Black Weekend: How Music Industry Lost Three Legends

Related stories

2027: PDP Eyeing Jonathan, Others for Presidential Race, Party Official Reveals

By Nwosa Hamilton  In a strategic move to broaden its...

$24 Billion Loan: Senate Approves Tinubu’s Request, Loan Strategy

By Abiola Olawale The Nigerian Senate has approved President Bola...

Alleged N80.2bn Fraud: Court Throws Out Yahaya Bello’s Travel Request

By Nwosa Hamilton The Federal High Court, Abuja, has rejected...

[VIDEO] Natasha vs Akpabio: Tension as Natasha Denied Access To National Assembly Complex

https://youtu.be/WPETje8apUo?si=lNUgHm5KHu8P8cI6 By Abiola Olawale Tensions escalated at the National Assembly Complex...

2027: Drama as Davido’s Uncle, Gov Adeleke, Osun PDP Endorse Tinubu

By Abiola Olawale Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State and...

It was a black weekend for Rhythm and Blues with the deaths of three musical icons who have written their names in gold.

Singers Betty Wright and Little Richard along with music executive Andre Harrell all died this weekend having had major impacts on R&B and the music industry as a whole.

Betty Wright influenced a generation of female artists. The Grammy-award winner and six-time nominee is known for her hits “Clean Up Woman” and “Tonight is the Night.”

Many of her hits have been sampled by rappers and singers like Beyoncé, Color Me Bad, and Chance the Rapper. The soulful Betty Wright died from cancer on Sunday at the age of 66 in her Miami home.

On his part, Little Richard was an early figure in rock. His screaming, preening, scene-stealing wild man of early rock ‘n’ roll first came on the scene in the 1950s with hits like “Tutti Frutti,” “Long Tall Sally” and “Slippin’ and Slidin’.”

The Macon, Georgia, native had a long career after that saw him becoming one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, getting a street named after him in his home town and receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 1993 Grammys.

Andre Harrell had an everlasting footprint in hip-hop. He is credited with mentoring Sean Diddy Combs as well as discovering and launching the careers of various artists and entertainers.

He got his start in the 1980s as one of two members in the rap group Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde. Harrell was then hired by Def Jam Records where he worked as vice president and then became a general manager of the label. It was when he founded Uptown Records that things really took off. He hired Diddy as an intern and launched the careers of Mary J. Blige, Heavy D, and The Boyz, Jodeci, and Teddy Riley.

Paying tribute to him, the Combs Enterprises website called him the man with the Midas touch

“He is known to have the Midas touch when it came to discovering and developing talent, Andre was responsible for changing the sound of R&B music and crossing artist and executives over into what was then known as ‘pop culture,” the website said.

Babajide Okeowo
Babajide Okeowohttps://newdiplomatng.com/
With a career spanning over a decade spent across the Business, Political and Entertainment beats of prominent media organizations in Nigeria, Babajide Okeowo has carved a niche for himself as a Journalist of repute. As a newsroom guru, he has penned several weighty narratives and designed content that speak to a news medium's values, vision and mission while ensuring that the content resonate pretty well with a variety of critical audiences across Nigeria and beyond. A consummate storyteller whose coverage of the business industry is valuable, Okeowo is blessed with a vast analytical mind and data interpretation skills. In his spare time, he interprets data for a Leading American University while also volunteering for a Non-Governmental Organization on Mindset Transformation. Okeowo is the Content Editor of The New Diplomat.

Subscribe

- Never miss a story with notifications

- Gain full access to our premium content

- Browse free from up to 5 devices at once

Latest stories

NDN
Latest News
2027: PDP Eyeing Jonathan, Others for Presidential Race, Party Official Reveals$24 Billion Loan: Senate Approves Tinubu's Request, Loan StrategyAlleged N80.2bn Fraud: Court Throws Out Yahaya Bello's Travel Request[VIDEO] Natasha vs Akpabio: Tension as Natasha Denied Access To National Assembly Complex2027: Drama as Davido's Uncle, Gov Adeleke, Osun PDP Endorse TinubuDetails as NNPC Remits N6.69 trn to Federation Account in First Half of 2025Just In! CBN Retains Interest Rate at 27.5% for Third Time in 2025Datti Baba-Ahmed Attends Abure-Led Labour Party NEC Meeting, Vows to Reunite Obi, Otti, OthersJust In! Nigeria’s Economy Surges with 3.13% Growth in Q1 2025, NBS ReportsLabour Party's Crisis Deepens As Abure-Led Faction Rejects Nenadi Usman’s LeadershipDrama as ADC’s 2023 Presidential Candidate Kachikwu Says, Obi Plans to Exit Coalition (VIDEO) Falana, Shehu Sani, Others Blast Kemi Badenoch Over Claim on Nigerian Citizenship Laws Kenneth Okonkwo Slams Okpebholo for Threatening Peter ObiBabangida's Son Accepts Tinubu’s Appointment as BoA Chairman, Denies Rejection RumorsAlleged N80.2bn Fraud: Court Throws Out Yahaya Bello's Travel Request
X whatsapp