Vicente Fernández
Vicente Fernández Gómez (February 17, 1940 – December 12, 2021) was a Mexican ranchera singer, actor and film producer. Nicknamed "Chente" (short for Vicente), "El Charro de Huentitán" (The Charro from Huentitán),[1] "El Ídolo de México" (The Idol of Mexico),[2] and "El Rey de la Música Ranchera" (The King of Ranchera Music),[3] 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 such as waltzes.
This article is about the Mexican singer. For other people with the same name, see Vicente Fernández (disambiguation).
Vicente Fernández
12 December 2021 (aged 81)
Rancho Los Tres Potrillos, Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, Jalisco, Mexico
- La Voz de México
- La Voz de América Latina
- El Charro de Huentitán
- Chente
- El Ídolo de México
- El Rey de la Música Ranchera
- El Sinatra de la Música Ranchera
- Singer
- actor
- film producer
1966–2016 (only retired from performing)
4, including Alejandro
- Vocals
- guitar
- trumpet
- keyboard
Fernández's work earned him four Grammy Awards,[4] 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.[2] In 2016, Fernández retired from performing live,[5] although he continued to record and publish music.[6] 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.[7]
Early life[edit]
Vicente Fernández was born on February 17, 1940[2] in the village of Huentitán El Alto, Jalisco, the son of a rancher and a housewife.[8] 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".[9] Thereafter he had a taste for music and at the age of 8 he was given a guitar, which he learned to play at the same time he began to study folk music.[10]
Fernández's 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.[11] 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.[10] At the age of 21 he appeared on the television show La calandria musical. It was his first paid show.[12]
On December 27, 1963 he married Maria del Refugio Abarca Villaseñor,[12] with whom he had his first son, Vicente, who was born premature and had to be incubated at home because Fernández could not pay the hospital.[11] That year, his 47-year-old mother died of cancer.[13]
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 due to the popularity of singer Javier Solís. 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. A few days after the premature death of Solís in April 1966, Fernández received his first offers for albums.[9] His first contract was with CBS Records of Mexico, the recording label in the Mexican department of CBS Records International, for whom he recorded albums such as "Soy de Abajo", "Ni en Defensa Propia", and "Palabra de rey". Some of Fernández's songs such as Tu Camino y El Mío and Perdóname were very successful.[10][8]
Career[edit]
1970s and 1980s: Volver volver and Fernández's success[edit]
Fernández had to wait a decade to consolidate his career. With the death in 1973 of José Alfredo Jiménez, one of the great icons of rancheras, Fernández became a reference point in the music industry.[14] His next album was La voz que estabas esperando and the following albums, titled El rey, El hijo del pueblo, and Para recordar, sold millions of copies.[13]
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.[10][11][8] That song came to be covered by more than twenty singers, including Chavela Vargas, Ry Cooder, and Nana Mouskouri.[15]
In the 1980s the style of Fernández's songs changed from bolero ranchero to a ranchera focused on migration. In fact, the song Los Mandados was a reference to those Mexicans migrating to the United States and reproduced macho and patriotic stereotypes.[14] These were the years in which he built his ranch "Los 3 Potrillos", which would end up being his music production center.[13] In 1983 he released his album 15 Grandes con el Numero Uno, which was the first to exceed one million copies sold.[16] In 1984 he gave a concert at the Plaza de Toros México, which was attended by 54,000 people.[16]
In 1987 he launched his first tour outside the United States and Mexico when he traveled to Bolivia and Colombia.[17]
1990s: Fernández at his musical peak[edit]
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.[13]
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 with two of his fingers having been amputated. Fernández did all this without going to the police; both he and his other son Alejandro continued to perform concerts to maintain the appearance of normalcy to the public. In 2008 the kidnappers were sentenced to 50 years in prison.[18][19][20]
Personal life[edit]
Controversies[edit]
Fernández sparked controversy after statements he made during an interview in May 2019 regarding his health. Fernández stated that he had been interned at a hospital in Houston, United States to undergo a liver surgery, but he decided to reject a transplant because he did not "want to sleep with [his] wife while having the liver of another man, who could have been a homosexual or a drug user".[37]
In January 2021, Fernández sparked another controversy after placing his hand on a fan's breast while taking a picture with her family.[38] A few days later, Fernández issued an apology to the woman's family, stating that "I admit that I was wrong, I don't know if I was joking, maybe it was a joke [...] I don't know. I do not remember, there were many people (with whom I took photos), sincerely I offer an apology".[39]
