Latest news with #RoyAyers
Washington Post
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Everybody vibed with Roy Ayers
There's a kind of hip, laid-back, feel-good mood that we call 'vibing.' The vibraphone isn't the source of that slang term, but the instrument has a strong claim on epitomizing it anyway. Its metallic, resonant sound is so inherently cool and mellow that even its lightning-fast virtuosos — mainly in jazz, where the vibes most often appear — sound more chilled-out than they really are. Roy Ayers, who died March 4 at 84, understood this perhaps better than any other vibraphonist. He had the chops to run rings around many of his peers, and he did just that as a sideman on some of the hardest-grooving soul jazz of the 1960s. But when he broke through in the '70s as a name artist and as a crossover jazz-funk hitmaker, it was as the metaphoric ice cube in a hot drink. In doing so, Ayers taught us all how to vibe. You can hear it in his breakthrough record, the soundtrack to the 1973 blaxploitation classic 'Coffy.' All the requirements for blazing-hot funk to break out are there in the movie's theme: energetic drums, slippery bass, percussive guitar and horns. Yet there sits Ayers, putting tranquil chords into the rhythmic accents, keeping the whole thing at a simmer rather than a boil. (Even his solo, which carries a lot of oomph, goes down with the cool sensation of a rainfall.) As Ayers's star rose, so did the cool in his music; the simmer went down. By the time of his signature hit, 1976's 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine,' he had mastered it so thoroughly that the song didn't need a vibraphone solo: Even the instrument's accents are barely noticeable, washed out in the mix by guitar and Fender Rhodes. Yet the mellowness they brought to Ayers's music is the whole ballgame. And look how Ayers described the atmosphere surrounding the tune's creation: 'The sun was down, but the vibe in the studio was really nice,' he told the Guardian in 2017. 'Pure vibes.' He knew what he and his instrument represented when they came together. It translated easily to Ayers's other landmark tunes, such as 1976's 'Searching' — which even restored the burning horns that 'Sunshine' stripped out but achieved a similarly chill result. The next year's 'Running Away' brought Ayers a genuine dance club hit, the kind that merited a longer version on a 12-inch record. Those are the versions where we really expect the song's kinetic energy to throttle up to 11. Instead, though, the big feature of 'Running Away's' extended mix is … a vibraphone solo. It plays right into the groove, offering a lyrical complement to the propulsive rhythm. But make no mistake: It's a coolant, and it feels like one. Ayers tapped into a tremendous power when he put the chill-out into funk and dance music. There's a reason that version of him became a musical and cultural force. His recordings are part of the foundation of contemporary R&B and hip-hop. The likes of Jay-Z, a Tribe Called Quest, Mary J. Blige and Jill Scott have all woven samples of Ayers's tracks into their own. 'Sunshine' alone is a cottage industry; 'Searching' isn't far behind. When the jazz-rap pioneer Guru wanted to create that vibe, he bypassed the samples and got the man himself. Ayers appeared on the seminal 1993 hip-hop album 'Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1' and subsequently toured with Guru. In all cases, Ayers's presence comes with a mission to turn the temperature of the music down — to create a vibe. Ayers's vibe was one that never ceased to be relevant. In 2018 he even landed the gig that's become the signifier of musical-cultural relevance in the United States: an NPR Tiny Desk concert. Then 77 years old, Ayers was flanked by a much younger trio of jazz-, funk- and hip-hop-schooled musicians. In his hands, though, they were slowed-down, relaxed, riding a gentle groove. They were vibing.
MTV Lebanon
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- MTV Lebanon
Roy Ayers, Everybody Loves the Sunshine musician, dies at 84
Influential soul, jazz and funk producer and composer Roy Ayers has died at the age of 84. In a statement posted on Facebook, his family said: "It is with great sadness that the family of legendary vibraphonist, composer, and producer Roy Ayers announce his passing which occurred on March 4 2025 in New York City after a long illness." They described him as "highly influential and sought after as a music collaborator." Ayers' own biggest hit was the mellow track Everybody Loves the Sunshine, which was covered by artists like d'Angelo and sampled by others including Mary J Blige and Tyler, the Creator. But he was so much more than his best-known record. A pioneer of nu-soul and jazz funk, he was a key figure in the 90s acid jazz movement. Happy and Blurred Lines singer Pharrell Williams has described him as one of his greatest musical inspirations. Ayers had a huge influence on many RnB and hip-hop stars, particularly in the 90s, with artists like Tribe Called Quest, Mary J Blige and Jill Scott sampling his earlier work on tracks like Bonita Applebaum, My Life and Watching Me. He also worked with Guru and The Roots. Erykah Badu called him "the king of neo soul". More recently, Calvin Harris told BBC Radio 2 that Ayers "just stood out, his music is amazing and just so intricate... everything just sounds so rich and warm". Ayers performed at Glastonbury several times; his last performance there was in 2019. He also wrote and produced the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film Coffy starring Pam Grier. Ayers could play several instruments, including the flute and trumpet but he became synonymous with the vibraphone, a percussion instrument that looks similar to a xylophone but has a set of metal bars rather than wood. His other hits include Running Away and Searchin', with his band Roy Ayers Ubiquity, who were also behind Everybody Loves the Sunshine.
