Interview with Angel Rodriguez

Angel Rodriguez is a 54 year-old Puerto Rican man. He was born in Puerto Rico, but was raised in the Bronx. For him, growing up and living in the Bronx is an adventure and an institute for learning culture and music. He says, “The Bronx is the county of salsa because the mambo kings lived there. It is my life, its where I’m from and I love it. When I leave the Bronx you can’t take the Bronx out of me.” He’s survived his whole life in the Bronx because of music and the people who wanted to make change. He believes music is not who he is, it’s what he does. He is skilled in playing music and his reason to pursue this talent was the attraction of stage and famous people. He plays anything he can play with his hands and sticks, basically every type of drum. By the time it turned into a career it became a survival thing, which kept him out of trouble. His school was the streets and parks of New York. There he learned from elders that were jamming in the streets. Rumbas were where he played and it was part of his survival while his backyard was just rubble. He’s held onto his drum and music forever. To him, it feels like it’s what he is supposed to do and he loves doing it. His motto for what he does is, “can’t stop, wont stop” because music is a big part of life, community, and family. The Bronx is full of the history of music. He’s played with many Puerto Rican greats, like Paquito Guzman and Hector Tricoche. He was percussionist at the Apollo Theater and played Wednesday nights with Ralph Coopers for 3 years. From there he went to Univision and did a show called Buenos Dias Medio Dia. He has also had the honor to play with Dizzy Gillespie. He’s been a part of almost every musical thing in the Bronx. Music is the essence of life and a crazy world. Music is his stress alleviator. He thinks everyone should keep music in their lives, even if they aren’t pursuing a professional level. His t-shirts and logos with him always say where he’s from or what music he listens to. His t-shirts tell people who he is and what he is about.