Ralph Mercado | Salsa music promoter, 57
Ralph Mercado, 57, a New York native whose promotional skills helped spread the popularity of salsa music worldwide, died Tuesday at a Hackensack, N.J., hospital. He was diagnosed with cancer two years ago.
Ralph Mercado, 57, a New York native whose promotional skills helped spread the popularity of salsa music worldwide, died Tuesday at a Hackensack, N.J., hospital. He was diagnosed with cancer two years ago.
For more than 30 years, Mr. Mercado staged Latin music events in the New York area and managed some of the biggest stars of salsa. He developed a record label; a publishing company; and a video and film production company. He also operated restaurants and nightclubs in New York.
He opened a management, booking, and promotions company called Showstoppers, which promoted R&B acts, including James Brown and Aretha Franklin, and New York concerts that featured a fusion of salsa and Latin jazz.
In 1972, Mr. Mercado opened RMM Management, representing jazz star Eddie Palmieri and Ray Barretto. He continued to promote Latin dances and concerts, including events featuring the Fania All-Stars, an ensemble of musicians and singers who recorded for Fania Records, the leading salsa record company of the time.
Mr. Mercado later started his own independent Latin music recording company, RMM Records. Leading artists who recorded for the label included Marc Anthony, La India, Tito Puente, and Celia Cruz.
Mr. Mercado was honored with a lifetime-achievement tribute by Billboard in 1999. - AP