Rodrigues

Rodriguez, also known as Rodríguez, Jesús Rodríguez, or Sixto Diaz Rodriguez, is an American folk musician from Detroit, Michigan. He is associated with folk, rock, funk rock, and blues, and his songs often take a political stance on the conditions faced by poor inner-city communities.

Early career

He first records under the name Rod Riguez in 1967, releasing the single “I’ll Slip Away” on the small label Impact. After a gap of several years, he signs to Sussex Records, an offshoot of Buddah Records, and shortens his professional name to Rodriguez. He records two albums for the label: Cold Fact in 1970 and Coming from Reality in 1971. Both sell poorly in the United States, and he is dropped from the label. A third album is in progress at the time, but it remains unreleased.

Life after the first career

After leaving music, Rodriguez stays in Detroit and works in manual-labour jobs, including demolition. He remains close to poverty and later runs for Detroit city council in 1989 after staying politically active. He earns a Bachelor of Philosophy from Wayne State University’s Monteith College in 1981, and later receives an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Wayne State University in 2013.

International recognition

Although he has little impact in North America at first, his records gain airplay in South Africa, Botswana, Rhodesia, New Zealand, and Australia by the mid-1970s. In South Africa, At His Best goes platinum, and some of his songs become anti-apartheid anthems. His reputation there is long clouded by rumours that he has died. In the 1990s, South African fans trace him down, leading to a revival of his career. Their search becomes the subject of the documentary Searching for Sugar Man, which premieres in 2012 and later wins the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, as well as the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary.

Tours, reissues and later appearances

Blue Goose Music buys the Australian rights to his back catalogue in the mid-1970s and releases his two studio albums there, along with the compilation At His Best, which includes unreleased recordings from 1973 such as “Can’t Get Away,” “I’ll Slip Away” in a new version, and “Street Boy.” In 1979 he tours Australia with the Mark Gillespie Band as support, and recordings from that tour are later issued as Alive. He returns to Australia in 1981 with Midnight Oil. His albums Cold Fact and Coming from Reality are reissued by Light in the Attic Records in 2009.

After Searching for Sugar Man brings him wider attention, he appears on television and at festivals including the Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, 60 Minutes, The Andrew Marr Show, and Later... with Jools Holland. He also performs at the East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival, Coachella, Glastonbury, and Montreux Jazz Festival. His song “Sugar Man” is later covered by Just Jinjer, sampled by Nas, used by DJ David Holmes, and featured in the film Candy.