On May 24th, in 1967, seminal hip hop figure, rapper, dancer, New Jack Swing innovator, actor, producer, activist, record executive, singer and first cousin of Pete Rock-Heavy D (Dwight Arrington Myers) was born in Mandeville, Jamaica. TOV covered the artist’s death on the November 8th post. Please refer to it for more information. Heavy D was one of the first rappers to become an actor. His initial appearances were in urban movies like Who’s the Man? (1993) and New Jersey Drive (1995). However, towards the late 90s and into the 21st century, Heavy started appearing in comedies like Life (with Martin Lawrence, Bernie Mac, Bokeem Woodbine and Eddie Murphy), and dramas like The Cider House Rules (1999).
He was active on TV as well, becoming a regular on the Charles Dutton TV sitcom-Roc, Living Single as a love interest of Kim Fields and on the forensic crime series-Bones. All three of the shows initially wrote single episodes featuring the artist, but he did so well that they asked him to stay. He released 5 albums with Heavy D & the Boyz featuring DJ Eddie F, and dancers Trouble T-Roy (Troy Dixon) and G-Whiz (Glen Parrish). He and Teddy Riley helped spread the New Jack City sound on an international level through the success of Heavy’s LPs and singles. Heavy D produced or co-produced a significant amount of their music along with Pete Rock, Marley Marl, Teddy Riley and Eddie F. He passed away in 2011-the same year that the last film he was in was released-the action comedy-Tower Heist. He was 44 when he passed.
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On May 24th, in 1956, pioneering 70s funk musician, 80s R&B icon, songwriter, bassist, actor, percussionist, producer, guitarist, arranger, drummer, composer, co-founder of East Coast with Gwen Guthrie, founder of the New York City Players and lead singer of the prolific funk outfit-Cameo-Larry (Ernest) Blackmon was born in New York City, New York. He’s most known for singing lead on the 80s hit song-Word Up! He had several hits with Cameo during the 70s and 80s that were sampled by several hip hop producers. DJ Premier sampled the intro of Hanging Downtown (1984) and Brand Nubian Sampled Rigor Mortis (1977). They were on the Casablanca imprint from 1977-1980 (label mates with Parliament).
However, Cameo didn’t sound the same as Parliament. Their funk was more futuristic for the time, not so much in Afro-naut themes, but in actual sound. They played guitar-based funk, it was stripped down rock ‘n’ roll with elements of soul and new wave. P-Funk is drum and bass driven, from the James Brown school of funk-where every instrument is essentially viewed as a percussion to accent the ‘One’-first measure of a 4 bar measure. Fans of his drumming can hear him on Black Ivory LPs during the early to late 70s. He was a regular session musician for others as well (multi-instrumentalist). In the mid 70s, he doubled as a session musician and was a member of East Coast. He left them to start his own band-The New York City Players. It was a funk outfit that was patterned after the Ohio Players. He was forced to change their name to avoid legal conflicts and renamed the group Cameo. Blackmon is 62 today.
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On May 24th, in 1944, critically-acclaimed vocalist, actress, songwriter, businesswoman, solo recording artist and former lead singer of LaBelle-Patti LaBelle was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Patti got her start in the church choir at Beulah Baptist Church when she was 10. She had her first solo at 12. She got into secular music during her early teens and formed her first singing group-The Ordettes (1960). They were a quartet with Patti on lead. After 2 of the original members got married, and the other one quit, Patti recruited two new members-Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash. They kept the name and started gaining a local following. Patti received a lot of looks and negative comments about her appearance. She had a dark complexion, broad nose and didn’t fit the ‘image’ of a lead singer for a female trio. However, she silenced numerous listeners when she would start singing.
Her first producer-Harold Robinson was one such man that was changed after hearing her. He renamed the group Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles (1963). They released a few successful sides on Cameo-Parkway Records before it folded in 1965. They signed with Atlantic and continued to release singles with minor success. Cindy Birdsong left in 1967 to become a member of the Supremes. LaBelle got dropped from Atlantic in 1970 and were referred to seminal talent manager-Vicki Wickham who got them a deal with Warner Brothers Records. She was instrumental in their 70s success, changing their name, look and sound. They became LaBelle with a funky and space/psychedelic soul feel. They opened for the Who in the early 70s and became household names by the mid 70s. Patti went solo in 1976. She's 75 today.
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HONORABLE MENTION: On May 24th, in 1938, reggae innovator, singer, producer, songwriter and Jamaican music legend-Prince Buster (Cecil Bustamente Campbell) was born in Kingston, Jamaica. If you’re a fan of Jamaican music like ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub and dancehall, then you’ve probably heard one of Prince Buster’s songs. He wrote the foundation songs of reggae that many of the successful musicians during the 70s and 80s used on their albums. He worked closely with Coxsone Dodd (Studio One, 1950s), Joined the Nation of Islam in 1964 via Mauhammad Ali and delved into roots reggae in the 70s up to his death in 2016. He was 78 when he passed.
On May 24th, in 1962, dancer, choreographer, actor and original cast member of Fame (both the TV show and Film)-LeRoy (Gene Anthony Ray) was born in Manhattan, NYC, NY. The Story of LeRoy-in the 80s, a lot of things were swept under the rug-this is another one. Apparently LeRoy was removed from the show after news broke that his mother was running a drug rink. He appeared in a few unsuccessful shows and musicals after that. He also choreographed dance scenes in Eddie for Whoopi Goldberg and appeared in Out-of-Sync for Debbie Allen. However, he never secured another permanent job like he had on Fame. He was 41 when he passed (2003).
On May 24th, in 1963 we lost a prominent bluesman, singer, guitarist, songwriter and rock ‘n’ roll innovator-Elmore James (Elmore Brooks). TOV covered the artist’s birthday on the January 27th post. Please refer to it for more information. James is most known as the ‘King of the Slide Guitar’. He was a sideman for Sonny Boy Williamson II in the early 50s, worked with Ike Turner and Big Joe Turner in the mid 50s, recorded for Chess Records in the late 50s and was booked to be a featured artist on the European tour billed-The American Blues Festival. Unfortunately, James passed before he could make the gig. He was 45.
On May 24th, in 1974, we lost the King of Swing, jazz icon, composer, pianist, bandleader, arranger, actor, American historical figure and Hall of Fame artist-Duke Ellington (Edward Kennedy Ellington). TOV covered the artist’s birthday on the April 29th post. Please refer to it for more information. Ellington composed numerous ‘jazz standards’ with his musical companion-Billy Strayhorn: Take the A Train and Cotton Tail. He started playing professionally around 1915. He continued to play, compose, speak, tour and educate up to his death. He's one of the most recognizable figures in music of any genre worldwide. He was 75 when he passed.
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