6 Stunning Facts You Did Not Know About Vicente Fernández

Although the world today mourns the "king", Vicente Fernández, his legacy is indelible and will always be remembered as one of the greatest mariachis in history. Along with Pedro Infante, Chavela Vargas, José Alfredo Jiménez, Jorge Negrete and Javier Solis, he will be remembered as an idol of Mexican song.

After more than six decades of musical career, Chente left more than 300 songs that speak about spite, love and life. Get to know 6 curious facts about this great artist who has marked generations.

He earned a Grammy in 2021

His last award was obtained this year at the Latin Grammy Awards for the best ranchera/mariachi music album with his album “A mis 80's”. Chente is the artist who has received the most titles in this category with 8 awards, 1 in conjunction with his son, and 14 nominations. He also received 14 Lo Nuestro awards and three Billboard awards.

He started singing at age 14

Since he was a child he wanted to be like Pedro Infante and Javier Solís, so he trained his voice from a very young age. At age 14 he was the winner of a contest in Guadalajara and from then on he was hired to sing at celebrations and restaurants. At 26, he signed his first contract with Sony, the label that accompanied him for the rest of his life.

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He was married for 58 years, but he was not a saint

His wife and great love María del Refugio Abarca Villaseñor, better known as "Cuquita", married him in 1963. She was his neighbor and they fell in love at an early age, when he was barely 20 years old. Despite the infinite love that Vicente never hesitated to publicly profess for Cuquita, he always had a reputation as a womanizer. In fact, he is attributed extramarital affairs with actresses Patricia Rivero and Merle Uribe.

His most listened to song is "Por tu maldito amor"

On his official YouTube channel, this song has more than 264 million views. It belongs to the album of the same name recorded in 1989. Its success was so resounding that it was recognized as a Platinum record by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) . However, it was not the only album to obtain this distinction, since in his musical career he had 4 gold and 32 platinum records.

He had 4 children

El Charro de Huentitán had 4 children with his wife Cuquita: Vicente Junior, Gerardo, Alejandro and Alejandra, who was adopted by the family, since she is not really his biological daughter but a niece, daughter of Cuquita's sister. The truth is that these brothers today are the heirs of Vicente Fernández's vast fortune. However, Alexander inherited something more than fortune and fame: talent. The youngest of his “foals”, as Chente called him, is today a renowned artist who has won the Latin Grammy Award three times for best ranchera / mariachi music album, and multiple Billboard awards.

He created his own tequila

Los 3 Potrillos is the brand that Vicente Fernández created in 2020 to celebrate his 80th birthday and to market a high-quality tequila in the aged, triple distilled, and extra-aged crystalline varieties. The bottles are priced from $ 70 to $ 100.