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It was five years ago today (June 6) we lost Tejano icon Jimmy Gonzalez at the age of 67. He is known as a pioneer, legend, and one of the most influential artists in Tejano Music leading Grupo Mazz to multiple Grammy Awards and Latin Grammy Awards.
Together with Joe Lopez, Gonzalez formed one of the most potent partnerships in Tejano music history as Grupo Mazz. He was the chief songwriter and producer that generated many unforgettable hits for the band since its inception in 1978. The success continued until 1998 when the pair parted ways.
Over the next 20 years, Gonzalez led Mazz to many more iconic albums with his songwriting and production winning multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards with Freddie Records.
The legendary record label shared rare photos of the original demo cassette tape Gonzalez sent in early 2000 that featured songs that were part of his debut album, Quien Iva A Pensar, with Freddie Records.
“A true Tejano treasure,” Freddie Records captioned the photo on Instagram.
The tape includes early mix versions of the classics “A Pesar De Todo”, “Se Fue”, “Quien Iba A Pensar”, and “El Guarare.”
“Jimmy would go on to record six consecutive Latin Grammy-winning albums under our label, a feat that has never been duplicated, plus many more hit albums and songs,” stated Freddie Records. “The rest is music history!”
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A tribute performance is planned for Jimmy Gonzalez next month at the Vegas Tejano Takeover in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Jimmy’s son Mike Gonzalez and his band the Iconiczz performing with special guests along with archival video and audio of the late Jimmy Gonzalez collected by INGENUITY CEO David Chavez, producer of the event.
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