Rick James

Rick James was an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer, best known for being one of the popularizers of funk music in the late 1970s and early 1980s. His million-selling hits include "You and I", "Give It to Me Baby" and "Super Freak" which crossed him over to pop audiences and sold over three million copies.

James would produce successful recordings for other artists including Teena Marie, The Mary Jane Girls, The Temptations, Eddie Murphy and Smokey Robinson.

James started his singing career fronting doo-wop and rhythm and blues bands in his hometown of Buffalo. To avoid conscription after he dropped out of high school, James relocated to Canada wand formed the rock-soul fusion band Mynah Birds, whose lineup once included a young Neil Young.

In 1978, he released his first album, Come Get It!, which sold over a million copies at the time of its release. He would go on to score several popular hits on the pop and R&B charts. His best-selling album, Street Songs, was released in 1981 and sold over three million copies. James would serve a three-year sentence for assaulting two women while under the influence of cocaine. When he was released on parole in 1996, he resumed his musical career with the album, Urban Rapsody, in 1997. He would suffer a mild stroke during a concert in early 1998.

James would die, at the age of 56, in August 2004 from pulmonary failure and cardiac failure with his various health conditions of diabetes, stroke, a pacemaker, and a heart attack. He was buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York.