James brown cause of death
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James Brown
American musician (1933–2006)
This article is about the American singer. For other people named James Brown, see James Brown (disambiguation).
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, and musician. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by various nicknames, among them "Mr. Dynamite", "the Hardest-Working Man in Show Business", "Minister of New Super Heavy Funk", "Godfather of Soul", "King of Soul", and "Soul Brother No. 1".[1] In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres.[2] Brown was one of the first ten inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 23, 1986. His music has been heavily sampled by hip-hop musicians and other artists.[3]
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia.[4] He rose to prominence in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd.[5][6]
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James Brown
(1933-2006)
Who Was James Brown?
James Brown worked his way to the top of the funk and R&B music earning the moniker "The Godfather of Soul." His unique vocal and musical style influenced many artists. Brown was also known for his turbulent personal life, as well as his social activism, both in his songwriting ("America is My Home," "Black and Proud") and advocating the benefits of education to schoolchildren.
Early Life
James Joe Brown Jr. on May 3, 1933, in a one-room shack in the woods of Barnwell, South Carolina, a few miles east of the Georgia border. His parents split when he was very young, and at the age of 4, Brown was sent to Augusta, Georgia, to live with his Aunt Honey, the madam of a brothel. Growing up in abject poverty during the Great Depression, a young Brown worked whatever odd jobs he could find, for literal pennies. He danced for the soldiers at nearby Fort Gordon, picked cotton, washed cars and shined shoes.
Brown later recalled his impoverished childhood: "I started shining shoes at 3 cents, then
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James Brown
Worldwide, he has been the number one force in the music industry, the biggest cat indeed, the Godfather of Soul, the one and only James Brown. His career as entertainer and songwriter stretches back to another era of music; when soul songs and performances were just beginning to "cross over" from the more traditional rhythm and blues charts to the pop entries.
Two-time Grammy Award winner and inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Brown's initial recordings helped move rhythm and blues music into the mainstream. Interestingly, despite the fact that he is the writer of virtually every song he recorded, Brown is still principally known as a concert performer, singer and recording artist.
As an artist/composer, Brown is regarded as having been an influential factor in the careers of many headline-writer-performers of the day, including Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Prince, M.C. Hammer and Sting, among many others.
As a singer, Brown's style evolved over the years but never strayed from his roots in gospel and soul music. He achieved a wide
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