporation

When Bad Bunny name-checked Willie Colón is his mega-hit ‘Nuevayol’, he knew exactly what he was doing – he was placing himself squarely next to one of Puerto Rico’s greatest sons.

Born in the Bronx to Puerto Rican parents, Colón recorded some of Fania Records most legendary and culturally significant records.

Fusing salsa, jazz, funk, rock, soul and Caribbean rhythms, Willie was not only popular, but also a pioneer.

Pietro Carlos, his longtime manager, wrote on Facebook: “Willie didn’t just change salsa. He expanded it, politicized it, clothed it in urban chronicles and took it to stages where it hadn’t been before. His trombone was the voice of the people.”

In 1978 he recorded his album ‘Siembra’ with Rubén Blades, which gave the world the hit ‘Pedro Navaja’, and subsequently became the biggest-selling salsa album of all time, still undefeated.

Fania Records said in a statement: “Today we bow our heads as the world mourns the loss of one of the greatest artists of our time – the incomparable Willie Colón: legendary trombonist, visionary composer, master arranger, emotive singer, bold producer, fearless director and tireless innovator.

Colón utilised a gangster image in his musical work, informing hip hop to do the same, straddling his Puerto Rican roots and tough New York life.

However, he was also an activist, running in office against Republicans, being a representative for the Latin community in NYC, and campaigning for the release of political prisoners in Venezuela, right up to his death.

He died 75 years old, and leaving one of the longest cultural shadows in the Latin world, and one of the most innovative and inspirational people in music history.