James Mtume.Photo: David Corio/Michael Ochs Archive/Getty Images
Grammy-winning songwriter and musician James Mtume died Sunday. He was 76 years old.
Lisa Lucas, the daughter of Mtume’s late frequent collaborator Reggie Lucas, alsoshared the sad news on Twitter, calling the musician her “honorary uncle.”
“So much loss. So much grief. Rest in power to Uncle Mtume,” shewrote. “My late father’s partner in crime, the co-creator of the songs of my life (and about my birth!). He was [an] essential part of the life of the man who made me, therefore me too. Gone now. He will be dearly, eternally missed.”
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According tothe bioon his website, Mtume later moved to the West Coast in the mid-1960s after earning a swimming scholarship to Pasadena City College. There, he got involved with the Black Power movement and joined The Organization Us, whose founder Maulana Karenga created Kwanzaa. It was around this time that he changed his last name to Mtume, which means “messenger” in Swahili.
After moving back east, Mtume took after his father and stepfather and rose to prominence as a jazz musician. From 1971 through 1975, he toured with jazz legend Miles Davis and his band as a percussionist.
Then, in 1978, he created his own R&B-jazz group, called Mtume, with Lucas as well as Tawatha Agee. They released five albums between then and 1986, becoming best known for “Juicy Fruit.” The song remained on theBillboard R&B chartfor 22 weeks and was later famously sampled on the Notorious B.I.G.’s hit “Juicy.”
James Mtume.Jamie McCarthy/WireImage
Mtume also penned the music for the film adaptation of James Baldwin’sNative Son. His other songwriting credits include Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway’s “The Closer I Get to You,” Mary J. Blige’s 1997 albumShare My Worldand Stephanie Mills' “Never Knew Love Like This Before,” which earned him and Lucas a Grammy Award for Best R&B Song.
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“Rest In Power to the great James Mtume,” Philadelphia DJ Cosmo Bakerwroteon Twitter. “The South Philly native & prodigal son, Jazz ROYALTY (the son of the great Jimmy Heath) and music trailblazer & pioneer. His passing is truly a monumental loss.”
“Rest In Peace to the legendary James Mtume,“addedBET host Marc Lamont Hill. “Thank you for sharing your tremendous gifts with us for so long…”
source: people.com
