José Luis Rodríguez "El Puma" (born January 14, 1943 in Caracas) is a Venezuelan singer and actor who has recorded many international super hits and participated in a handful of telenovelas. He grew up in very modest conditions, having to shine shoes, and pack bags in a supermarket for a living at an early age. Without an academic formation, he shaped himself as a singer and actor by empirical means.

He lost his father (of Canary Islands origin) at the age of six, and was raised by his mother (an illiterate then, learned to read as an adult in order to read the bible) along with 11 brothers and sisters. As his mother participated in the revolt against Marcos Pérez Jiménez (holding weapons and hiding politicians in her home), he lived in exile in Ecuador with his mother and his brother for a couple of years.

Rodríguez surfaced in Venezuela in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and was able to build a fan base there. He also participated in a famous commercial, along with his family during that time. Rodríguez went to Puerto Rico, where he participated in Cristina Bazan along with Johanna Rosaly and young Adamari Lopez. While there, he got his nickname, El Puma. Later, he also made the Telenovela El ídolo, with the Cuban actress Marylin Pupo. He played a character named Omar Contreras (a.k.a. El Puma).