Gerald "Jerry" Masucci[1] (October 7, 1934 – December 21, 1997) was an American attorney, businessman and was co-founder of Fania Records.
He then worked for a public relations firm in Cuba, where he became interested in Latin music.
[4] In 1964 in New York City, Masucci, then a divorce attorney, and Johnny Pacheco, a Dominican musician, established Fania Records.
[10] Over the next 15 years, Fania Records helped define the sound, culture, and language associated with the salsa genre, a musical movement that arose partly from the unavailability in the United States of music produced in Cuba.
[12] Masucci died of aortic aneurysm caused by a heart attack in Buenos Aires, Argentina on December 21, 1997 at age 63.