Cause the sweetest kiss I ever got is the one I’ve never tasted

Sixto Diaz Rodriguez, professionally known as Rodriguez, is a musician and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan. Despite being an accomplished and talented musician, Rodriguez remained relatively unknown in the United States until the early 1970s. His music, however, struck a chord with listeners in South Africa, where he became a cultural icon.

Rodriguez’s album “Cold Fact” was released in 1970 and quickly became popular in South Africa. The album resonated with South African youth who were disillusioned with the apartheid regime and related to the social commentary and protest lyrics in his songs. Many South Africans saw Rodriguez as a symbol of resistance and hope during a time of great social and political upheaval.

Despite his popularity in South Africa, Rodriguez remained virtually unknown in his home country for decades. It was only in the late 1990s, when a South African journalist began searching for Rodriguez’s whereabouts, that his story and music began to gain wider recognition. In 2012, a documentary film titled “Searching for Sugar Man” was released, chronicling the search for Rodriguez and his subsequent rise to fame in South Africa.

When Rodriguez was initially informed that his music had become popular in South Africa, he was completely unaware of his international fame. In fact, he had stopped pursuing his music career and was working in demolition and construction to make ends meet. It wasn’t until a group of fans traveled to the United States to find him and bring him to South Africa that he realized the extent of his success.

Today, Rodriguez is considered a folk rock legend and his music has influenced generations of musicians around the world.