Latest news with #MikeSumler
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Mike Sumler, Kool & the Gang Hype Man, Dies at 71
Mike Sumler, hype man of the Grammy Award-winning group Kool & the Gang, has died. He was 71. Sumler died in a car crash during Memorial Day weekend, according to Fox 5 Atlanta. The R&B group confirmed his death in a Wednesday post on X. More from The Hollywood Reporter Taylor Swift Buys Back Rights To Her First Six Albums Years After Scooter Braun Drama Who's Who in the Sean "Diddy" Combs Trial: Key Witnesses, Industry Enablers and Victims So Far Miley Cyrus Releases Ninth Album, 'Something Beautiful' 'We're deeply saddened to hear about the passing of our longtime wardrobe valet, Mike Sumler,' Kool & the Gang wrote. 'Mike worked alongside Kool & the Gang from 2000-2015, making sure the guys looked their best on stage every night. He also hyped the crowd with his energy and dance moves at the.' Sumler first crossed paths with the group in 1985 when he was performing with his own band, Power Pac. He looked back on the experience of meeting Kool & the Gang in a 2018 interview with Kelly Talk Show when he said that 'One of the Kool & the Gang security guys caught our act in the club in Chicago and we became friends.' He continued to travel with the group as their stylist-choreographer, but 'once they saw that I could do some other things, they said we need to have you onstage.' That's when Sumler joined the 'Get Down on It' hitmakers as their hype man; he went on to provide background vocals for their music. Kool & the Gang has earned three Grammy nominations and one win in 1979 for album of the year for their work on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. They received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2015 and were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last year. Best of The Hollywood Reporter Most Anticipated Concert Tours of 2025: Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and More Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025 Hollywood's Highest-Profile Harris Endorsements: Taylor Swift, George Clooney, Bruce Springsteen and More
7NEWS
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
Chicago Mike killed in crash: Kool & the Gang pay tribute to onstage hype man Michael Sumler
Music legend and longtime member of iconic R&B band Kool & the Gang, Michael Sumler has died aged 71. He was killed in a highway car crash at Mableton, in the US state of Georgia, on Sunday, the city Mayor Michael Owens said. 'We are saddened by the death of musician Mike Sumler. 'Chicago Mike' contributed so much to the music and entertainment communities. His style and energy added flare and excitement to Kool & the Gang for decades,' Owen s said. 'I join his friends, family and fans in mourning his loss.' Sumler, also known as 'Chicago Mike', recalled his first meeting with members of Kool & the Gang in 1985, in an interview on the Kelly Talk Show in 2018. Sumler said had been in his own band, Power Pac, before he met one of the Kool & the Gang security guards who introduced him to members of Kool & the Gang who were eager to immediately bring him on board. This was about 20 years after the group first formed as a jazz band known as the Jazziacs — by the late 80s, Kool & the Gang had transformed into a funk, pop, and R&B group in the peak of its popularity. It was already famous for hit songs Emergency, Too Hot, Celebration, Ladies Night, and Get Down On It. Sumler was initially brought on as the band's stylist and hype man, opening their shows with the dance moves and energy he became known for, but he also contributed as a backup singer and choreographer. Robert 'Kool' Bell, is the only surviving founding member of Kool & the Gang, which was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2024 Kool & the Gang also paid tribute to Sumler on X: 'We're deeply saddened to hear about the passing of our longtime wardrobe valet, Mike Sumler.' 'Mike worked alongside Kool & the Gang from 2000-2015, making sure the guys looked their best on stage every night. He also hyped the crowd with his energy and dance moves at the shows.'
