Roy Ayers, jazz-soul legend whose music was heavily sampled by younger artists, dies at 84

Los Angeles Times

06-03-2025

Roy Ayers, the 'King of Neo Soul' who was born and raised on Vernon Avenue just south of downtown Los Angeles and saw more than 60 of his songs sampled by a who's who of hip-hop and soul artists, died Wednesday in New York. The bandleader and vibraphonist was 84.
'It is with great sadness that the family of legendary vibraphonist, composer and producer Roy Ayers announce his passing which occurred on March 4th, 2025 in New York City after a long illness,' his family said late Tuesday in a statement on social media. 'He lived a beautiful 84 years and will be sorely missed. His family ask that you respect their privacy at this time, a celebration of Roy's life will be forthcoming.'
'I grew up listening to the legendary Roy Ayers,' former Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday on X. ''Everybody Loves the Sunshine' is one of my favorite songs, and it has scored some of the most important moments in my life. When Doug [Emhoff] and I were dating, one of the first things Cole [Emhoff] and I bonded over was our love for Roy Ayers.'
Ayers' 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine,' a minor hit when first issued, has been a Southern California anthem since its release in 1976. The longevity of the jazz-driven soul song is largely due to its use in hip-hop and soul tracks, with snippets of the song sampled by Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, J Dilla, 2Pac, J. Cole and dozens of others.
Hundreds of other artists including Tyler, the Creator, Jill Scott and Madlib sampled Ayers, earning him a vaunted place among music producers and DJs. His work in the 1970s as bandleader of the six-piece band Roy Ayers Ubiquity helped spawn the subgenre called acid jazz.
'If I didn't have music, I wouldn't even want to be here,' Ayers told The Times in 2011. 'It's like an escape when there is no escape. An escape for temporary moments.' He said he was happy that he never asked anyone to sample his music, though he thought at the time that about 60 artists had done so.
'They just started doing it,' he said. 'It's been wonderful hearing people put their own spin on my sounds.'
Roy Edwards Ayers was born Sept. 10, 1940, in south Los Angeles to a musical family — dad played trombone, mom played piano. He was raised against the backdrop of the storied Central Avenue Jazz scene during the 1940s and '50s. The area (known then as South Park) was a relatively peaceful beacon of African American culture, fostering luminaries including revered musicians Dexter Gordon and Charles Mingus.
Ayers told The Times in 2011 how as a 5-year-old in the crowd at the Paramount Theater he received his first set of mallets from the great Lionel Hampton. 'At the time, my mother and father told me he laid some spiritual vibes on me,' Ayers said. They became his weapon of choice after picking up the vibraphone as a Thomas Jefferson High School student at age 17.
Ayers released his debut album, 'West Coast Vibes,' in 1962. He relocated to New York City in 1966 after he dropped out of Los Angeles City College and began touring with flute player Herbie Mann.
With Argerie Ayers, whom he married in 1973, the musician had son Mtume and daughter Ayana, who later became his manager. He also had a son, writer Nabil Ayers, with ballerina-turned-waitress Louise Braufman.
As a bandleader, Ayers' albums include 20 studio records, nine collaborative releases and six live ones. He released 17 singles, primarily in the 1970s and 1980s, including 'Don't Stop the Feeling,' 'Hot,' 'Running Away,' 'Get on Up, Get on Down' and 'In the Dark.'
He did the soundtrack to the Blaxploitation movie 'Coffy,' which was co-written by its star Pam Grier and director Jack Hall. Quentin Tarantino's Vista Theater retro cafe, Pam's Coffy, pays homage to the 1973 project, and Tarantino used the music from 'Coffy' in his 1997 Grier film 'Jackie Brown.'
'The president of PolyGram came to me in 1973 and said, 'Roy, can you do a soundtrack?' I said, 'Of course.' I had never done a soundtrack in my life,' he told musician Stephen Titmus in 2014. 'So they sent me out to California and showed me the movie and showed me everything I had to do and I did it.' His experience working with big bands made for easy work, he said.
Ayers' career got a significant revival in the 1990s when, during hip-hop's Golden Era, sample-minded emcees plumbed his ample catalog and worked his music into theirs. His 'King of Neo Soul' title came from singer-songwriter Erykah Badu, one of the artists who partnered with him on his 2004 record 'Mahogany Vibe.'
'I wrote the song because I felt it,' Ayers told The Times in 2020 via email when asked about the place of 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine' in Southern California culture. 'Perhaps because it is sunny and lovely out on the West Coast, that came through.'
Times deputy editor Nate Jackson and former staff writer Randall Roberts contributed to this report.