In February 2021, Fernández was accused of sexual assault by a singer named Lupita Castro.[40][41] Castro alleged that the incident had happened 40 years prior, when she was 17, and that she had kept her silence because of his influence and because of his threats of violence against her. Castro refused to go to court against Fernández.[42]
Family[edit]
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. Throughout his life he was accused by several persons of being unfaithful, which he always rejected.[43]
With his sons Alejandro and Vicente Jr, both singers, Vicente went on stage to sing with them on several occasions. The last time he went on stage was to sing with his son Alejandro, and to promote the musical career of one of his grandsons, Alex, in 2019.[44]
On the day of his death, his fortune was valued at $25 million.[45]
Health issues[edit]
Fernandez suffered from cancer on two occasions: in 2002 he overcame prostate cancer and in 2012 he had a tumor removed from his liver. In 2013 he suffered a thrombosis that caused him to lose his voice temporarily and in 2015 he underwent surgery to remove abdominal hernias. He had chosen to refuse a liver transplant in 2012.[46] In 2021 he was admitted to the hospital for two days to be treated for a urinary tract infection and was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome.[47]
Politics[edit]
Fernández was long associated with the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), which governed Mexico from 1929 to 2000 and again between 2012 and 2018. Fernández was one of the many performers who participated in the "Solidaridad" campaign during the administration of Carlos Salinas de Gortari in the 1980s,[13][48] and has also performed at PRI rallies, attended PRI events or met with politicians from that party; on one occasion, he performed the song "Estos celos" for then-President Enrique Peña Nieto (a PRI member) during an official celebration.[49][50][51]
He was invited at the U.S. 2000 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia to sing the famous "Cielito lindo".[52]
On 16 April 2016, at the end of his farewell concert, he cried out that he would "spit on" the then Republican Party primary candidate for the U.S. presidential election Donald Trump for his anti-open borders speech. Fernández, later that year, expressed his support for Hillary Clinton with a song titled "El Corrido de Hillary Clinton". Following the last debate between Clinton and Trump, Clinton invited Fernández to the celebration at the Craig Ranch Regional Park Amphitheater, Las Vegas, U.S.[53]
Death[edit]
Fernández was hospitalized in serious condition after falling at his ranch in Guadalajara on August 6, 2021.[54] He had injured his cervical spine and was placed on a ventilator under the intensive care unit.[55] Two weeks later he was diagnosed with Guillain–Barré syndrome and began treatment on 13 August. His son Vicente confirmed to the press that it was a disease that had nothing to do with the fall he suffered.[47] On 26 October 2021, he left intensive care following an improvement in his clinical condition.[56] On November 30, 2021, he was again admitted to intensive care following a complication of his health caused by pneumonia. On December 11, his son again reported in an interview that his father was sedated due to a worsening of his condition.[57]
Fernández died of complications from his injuries on December 12, 2021, at the age of 81.[58][59][60] 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". The Colombian president, Iván Duque, said "his departure hurts us and his legacy will be alive forever", and the U.S President, Joe Biden, said that "the world of music has lost an icon". Also on Twitter, leaders including the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, the Mayor of Mexico City, Claudia Sheinbaum, the former President of Colombia Álvaro Uribe, and of Bolivia Evo Morales as well as numerous Mexican and Latin American entertainment personalities offered their condolences.[61] Former U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recognized Fernandez as "a musical icon and a good man".[62] He died on the day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patron saint of Mexico, to whom Fernández had a great devotion.[63]
Fernández's body was transferred from the funeral home to the Arena VFG, which the artist had donated to his city of Guadalajara, where his family and at least six thousand fans were already waiting for him. Songs including "El Rey" and "Acá Entre Nos" were performed by his Mariachi Azteca.[64] There the coffin with his remains was placed, in the middle of the stage that was turned into an altar with a large crucifix presiding over the scene and on one side an image of the Our Lady of Guadalupe accompanied the coffin. On the coffin, which was surrounded by a sea of white flowers, rested his favorite sombrero.[64]
The following day the Catholic funeral took place at the same arena. The ceremony was alternated by songs of his most famous rancheras and ended with "Volver volver", as he had wished, live. Afterwards, his body was taken to his ranch, where he was buried in a mausoleum.[65]