Feb 21, 2026, 8:22 p.mFeb 21, 2026, 8:22 p.m
The salsa musician and trombonist Willie Colón, who was celebrated as the “King of Salsa”, is dead. He died “peacefully” surrounded by his family, his relatives announced on Facebook on Saturday. His manager Pietro Carlos also confirmed the artist’s death on Linkedin. Colon was 75 years old.
Willie Colon has died at the age of 75.Image: www.imago-images.de
Born in the New York City borough of the Bronx, the son of Puerto Rican immigrants had a long series of musical successes as a singer, composer and trombonist and also made a name for himself as a political activist. His most famous albums include “Siembra”, “Contrabando” and “Tiempo pa’ matar”.
He recorded several records together with the Panamanian Rubén Blades. “I just got confirmation of what I didn’t want to believe: Willie Colón has actually died,” wrote Blades on Instagram and the X platform. The 77-year-old expressed his “deepest condolences” to the family of the deceased.
Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González paid tribute in a statement on X. “Today we say goodbye with deep respect to Willie Colón, master of the trombone, architect of the salsa sound and eternal role model of our cultural identity.”
First recordings at 15
Colón recorded his first songs at the age of 15, and at the age of 17 – having since switched to the trombone – he released his first LP: “El Malo”. The record, which was released in 1967 on the famous salsa label Fania Records, made Colón and lead singer Héctor Lavoe (1946-1993) stars.
In his more than 50-year career, Colón released around 40 albums that sold over 30 million copies. Many of the songs are classics of the genre. In 1978 he recorded the album “Siembra” with the salsa poet Blades, which is still considered the best-selling salsa record in history. (dab/sda/dpa)