Roy Ayers died at 84 – American composer
Biography and cause of death of Roy Ayers
American vibraphonist, record producer, and composer Roy Ayers lived from September 10, 1940, until March 4, 2025. In the early 1960s, Ayers released several recordings as a post-bop jazz musician with Atlantic Records. In the 1970s, he joined Polydor Records and helped pioneer jazz-funk. Some have called him “The Godfather of Neo Soul” because of his prominent role in acid jazz. His 1970s chart-topping songs include “Everybody Loves the Sunshine,” “Lifeline,” and “No Stranger to Love,” among others.
Ayers was once said to be one of the artists whose songs were sampled by rappers the most.
Roy Ayers: Personal biography
Ayers came into this world in Los Angeles on September 10, 1940. He came from a musical household; both his parents were musicians. His dad played trombone, and Mom played piano. His first vibraphone mallets were handed to him by Lionel Hampton when he was five years old. The South Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, where Ayers was born and raised, subsequently changed its name to South Central and was the epicenter of the Black music scene in Southern California. Thomas Jefferson High School, where he was a student, was pivotal in the development of the jazz scene on Central Avenue.
Ayers was a member of the church choir and the lead singer/guitarist/pianist for the Latin Lyrics band when he was a high school student. Many accomplished artists, including Dexter Gordon, graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School, where he was a student. It was Ayers’ third kid.
During his career, Ayers began recording in 1962 as a sideman for bebop bands. He collaborated with saxophonist Curtis Amy on his first studio album, West Coast Vibes, in 1963. He became famous after leaving Los Angeles City College in 1966 to play with jazz flautist Herbie Mann.
Roy Ayers Ubiquity was the name of Ayers’s solo band, which he founded in the early 1970s. The term “ubiquity” refers to the idea of being present in every place at once.
Ayers composed the excellent score for the 1973 blaxploitation film Coffy, directed by Jack Hill and starring Pam Grier. In the same year’s Idaho Transfer, he portrayed Elgin. Songs like “Evolution” and “Brother Green (The Disco King)”—which became underground disco hits—and the title tune from his 1976 studio album Everybody Loves the Sunshine showcase his transition from a jazz-funk style to R&B on his 1975 album Mystic Voyage.
In 1976, Roy Ayers
Come into Knowledge, RAMP’s 1977 album, was produced by Ayers. That autumn, his single “Running Away” reached number one.
The title track of Ayers’s 1980 studio album No Stranger to Love was sampled in “Watching Me” by Jill Scott in 2000 from her debut studio album Who Is Jill Scott?: Words and Sounds Vol. 1. The single “Don’t Stop the Feeling” was the leadoff single from the album and the only top ten single for Ayers. It was released in late 1979.
One of the most famous performers in Africa, Fela Kuti, and Afrobeat pioneer Ayers went on a six-week tour of Nigeria in the late 1970s. Phonodisk published Music of Many Colors in Nigeria in 1980, with Ayers’ ensemble and Africa ’70 on opposite sides.
For Sylvia Striplin’s 1981 studio album Give Me Your Love (Uno Melodic Records, 1981), Ayers served as producer. In the same year, he collaborated with William Henry Allen, the bassist for James Bedford and Bill Ayers, to create a studio album titled Africa, Center of the World on Polydor Records. With “Intro/The River Niger” playing, Allen had a conversation with his daughter. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s Sigma Sound Studios served as the album’s recording location.
His 1984 Columbia Records studio album, In the Dark, was produced by Stanley Clarke (the bassist) and released that year. Along with other songs on the album, the 12″ single “Love Is in the Feel” pioneered the usage of a LinnDrum, an instrument that became immensely popular among pop and jazz-funk artists from 1982 to 1985. Disc jockey Robbie Vincent of BBC Radio 1 in the United Kingdom did a lot of advertising for Ayers’ music around this period.
John “Jellybean” Benitez produced “Love Will Save the Day” by Whitney Houston from her second multi-platinum studio album Whitney, and Ayers played a solo on the track. Arista Records released the song in July 1988.
Japan, Australia, England, and various regions of Europe are among the many countries where Ayers has performed live before crowds numbering in the millions.
When asked about the continued presence of the “happy feeling,” Ayers famously said, “I like that happy feeling all of the time,” which helped popularize feel-good music in the 1970s. That is just my nature; therefore, I do my best to create it. This permeates all of his musical creations, from funk and salsa to jazz, rock, soul, and hip-hop.
Roy Ayers beginning in the 1990s and ending with his death
At the 2011 Perth, Australia, concert, Ayers.
Ichiban Records, a hip-hop label, published two studio albums by Ayers in 1992: Drive and Wake Up. He was reportedly extremely close to Rick James, with whom he worked on an album.
Ayers contributed vibraphone to the 1993 album Guru’s Jazzmatazz Vol. 1’s track “Take a Look (At Yourself).”. He appeared on Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool, a compilation CD put out by the Red Hot Organization the following year. Designed to bring attention to and financial assistance for the African-American community’s fight against the AIDS pandemic, the record was hailed as “Album of the Year” by Time magazine.
In the 2000s and 2010s, Ayers dabbled with house music, teaming up with veterans like Kerri Chandler and Masters at Work.
Ayers established Gold Mink Records and Uno Melodic as record labels. The former put out many studio albums, one of which was Sylvia Striplin’s, while the latter disbanded after just a handful of singles.
Ayers gave listeners a chance to hear tracks that didn’t make it into the legendary Polydor albums from his more successful years with the 2004 release of Virgin Ubiquity: Unreleased Recordings 1976–1981.
On his 2004 album Mahogany Vibes, he collaborated with several performers, including soul vocalist Erykah Badu.
The fictional radio station “Fusion FM” was hosted by Ayers in Grand Theft Auto IV (2008).
The song “Find Your Wings” from Tyler, the Creator’s 2015 album Cherry Bomb features his vibraphone playing. Up until 2023, he kept performing live.
Iconic vibraphonist, composer and producer Roy Ayers has died at 84, his family announces
— Phil Lewis (@phillewis.bsky.social) 2025-03-06T01:15:25.225Z
Roy Ayers life
The Ayers were wed in the early 1970s and went on to have three children with his wife, Argerie. From a previous relationship, he also has a son named Nabil Ayers, who is a writer. Prior to his death, his daughter Ayana had been overseeing his affairs.
Ayers passed away in New York City on March 4, 2025, after a protracted illness. He was 84 years old.
Roy Ayers Accolades and sway
The Roy Ayers Project is a documentary that has been in the works for quite some time. It features Ayers and other musicians who have sampled his music or were somehow inspired by him. The Roy Ayers Project is now known as “Roy Ayers Connection,” a name change that better reflects its focus on Roy Ayers and his many connections.
One of Pharrell Williams’ major musical influences is Roy Ayers.
The Congress of Racial Equality bestowed its Lifetime Achievement Award on Ayers.