Rodrigo Bueno - Legacy

Legacy

Bueno spread cuarteto, originally a typical genre from the Córdoba Province, to a national level. Shortly after his death on the 27th kilometer of the Buenos Aires-La Plata Highway, fans built a "sanctuary" memorial including a statue as a tribute. An estimated crowd of 15,000 fans gathered there on the first anniversary of his death in 2001. The memorial suffered several attacks through the years for unclear reasons. One year after his death, Sony Records released the album Todos Juntos con Rodrigo, which includes the original songs from Sabroso with added vocals from Argentine and international singers such as Celia Cruz and Luciano Pereyra. It soon went gold in Argentina with sales of 30,000 records. The same year, he posthumously received two Carlos Gardel Awards. He received Best Male Tropical Performer for the album A 2000 and Song of the Year for his original "Soy Cordobés".

In 1999, Bueno introduced cuarteto singer Walter Olmos to the public scene with performances in several of his concerts in the Buenos Aires province. After Bueno's death, Olmos was popularly regarded as his musical heir, but he only enjoyed brief success before his death while playing Russian roulette in 2002.

Rodrigo, La Película (Rodrigo, The Movie) opened on April 12, 2001 at a record 136 Argentine theaters. The movie depicts a love story involving a teenage girl who idolized the singer with a montage of real concerts and songs as background. The film was not as successful as anticipated, however, and was regarded by some as an attempt to make a profit out of the memory of the singer. The entertainment magazine Sin Cortes described it as a "failed film" that "took advantage of the Rodrigo phenomena".

Bueno, a Club Atlético Belgrano fan, is still regarded as an important figure within the club's fan base. A group of fans visited his mausoleum in 2011 on the 11th anniversary of his death. The team's jersey depicted his face as a tribute during the 2002–03 season of Argentina's Football First Division. In 2012, the club's administration decided to raise funds to build a bronze statue of the singer to be placed in Gigante de Alberdi Stadium.

In 2010, on the tenth anniversary of his death, the Buenos Aires Chamber of Deputies declared him as a salient personality of popular culture in the province. Bueno was the subject of tributes on Argentine television, including one from the show Gracias por Venir, which was attended by some of his relatives and close friends. A tribute concert was performed on January 16, 2013 during the opening of the first Cuarteto Carnival, based on the Bahian Carnival. During the Newsstand Day (Día del Canillita) celebrations, Governor of Córdoba José Manuel de la Sota announced his plans to commission a statue of Bueno. It was placed on the Buen Pastor esplanade, and unveiled prior to the Cuarteto Carnival tribute concert.

A villa miseria in Buenos Aires' Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve was named after him.