Vicente Fernández facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Vicente Fernández
Born	Vicente Fernández Gómez (1940-02-17)17 February 1940 Tepatitlán, Jalisco, Mexico
Died	12 December 2021(2021-12-12) (aged 81) Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Burial place	Rancho Los Tres Potrillos, Tlaquepaque, Jalisco, Mexico
Other names	La Voz de Mexico El Charro de Huentitán Chente El Ídolo de México El Rey de la Música Ranchera
Occupation	Singer actor film producer
Years active	1966–2016
Children	4, including Alejandro Fernández
Musical career
Genres	Regional Mexican music Canción ranchera Mariachi
Instruments	Vocals guitar trumpet keyboard
Labels	Sony Mexico
Signature

Vicente Fernández Gómez (17 February 1940 – 12 December 2021) was a Mexican ranchera singer, actor and film producer. Fernández started his career as a busker, and went on to become a cultural icon, having recorded more than 100 albums and contributing to more than 30 films. His repertoire consisted of rancheras and other Mexican classics.

Fernández's work earned him four Grammy Awards, nine Latin Grammy Awards, fourteen Lo Nuestro Awards, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He sold over 50 million copies worldwide, making him one of the best-selling regional Mexican artists of all time. In 2016, Fernández retired from performing live, although he continued to record and publish music. In 2023, Rolling Stone named Fernández the greatest Mexican singer of all time and the 95th greatest overall with their "200 Best Singers of All Time" list.

Early life

Vicente Fernández was born on 17 February 1940 in the village of Huentitán El Alto, Jalisco, the son of a rancher and a housewife. When he was between 6 and 7 years old, he used to go with his mother to see movies starring Pedro Infante and Jorge Negrete and, as he himself once recalled, he told his mother that "when I grow up I'm going to be like them".

His family found it difficult to support themselves by selling milk from the cows on their ranch, so after Fernández finished elementary school he and his family moved to Tijuana. Once a teenager, Fernández began working various jobs, including as a bricklayer, painter, and cabinetmaker. During his working day he sang, so many construction companies asked to have him as a worker. After these jobs he was hired to work as a cashier in his uncle's restaurant. At the age of 14 he started singing in restaurants and at weddings, joining several mariachi groups such as Mariachi Amanecer de Pepe Mendoza and Mariachi de José Luis Aguilar. It was then when, in Jalisco, he participated in the radio program Amanecer Tapatío, and began to be recognized locally.

In 1965 he moved to Mexico City to seek a future in the world of music. His first attempts with the record companies were unsuccessful. There he arranged to sing in a program of the radio network XEX-AM, which at that time was the most important in the country. In April 1966, Fernández received his first offers for albums.

1970s and 1980s: Volver volver and first success

Fernández had to wait a decade to consolidate his career. His albums La voz que estabas esperando, El rey, El hijo del pueblo, and Para recordar sold millions of copies.

In 1976, with the song Volver Volver, written in 1972 by Fernando Z. Maldonado, his fame was catapulted throughout the country and the American continent based on the sales of this recording.

In the 1980s the style of Fernández's songs changed from bolero ranchero to a ranchera focused on migration.

In 1983 he released his album 15 Grandes con el Numero Uno, which was the first to exceed one million copies sold.

In 1987 he launched his first tour outside the United States and Mexico when he traveled to Bolivia and Colombia.

1990s: Musical peak

The U.S. press in 1991 was already talking about Fernández as the "Mexican Sinatra" and he released ranchera classics such as Las clásicas de José Alfredo Jiménez (1990), Lástima que seas ajena (1993), Aunque me duela el alma (1995), Mujeres divinas, Acá entre nos, Me voy a quitar de en medio (1998), and La mentira (1998), which all became classics.

2000s and early 2010s

Fernández, c.  2008

In 2001 he launched the Lazos Invincibles tour, together with his son Alejandro. In 2006 Vicente Fernandez released the album La tragedia del vaquero, which was certified platinum in the United States.

