Sixto Rodriguez: Singer from Oscar-winning Searching for Sugar Man documentary dies aged 81
Singer-songwriter Sixto Rodriguez, who became the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man, has died aged 81.
The American singer’s death was confirmed by his granddaughter Amanda Kennedy on Wednesday after being posted to the website Sugarman.org a day earlier.
He died in Detroit following a short illness, according to his wife, Konny Rodriguez, 72.
It was the documentary Searching for Sugar Man by Swedish filmmaker Malik Bendjelloul that made Rodriguez recognisable to a much larger audience.
The film tells of two South Africans and their mission to seek out the fate of their musical hero.
It won the Oscar for best documentary in 2013.
Rodriguez in 2013. Pic: AP
‘More popular than Elvis’
Despite his music not making much of a mark in America, Rodriguez unknowingly became a star in South Africa.
He was described as “more popular than Elvis” in the country, by record shop owner Stephen ‘Sugar’ Segerman, whose nickname comes from Rodriguez’s song Sugarman.
His songs protesting the Vietnam War, racial inequality and the abuse of women were banned by the apartheid regime, but inspired liberals horrified by the country’s racial segregation system.
Pic: AP
Fans in South Africa believed his fame transferred to the US. Some even thought the star had died, after rumours circulated he had taken his own life on stage.
In reality, the singer had returned to Detroit, where he had gone “back to work” in manual labour.
He had three daughters and launched several unsuccessful campaigns for public office, but never stopped playing music.
It wasn’t until the 1980s that Rodriguez learned about his fame in South Africa, and after the end of apartheid in 1990 the star travelled to the country to perform and later pursued royalties he did not receive from his music being used and played there.
Rodriguez performing in Las Vegas in 2015. Pic: AP
“He did so well in South Africa. It was insane,” Mrs Rodriguez said.
His music was also a big hit in Australia, where he toured in both 1979 and 1981, after picking up the phone to a “man with an Australian accent” who said: “He must come to Australia because he’s very famous here.”
Rodriguez was also described as “the greatest protest singer and songwriter that most people never heard of” in 2013 by The Associated Press.
Dozens of supporters were outside court as the man accused of fatally shooting the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare made his first appearance.
Luigi Mangione has pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of murder following the 4 December killing of Brian Thompson, 50, outside a midtown Manhattan hotel.
The 26-year-old is accused of ambushing and shooting the executive as he walked to an investor conference.
Luigi Mangione supporters stand outside the Supreme Court. Pic: AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah
Dozens of people who showed up in court to support the suspect including former army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning who was jailed for stealing classified diplomatic cables.
Dozens more queued in the hallway.
Mangione is also facing federal charges that could carry the possibility of the death penalty.
The judge set a deadline of 9 April to submit pre-trial motions.
Luigi Mangione is accused of fatally shooting Brian Thompson. Pic: Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP
In addition to the New York cases, Mr Mangione also faces charges of forgery, carrying firearms without a licence, and other counts in Pennsylvania, where authorities arrested him at a McDonald’s.
Police say he was in possession of a gun, bullets, multiple fake IDs and a handwritten document that expressed “ill will” towards corporate America.
He is being held in a Brooklyn jail alongside several other high-profile defendants, including music mogul and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs, and disgraced crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried.
The killing prompted some to voice their resentment at US health insurers, with Mangione attracting a cult following.
A poll taken in the wake of the shooting showed most Americans believe health insurance profits and coverage denials were partly to blame for the incident.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports11 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway