Every year, I write an article for Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 – Oct. 15) to acknowledge and celebrate Hispanic icons who left their mark in history, whether it be in activism or entertainment. This year marks the 52nd year since the passing of Ritchie Valens, who is considered the “first Latino rock and roller” and although his musical career was short-lived, he continues to be a household name to many Mexican Americans.
Ritchie Valens, born Richard Valenzuela, got his stage name after his manager, Bob Keane, suggested he shorten his name to appeal to a wider audience. After all, this was the 1950s, and a Hispanic/Latino rock-and-roller was practically nonexistent. Ritchie was actually a self-taught musician who often played original songs at his former middle school in the San Fernando Valley (California). He was only seventeen when he was “discovered” in May 1958 and signed to Bob Keane’s record label, Del-Fi records.
From there, it was eight months of radio shows, touring, and music-making for Ritchie. His most popular songs “Donna” (inspired by his girlfriend at the time) and “La Bamba” were highlighted on his first and last record, which sold over a million copies and earned a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America. In addition, Ritchie’s east coast tour with Bob Keane launched Donna to #1 in every city he performed in.
Unfortunately, Ritchie, fellow rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly and J. P. Richardson, and pilot Roger Peterson, were killed in a plane crash in February, 1959. As the movie tells it, the story goes that the musicians had a choice between riding on a bus and boarding a small plane (paid for by Buddy Holly) to the next location of the “Winter Dance Party Concert,” which all of them were a part of. All four of them ended up on the plane, with Ritchie having flipped a coin for permission to board (and won). February 3, 1959 is popularly known as “The day the music died” for the loss of these three rock and roll musicians, which inspired Don McClean’s song “American Pie.”
Ritchie’s legacy, however, lives on. In 2001, Ritchie Valens was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame by Ricky Martin, who is known as the “King of Latin Pop.” In addition, one of the most influential playwrights and a pioneer for the Chicano movement, Luis Valdez, brought Ritchie’s story to life on the big screen. Just before La Bamba, Luis became the first Chicano director to have a play on Broadway with Zoot Suit, which tells the story of the riots in 1943 that sparked days of violent clashes between Mexican-Americans and sailors, soldiers, and Marines.
Luis’s artistic work was very inspired by the revolutionary Chicanos of the 1960’s, primarily Cesar Chavez. According to him, they met when Luis was a boy and playwriting became his contribution to the farmworker strikes of the time. Luis states, “[Cesar] listened to what people were saying and he understood people. He lived by example and that was so powerful to me…. The theater became a real instrument for me to show history through the interaction of characters.”
After graduating from San Jose State University, Luis founded El Teatro Campesino (“The Farm Workers’ Theater”), the nation’s longest-running Chicano theater, in 1965 at the age of 25. Luis Valdez’s work is so empowering and inspirational that he’s won countless awards, including the 2015 National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama.
Though their lives take on very different storylines, there would simply be no La Bamba movie without the musical contributions of Ritchie Valens, and little widespread recognition of Ritchie Valens without Luis Valdez’s work. The two coincide in such a beautiful way that celebrates Hispanic contributions to both activism and entertainment.