After 2009's Mi Amigo el Puma, he retired from recording for eight years due to critical health concerns. Later albums, including 2002's Mujer and his 2003 duo collaboration with Raul Di Blasio on Clave de Amor, were massive successes as well. He has appeared in recurring roles in more than a dozen telenovelas. In addition to his beloved voice, Rodríguez is an international television star. Beginning with 1979's Una Canción de España through 1997's Inolvidable, he netted six platinum and nine gold records. Between 19, his albums were a chart fixture not only in Latin America but in the United States as well: He placed more than ten albums in the Top 200 and 21 singles on various Latin charts including 'Baila Mi Rumba,' 'Dueño de Nada,' 'Pavo Real,' and 'Agárrense de las Manos.' El Puma was so formidable during the '80s that CBS International lured him away from his label so that their male artists wouldn't have to compete on the charts with him. His success has been registered at radio, in concert halls across the globe, at retail, streaming, and as an actor on television and in film. For more than five decades, his crystalline tenor has made hits of boleros, romanticas, mariachis, and pop songs. Best-selling Venezuelan vocalist, actor, and entrepreneur Jose Luis Rodríguez (aka El Puma) is among the most recognized interpreters of Latin folk song in the world.
