SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, April 17 (UPI) -- Puerto Rican musician Cheo Feliciano died Thursday at age 78.
The musician was killed in a car accident early Thursday morning. His vehicle hit an electrical post while he was driving in San Juan, and a police officer tells Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Dia that the singer was not wearing a seatbelt at the time.
Feliciano was born José Luis Feliciano Vega in Ponce, Puerto Rico, in 1935. He attended the Free School of Music in his hometown, and later moved to New York to begin a career in music. The musician became a percussionist in the Joe Cuba sextet in 1955, and recorded 17 albums with the group over a span of 10 years.
The salsa singer later embarked on a successful solo career, and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Latin Grammy Awards in 2008.
[El Nuevo Dia]