He won a Latin Grammy again in 2008 with the album Para Siempre which was released in 2007. In 2008 he released Primera Fila, which was certified double platinum in Mexico, platinum in Central America, platinum in Colombia, and double platinum plus gold in the United States. The album remained seven consecutive weeks at number one on Billboard, and led him to win another Latin Grammy for Best Ranchero Album.

The concert he performed at the Zócalo in Mexico City on 14 February 2009 broke attendance records, with almost 220,000 people gathered to hear him. That same year he released the album Necesito de ti, which won a Grammy and a Latin Grammy the following year. In September 2010 the album El Hombre Que Más Te Amó was released, produced by Vicente himself, for which he won a Latin Grammy again. He released Otra vez, also produced by him, in November 2011.

After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Fernández was one of the 50 Latin singers who participated in the charity song "Somos El Mundo 25 Por Haiti", a cover version of "We Are the World".

Fernández started off the opening ceremony of the 2011 Pan American Games, hosted by Guadalajara, and sang "México Lindo y Querido" and "Guadalajara"; later in the ceremony he sang the Mexican national anthem before the parade of the athletes' delegations. In October 2011, taking advantage of his U.S. tour, he signed a three-year agreement with Budweiser for the second time to promote scholarships for Hispanic American students through the Hispanic Scholarship Fund.

Later years and retirement

Fernández performing at Estadio Azteca in Un Azteca En El Azteca retirement show in 2013

On 8 February 2012, Fernández announced his intention to retire from the stage. Two months later, in the middle of a farewell tour throughout the country and Latin America, he released the album Los 2 Vicentes, together with his son Vicente Jr.; the album included the theme song of the telenovela Amor bravío.

That same year he recorded, together with Tony Bennett, Return to me at his ranch in Guadalajara for Bennett's album Viva Duets, in which Bennett sang in Spanish. In 2012 he also released the album Hoy and won again a Latin Grammy Award in the 2013 edition. This was followed by the albums Mano a mano, tangos a la manera de Vicente Fernández, in 2014 (for which he won his second Grammy for Best Regional Mexican Album and was nominated for a Latin Grammy for Best Ranchera Album), and "Muriendo de amor", in 2015.

On 28 November 2013 Fernández presented his book entitled Pero sigo siendo el rey in which he collects anecdotes and more than two hundred unpublished photographs about his professional career.

The farewell concert, titled "Un azteca en el Azteca" (An Aztec in the Aztec), took place on 16 April 2016 at the Estadio Azteca, in front of more than 80,000 people; admission was free. He sang more than 40 songs over more than four hours, the longest concert of his professional career. He only had one special guest, his son Alejandro. The concert was collected on an album, with the same name, for which Fernández won the Grammy Award for Best Regional Mexican Music Album in 2017.

Despite retiring from the stage, he continued recording albums and songs, such as the album Más romántico que nunca in 2018 and A mis 80s in 2020, which earned him his ninth Latin Grammy Award for best ranchera album in 2021.

Career as an actor

Fernández's debut in the movies was in 1971 with the film Tacos al carbón. He starred in his first film in La ley del monte in 1976. During the 20 years he dedicated to acting, he starred in 30 films, 18 of which were under the direction of Rafael Villaseñor Kuri, and shared the stage with nationally renowned actors such as Blanca Guerra, Sara García, Fernando Soto, Resortes, and Lucía Méndez. In films such as Por tu maldito amor, La ley del monte, El hijo del pueblo, and Mi querido viejo, he introduced his music, so the title of the film reflected the title of the song introduced. His main role was that of the stereotypical Mexican "macho" and "gallant" man.

As a film producer he debuted in 1974 with the film El hijo del pueblo. His last film was Mi querido viejo, in 1991, and thereafter he devoted himself exclusively to music.

Personal life

Fernández married María del Refugio Abarca "Cuquita" on 27 December 1963, the sister of a close friend of his whom he met in his hometown. Three children were born from the marriage, Vicente Jr., Gerardo, and Alejandro and a fourth daughter, Alejandra, is his niece, whom they adopted. From their children they had 11 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.

