Sixto Rodriguez
6 min read-Sixto Rodriguez: the underdog who became a legend
Sixto Rodriguez is a singer-songwriter who first gained popularity in the early 1970s. His work is often compared to that of Bob Dylan and he has been praised for his songwriting and live performances.
Rodriguez was born in Detroit, Michigan, to a Mexican father and a Puerto Rican mother. He began playing guitar and writing songs as a teenager and soon began performing in local clubs. In 1967, he released his first single, “I’ll Slip Away”, which received some airplay on local radio stations.
In 1969, Rodriguez signed a recording contract with Sussex Records and released his debut album, Cold Fact. The album was not a commercial success, but it attracted the attention of critics and garnered Rodriguez a cult following.
In the early 1970s, Rodriguez toured extensively in the United States and Europe. His live performances were well-received, but his records failed to sell. In 1976, he released his third album, Can’t Get Away from a Good Thing, which was his last album for Sussex Records.
In the late 1970s, Rodriguez moved to New York City and began working on a new album. However, he was unable to find a record label willing to release it. In the early 1980s, he self-released the album, After the Fact, which consisted of demos and live recordings.
In the 1990s, Rodriguez’s work began to gain attention outside of the United States. In 1998, his album, Cold Fact, was reissued in the United Kingdom and he embarked on a successful tour of the country. The following year, his album, Can’t Get Away from a Good Thing, was reissued in the United States and he embarked on a successful tour of the country.
In the 2000s, Rodriguez continued to tour and release new music. In 2009, he released the album, Searching for Sugar Man, which was a critical and commercial success. The album won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2013.
Rodriguez is currently touring the world and performing to sold-out audiences. He is an unlikely legend, but his story is an inspiring one.
-The little-known story of Sixto Rodriguez
Sixto Rodriguez is a Detroit-born singer-songwriter who, in the early 1970s,
achieved success in Australia and New Zealand with his albums Cold Fact and Coming from Reality.
In his native United States, however, Rodriguez’s work was largely unknown until the early 21st century,
when the story of his career—and eventual rediscovery—began to attract attention.
Rodriguez’s career began in the late 1960s when he recorded a pair of well-received but little-heard
albums, Cold Fact and Coming from Reality. Though neither album sold well in the United States,
they both found an audience in Australia and New Zealand, where Rodriguez developed a cult following.
In the early 1970s, he toured extensively in both countries, but he grew tired of the constant touring
and the lack of success in his native country, and by the mid-1970s, he had retired from the music business.
For more than two decades, Rodriguez was all but forgotten, until his music was rediscovered by a new generation
of fans in the late 1990s. In 1998, Rodriguez’s daughter, Eva, stumbled upon a bootleg copy of Cold Fact
while browsing in a record store in San Francisco. She was amazed to discover that her father was something
of a celebrity in Australia and New Zealand, and she began to spread the word about his music.
In 1999, Rodriguez was invited to play a series of concerts in Australia and New Zealand, and he was astonished
to find that he was still revered by his fans there. The following year, he released a new album,
The Greatest, which was met with critical acclaim. In the years since Rodriguez has continued to tour and
record, and his story has been the subject of a documentary film, Searching for Sugar Man.
-How a Detroit musician found fame in South Africa
Sixto Rodriguez is a Detroit-born musician who found fame in South Africa in the 1970s. His story is an inspirational one of talent, hard work, and a bit of luck.
Rodriguez was born in 1942 to Mexican parents. He grew up in Detroit’s Mexican community and began playing guitar and singing in local clubs as a teenager. He released his first album, Cold Fact, in 1970. The album was not a commercial success in the United States, but it found an audience in South Africa, where it was released in 1971.
Rodriguez’s music spoke to the experience of South Africans of all races during a time of great social and political upheaval. His songs were banned by the government, but they were passed around secretly and became anthems for the anti-apartheid movement. In the mid-1970s, Rodriguez toured South Africa, playing to sold-out crowds.
However, after returning to the United States, Rodriguez’s career stalled and he largely disappeared from the music scene. It was only in the late 1990s, when his music was rediscovered by a new generation of South Africans, that Rodriguez finally achieved the level of fame he deserved. He has since toured the world and recorded new albums, including his most recent, Searching for Sugar Man, in 2012.
Rodriguez’s story is an incredible example of the power of music to transcend boundaries and connect people. It is also a reminder that sometimes, talent and hard work are not enough to achieve success; sometimes, luck plays a role as well. Whatever the case, Rodriguez is a true artist who has made a lasting impact on those who have heard his music.
-Sixto Rodriguez: from obscurity to cult hero
It’s hard to believe that just a few short years ago, few people had heard of Sixto Rodriguez. Today, the Detroit-born singer-songwriter is a cult hero, revered by music lovers around the world. How did he go from obscurity to cult hero?
Rodriguez was born in 1942 in Detroit, Michigan, the son of Mexican immigrants. He grew up in a poor, predominantly Hispanic neighborhood and dropped out of high school in the ninth grade. He worked a series of odd jobs before landing a job as a factory worker in a Detroit auto plant.
In the early 1970s, Rodriguez began playing music in local clubs and bars. He recorded two albums, Cold Fact and Coming from Reality, which were released in the United States in 1970 and 1971, respectively. The albums received critical acclaim but failed to sell well.
In the early 1990s, a bootleg copy of Cold Fact made its way to South Africa, where it became a massive hit. Rodriguez, unaware of his popularity, continued to live a modest life in Detroit.
In 1998, Rodriguez was finally tracked down by a South African fan named Stephen Segerman. Segerman set up a website and began spreading the word about Rodriguez. The singer-songwriter was soon contacted by producers and offered a chance to tour South Africa.
The tour was a huge success, and Rodriguez’s popularity continued to grow. He has since toured the world, playing to sold-out crowds wherever he goes. In 2012, he was the subject of an acclaimed documentary film, Searching for Sugar Man, which tells his incredible story.
Today, Rodriguez is revered by music lovers around the world. His story is an inspirational example of how talent and hard work can triumph over adversity.