Gabriel died at his California home Sunday just weeks before he was scheduled to perform in the Rio Grande Valley at the State Farm Arena.
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The Hollywood Historic Trust, an arm of the Chamber of Commerce, placed flowers at Gabriel’s star at 7060 Hollywood Blvd.at 10 a.m. His hit “Querida” (“Dear”) topped Mexico’s charts for a whole year.
“Musicians who recorded his music ranged from Paul Anka, with “Mi Pueblo (My Home Town)” to Marc Anthony”, who covered “Hasta Que Te Conocí” (“Until I Met You”). A Times reporter recounted a trip to with him to an upscale Malibu, Calif., restaurant, where only the Mexican busboy appeared to recognize the star.
The Latin superstar had recently canceled an upcoming presentation in El Paso, Texas but gave an emotional concert in Los Angeles with thousands of fans cheering and crying from his emotional songs.
“For over 40 years, Juan Gabriel brought his beloved Mexican music to millions, transcending borders and generations”, Obama said.
Dozens of people gathered outside his home in Ciudad Juarez to pay respects.
The Hollywood Walk of Fame became a shrine to the late singer-songwriter on Monday, with large floral arrangements, balloons and candles lining the street.
He was a legend, an artist who marked an era in people’s lives.
The singer’s death was naturally top news in Mexico. There was no one like Juan Gabriel.
“Before Mexico was more conservative, now not as much”, said Laura Gomez, 50, who owns a clothing shop in Puebla. His music is a legacy to the world.
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto eulogized Gabriel on Twitter Sunday, saying his talent “represented Mexico”.
Gabriel’s family said it would release more details on his passing in the coming days.
Alberto Aguilera Valadez was born in a small town in Michoacán.
A man places his hand on a plaque with the hand prints of Mexican singer and songwriter Juan Gabriel at the site where the Noa Noa once stood, the once famous nightclub where Juan Gabriel started his singing career, in the Mexican northern border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Monday Aug. 29, 2016.
But it was a tough climb to stardom, with many rejections, disappointments and a stint of homelessness in Mexico City that ended with him in jail.
With help from the warden he found his way into the music business, however, working as a composer, arranger and producer. “He was a very, very much loved personality”, said Mexican tenor Fernando de la Mora, speaking on Milenio TV.
Mario Lafontaine, a specialist in Mexican music, said “an artist like him is born only every 500 years”.
“Mexican music must be defended, with vigilance”, he added.
Local television broadcast the moment, shortly after 5.30pm local time (12.30am Tuesday GMT), when the remains of “Divo of Juarez” were taken out of the Malinow and Silverman Mortuary. Gabriel was the creator of over 1,000 songs, and his album Recuerdos, Vol. II, sold over 8 million copies to be the all-time best-seller in Mexico.
Beloved across Latin America, they have also had been translated into French, German, Italian and Japanese.
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The truth, however, is Juan Gabriel should be a measuring stick for others.
