Urban salsa music pioneer Willie Colón to be remembered at New York funeral

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FILE - Willie Colon plays the trombone while performing the song "La Murga" during a tribute concert in honor of the late salsa music pioneer Hector Lavoe in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Sept. 7, 2007. Coln, considered by many to be the "architect of urban salsa," died Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. He was 75. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton, File)