If any artist defines the genre we call ''salsa'' it is the Bronx's one and only Willie Colón. While other salseros were simply recycling earlier Afro-Cuban dance music in the '70s and '80s, Willie (in Latin street music everyone is known by their first name) was busy truly inventing a genre, using the Afro-Cuban matrix to blend in the sounds of his Puerto Rican heritage, along with music from the rest of the Caribbean, Central America, Brazil, and, of course, his native United States.

For the first time in many years, Willie will be playing South Florida, at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts tonight. He will bring the new sounds of an artist who has never stopped evolving, as well as regaling fans with the classics.

And classic his records have become, in part because he has been partnered with legendary names. The late Hector Lavoe, probably the most inspired sonero of salsa's halcyon days, recorded some of his best work with Willie's band. And the pairing of Willie and Ruben Blades produced best-selling albums like Siembra and created a sound that many connoisseurs feel has never been matched.

Most poignant at this moment is the fact that one of Willie's greatest collaborations was with the recently deceased Celia Cruz, and one can expect a heartfelt -- and probably heartbreaking -- homage to the Queen.

In the '80s, Willie decided to move from his role as bandleader -- a big-band tradition that still remains in some traditional salsa ensembles -- and move up to the mike. His voice is not that of a traditional sonero, but it has, like his trombone player, that tough-guy quality known as guapería (Willie's early nickname was El Malo), tempered by the wry social and sociological comments of lyrics like his critique of macho homophobia El Gran Varón.

Because he was merely a kid when he started, today Willie is paradoxically, a legendary veteran at the peak of his powers. Local salseros won't miss this one.

IF YOU GO

Willie Colón will perform in the Au-Rene Theater at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale at 8:30 Saturday. Tickets are $15, $25, $35 and $45 at Broward Center's AutoNation Box Office at 954-462-0222 or online at www.browardcenter.org. Tickets are also available through Ticketmaster.