His father and several of his uncles sang in the choir of Joseph Rosenblatt, and his mother taught in Africa and Mexico, inspiring an interest in music from other nations.

[1] Willie Colón regarded Rogers as his strongest musical influence and would feature him in many of his productions.

[citation needed] Rogers worked with Israel "Cachao" López, Machito, Manny Oquendo, Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, Cheo Feliciano, Johnny Pacheco, Chino Rodríguez, and the Fania All-Stars.

He also worked with George Benson, David Byrne, Ron Carter, Aretha Franklin, Don Grolnick, Bob James, Elton John, Chaka Khan, Bob Moses, Todd Rundgren, Carly Simon, Spyro Gyra, James Taylor, and Grover Washington Jr.

[citation needed] With Average White Band With Fania All-Stars With Jun Fukamachi With Chaka Khan With Herbie Mann With Eddie Palmieri With Esther Phillips With Ismael Quintana With Todd Rundgren With Lonnie Smith With James Taylor With Bobby Valentin With others