Kool & The Gang drummer George “Funky” Brown has died. He was 74.
According to TMZ, the band’s founding member died from Stage 4 lung cancer at his home in Los Angeles Thursday.
A spokesperson for Brown told TMZ that donations can be made in his honor to the Lung Cancer Foundation of America.
Brown discussed his sickness last month with KCAL News, saying that he had recovered for a brief time and was ready to perform again.
However, his cancer returned earlier this year and he was forced to pull out of touring.
“We’d join hands, and you’d say to yourself, ‘Let’s go make some people happy,’ ” Brown noted to the outlet, adding that to those struggling with cancer, “Don’t give up, never give up.”
Brown co-wrote many of the R&B group’s hit songs, including “Ladies’ Night,” “Too Hot,” “Jungle Boogie,” “Celebration” and “Cherish.”
Kool & The Gang was formed in 1964 in New Jersey. Brown performed alongside brothers Robert Bell and Ronald Bell, Dennis Thomas, Robert Mickens, Ricky West and Claydes “Charles” Smith.
Kool & The Gang won two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2015.
Their eponymous debut album dropped in 1969 when they scored their first recording deal with De-Lite Records.
In 1973, their fourth record, “Wild and Peaceful,” was the one that shot them into instant worldwide fame.
Hit tracks on the album included “Jungle Boogie” and “Hollywood Swinging.” Other iconic tunes the group released included “Ladies’ Night” (1979), “Celebrate!” (1980) and “Emergency” (1984).
Brown is survived by his wife, Hanh Brown, and their five children.
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