Death

Fernández was hospitalized in serious condition after falling at his ranch in Guadalajara on 6 August 2021. He died of complications from his injuries on 12 December 2021, at the age of 81. President of Mexico Andrés Manuel López Obrador mourned his death with a tweet in which he recognized Fernández as the "symbol of the ranchera song of our time, known and recognized in Mexico and abroad".

He was buried in a mausoleum on his ranch.

Interesting facts about Vicente Fernández

• In his 50-year career he sold more than 65 million records and recorded more than 80 albums and more than 300 songs.
• Fernández learned to play the guitar at the age of 8.
• At the age of 21 he appeared on the television show La calandria musical. It was his first paid show.
• His song Volver volver came to be covered by more than twenty singers, including Chavela Vargas, Ry Cooder, and Nana Mouskouri.
• Fernández's ranch "Los 3 Potrillos", which he built in the 1990s, ended up being his music production center.
• In 1998 his elder son Vicente Jr. was kidnapped by the "Mocha Dedos", who demanded 5 million dollars as ransom. After Fernández Sr. paid $3.2 million dollars to free him Vicente Jr. was abandoned outside the family ranch 121 days later. Fernández did all this without going to the police. In 2008 the kidnappers were sentenced to 50 years in prison.
• In 2012, Chicago gave Fernández the key to the city and renamed the Little Village neighborhood's West 26th Street in his honor. In addition, the city celebrates "Vicente Fernandez Week" from 20 to 27 October.
• Fernández's nicknames include "Chente" (short for Vicente), "El Charro de Huentitán" (The Charro from Huentitán), "El Ídolo de México" (The Idol of Mexico), and "El Rey de la Música Ranchera" (The King of Ranchera Music).

Awards and nominations

Fernández at a concert in Colombia, 2012

In 1990, Fernández released the album Vicente Fernandez y las clásicas de José Alfredo Jiménez, a tribute to Mexico's famous songwriter from Guanajuato known as The "God of Ranchera Music" José Alfredo Jiménez, who was also his main musical influence. The album earned him Billboard and Univision's Latin Music Award for Mexican Regional Male Artist of the Year, which he won five times from 1989 to 1993.

In 1998, Fernández was inducted into Billboard's Latin Music Hall of Fame. On 11 November 1998 his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was unveiled.

In 2002, the Latin Recording Academy recognized Fernández as Person of the Year. That year he celebrated his 35th anniversary in the entertainment industry, a career in which he sold more than 50 million records and was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame. He has 51 albums listed on the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for gold, platinum, and multiplatinum-selling records.

Fernández's handprints and star at the Paseo de las Luminarias (Plaza de las Estrellas) in Mexico City

Fernández also has an arena in Guadalajara named in his honor built in 2005 by his company, and a star placed with his hand prints and name at the Paseo de las Luminarias in Mexico City. Governor of New Mexico, U.S Bill Richardson on 16 July 2008, declared 12 June as Vicente Fernández Day in the state. In 2010, Fernández was awarded his first Grammy Award for Best Regional Mexican Album for his record Necesito de Tí.

On 6 October 2019 in Guadalajara Fernández unveiled a statue created in his honor at the "Plaza de los Mariachis".

Grammy Awards

The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Fernández received four awards from fourteen nominations.

A Mis 80's

A Mis 80's is a 2022 Grammy Award winning album under Best Regional Mexican Music Album category by Vicente Fernández. Each year is linked to the article about the Grammy Awards held that year.

Latin Grammy Awards

The Latin Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences of the United States. Fernández received eight awards from fourteen nominations and also earned the Latin Recording Academy for Person of the Year.

Each year is linked to the article about the Latin Grammy Awards held that year.

Lo Nuestro Awards

The Lo Nuestro Awards is an awards show honoring the best of Latin music, presented by television network Univision. Fernández received fourteen awards from thirty-three nominations.

Each year is linked to the article about the Lo Nuestro Awards held that year.

Honours

• Orden Libertadores y Libertadoras de Venezuela (Venezuela, 2012)

Discography

Filmography

Sources:

See also

In Spanish: Vicente Fernández para niños