Johnny’s love affair with music began in Sabinal, Texas where he was born December 10, 1951, and the ninth of ten children in a boisterous Mexican-Irish, four-room household. “Everyone was always fighting over the radio,” he says. Music has always been a driving force in Johnny’s life. “My parents favored Latin music; my brothers preferred country; and my friends were into rock and roll. But I loved it all!”
Growing up, Johnny was an A/B student, captain of his Junior High School Football team, a high school letterman and an altar boy at church. When Johnny was 16 years old, he lost his father to cancer and his oldest brother died in a tragic accident. The hardships that he experienced are reflected in the strength and sincerity of his vocal style.
In 1969, Johnny and his friends were caught stealing and barbequing a goat. They were busted and Rodriguez took the rap. It was a visit in jail that gave Johnny his first break. His jailhouse singing enthralled a Texas Ranger who told a promoter about Rodriguez. The promoter hired Johnny to perform at the Alamo Village, a popular south Texas tourist attraction. There, Johnny was heard by Nashville artists Tom T. Hall and Bobby Bare who both encouraged Johnny to fly to Nashville.
In 1971, Rodriguez, then 20, found himself stepping off the plane with nothing more than his guitar and $14 in his pocket. “I could not even afford a case for my guitar, so I carried it in a plastic bag.” Soon he was fronting Tom T. Hall’s Band and composing hit songs one after another and performing with his heroes, superstars Merle Haggard, Lefty Frizzell, Buck Owens, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Marty Robbins, and songwriter Mickey Newberry.
In 1972, he recorded 11 consecutive #1 singles becoming a country music superstar before his 22nd birthday. The first of those singles to reach number one was “Pass Me By.” The song raced up the country charts and put Johnny in the fast lane of the country music world. Other top hits soon followed, including “What I Tell Virginia,” Love Look at Us Now,” “North of the Border, “ “Foolin,” “How Could I love Her So Much,” “Rose of My Heart,” “You Always Come Back (to Hurtin” Me),” “Ridin’ My Thumb to Mexico,” “That’s the Way Love Goes,” and “Just Get Up and Close the Door.”
Johnny recently recorded a CD with six of his top hit songs and one new song. He also co-wrote ‘Don’t Expect To Love Me All The Time’ with Tony Ramey and recorded two new songs singing a duet, “Montana Hills” with Dennis Quaid and “Playing a Game That I can’t Win” with Tanya Tucker, both songs written by Dennis Quaid, and one country duet “We Believe In Happy Endings” with his daughter, Miss Aubry Rodriguez. Mr. Rodriguez fulfilled his life-long dream to record six Mariachi songs on his CD, in reverence to his Hispanic heritage and roots dedicated to his beloved mother, Isabel. Also performing a Mariachi duet with Johnny is Daisy Sanchez and accompanying him is Mariachi San Marcos of Bakersfield, California.
In the past 30 years, Johnny has released 35 albums; charted 45 singles and 15 #1 Hits (rising to top 10). Johnny became the first Mexican-American to achieve international stardom as a country singer without having to change his name. He has toured in every state in the U.S. and enjoys enormous popularity when touring overseas. This favored son of Texas impressively has been honored to perform for four U.S. Presidents, including Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, and played at the Inaugural Balls for both George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush.
Johnny was voted “Most Promising Male Vocalist” by Academy of Country Music Award, 1972 and was inducted into the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame in Carthage, TX in 2006, an honor well deserved for his contribution to country music. In 1991 he received the Annual Tejano Music Award and in 2010, Rodriguez received the Pioneer Award from the Institute of Hispanic Culture. In 2017, he received his star, South Texas Music Walk of Fame. Most recently, in 2020, he was awarded the CMA of Texas “Living Legend” Award, and behind the scenes there is a petition campaign to induct Johnny Rodriguez into the CMA Hall of Fame, Nashville. This artist brings the Hispanic communities and traditional country music fans together with his bilingual songs, stating, “This is what I am most proud of in my singing career is building bridges for people of all walks of life to come together on the dance floor in song.”
Through the years, Johnny has risen from the rural lifestyle of Sabinal to the top of the country music world. He has crammed more living into those “wonder years” than most people see in a lifetime. With the love and support of his fans as well as some legendary names in the entertainment world, he has sustained a thriving career. The hardships that Johnny Rodriguez has experienced throughout his life are reflected in the no-nonsense strength of his vocal style, which we are sure to enjoy for many years ahead. Johnny Rodriguez is as popular today as he was in his earlier years. He has recently completed a Christmas CD and will be releasing his upcoming CD Box Set and memoir in 2020. Mr. Rodriguez continues to write songs and perform throughout the U.S., especially in his home state, Texas.
Johnny shares his love of country music with us today because he has not forgotten his early background and states candidly, “I have been fortunate in my life, and I just feel as though I want to give something back.” Too, Johnny salutes American Veterans for their sacrifices and recognizes country music fans everywhere. Thank y’all for your support over the years in keeping “real” country music alive and well giving hearts hope in an ever-changing world.”
