Born January 31, 1933, Pedro Juan Rodríguez Ferrer started playing bongos at the age of five in his father’s quartet El Conjunto Gondolero. At age 12 he moved to The Bronx, New York, was drafted into the US Army in 1953, and returned to New York in 1956, where he performed with La Oriental Cubana, Los Jóvenes Estrella de Cuba, and Héctor Ceno’s La Novel. His first album was titled Suavito, which was released in 1963 under the Alegre label.

Bandleader Johnny Pacheco discovered Rodríguez singing and playing congas at a Bronx Club called Los Panchos. In 1964, Pacheco and his lawyer Jerry Masucci founded The Fania All-Stars, a combination of the best Latin singers and musicians at that time. Between 1964 and 1973, Rodríguez and Pacheco recorded seven albums under the Fania label.

Rodríguez left Fania in 1974 to go solo. His debut album El Conde was an award winner, and he went on to record several more albums. In 1983, with the Fania All-Stars on the verge of disbanding, Rodríguez reunited with Pacheco and recorded four more albums. Their 1987 album Salsobita was nominated for a Grammy Award.

In 1990, Rodríguez went solo again, and in 2000 was hired by Tito Puente to provide lead vocals for “Homenaje A Beny”, a tribute to the late singer Beny Moré. Rodríguez later developed a heart ailment, but refused to undergo bypass surgery. On December 2, 2000, Rodríguez suffered a heart attack and died at the age of 67.