Los Angeles Times
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Roy Ayers, jazz-soul legend whose music was heavily sampled by younger artists, dies at 84
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.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Roy Ayers, a jazz legend who influenced hip-hop and R&B musicians, dies at 84
NEW YORK (AP) — Roy Ayers, a legendary jazz vibraphonist, keyboardist, composer and vocalist known for his spacy, funky 1976 hit 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine' that has been sampled by such R&B and rap heavyweights as Mary J. Blige, N.W.A., Dr. Dre, 2Pac, Mos Def and Ice Cube, has died. He was 84. The Ayers family said in a Facebook post that he died Tuesday in New York City after suffering from a long illness. 'He lived a beautiful 84 years and will be sorely missed,' it said. Ayers had 12 albums land in the Billboard 200 album charts, the highest being 'You Send Me' in 1978 at No. 48. His 'The Best of Roy Ayers' spend 50 weeks on the Contemporary Jazz Album chart. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. His music never went out of style, appearing in the 2019 'Queen & Slim: The Soundtrack.' His song 'Running Away' propelled A Tribe Called Quest's 1989 opus 'Description of a Fool,' and the song was sampled by Big Daddy Kane and Common. Ayers was heard on Tyler, the Creator's album 'Cherry Bomb' and Erykah Badu's 'Mama's Gun.' 'Well, I have more sampled hits than anybody," he said in a 2004 interview with Wax Poetics magazine. "I might not have more samples than James Brown, but I've had more sampled hits. Oh, man, and there's a few I don't know about.' One of Ayers' most popular albums was "Lifeline," which peaked at No. 9 on what has become the Top R&B/Hip-hop chart in 1977 and contained the hit 'Running Away,' which peaked at No. 19 on the R&B chart and became a massive club hit. During a visit to Johannesburg in 2017, Ayers offered some rhythmic advice for youth in the city's Soweto area: Get serious, be inspired, rap on, keep on and 'eventually you'll get it.' 'You guys, you have to pick your plateau. Get serious about everything,' said Ayers. He also named a few musicians who have inspired him: Nigerian Fela Kuti ('he was really like a genius'), Herbie Mann ('he taught me the business') and Miles Davis ('He was the coolest. He was the grandmaster. He was out of sight'). After debuting on record with hard bop tenor saxophonist Curtis Amy's group in 1962, he teamed with jazz flutist Mann to record three albums for Atlantic Records — 'Virgo Vibes,' 'Stoned Soul Picnic' and 'Daddy Bug' — and wrote and produced the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film 'Coffy' starring Pam Grier. He also moved on to work with David 'Fathead' Newman, the tenor mainstay of Ray Charles' great '60s orchestra. In 2017, he appeared alongside such acts as Tom Petty, the Shins, Alabama Shakes, Charles Bradley and William Bell at the eclectic Arroyo Seco Festival in Los Angeles. Ayers is survived by his wife Argerie, and their children Mtume and Ayana Ayers.
The Independent
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Roy Ayers, a jazz legend who influenced hip-hop and R&B musicians, dies at 84
Roy Ayers, a legendary jazz vibraphonist, keyboardist, composer and vocalist known for his spacy, funky 1976 hit 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine' that has been sampled by such R&B and rap heavyweights as Mary J. Blige, N.W.A., Dr. Dre, 2Pac, Mos Def and Ice Cube, has died. He was 84. The Ayers family said in a Facebook post that he died Tuesday in New York City after suffering from a long illness. 'He lived a beautiful 84 years and will be sorely missed,' it said. Ayers had 12 albums land in the Billboard 200 album charts, the highest being 'You Send Me' in 1978 at No. 48. His 'The Best of Roy Ayers' spend 50 weeks on the Contemporary Jazz Album chart. His music never went out of style, appearing in the 2019 'Queen & Slim: The Soundtrack.' His song 'Running Away' propelled A Tribe Called Quest's 1989 opus 'Description of a Fool,' and the song was sampled by Big Daddy Kane and Common. Ayers was heard on Tyler, the Creator's album 'Cherry Bomb' and Erykah Badu's 'Mama's Gun.' 'Well, I have more sampled hits than anybody," he said in a 2004 interview with Wax Poetics magazine. "I might not have more samples than James Brown, but I've had more sampled hits. Oh, man, and there's a few I don't know about.' One of Ayers' most popular albums was "Lifeline," which peaked at No. 9 on what has become the Top R&B/Hip-hop chart in 1977 and contained the hit 'Running Away,' which peaked at No. 19 on the R&B chart and became a massive club hit. During a visit to Johannesburg in 2017, Ayers offered some rhythmic advice for youth in the city's Soweto area: Get serious, be inspired, rap on, keep on and 'eventually you'll get it.' 'You guys, you have to pick your plateau. Get serious about everything,' said Ayers. He also named a few musicians who have inspired him: Nigerian Fela Kuti ('he was really like a genius'), Herbie Mann ('he taught me the business') and Miles Davis ('He was the coolest. He was the grandmaster. He was out of sight'). After debuting on record with hard bop tenor saxophonist Curtis Amy's group in 1962, he teamed with jazz flutist Mann to record three albums for Atlantic Records — 'Virgo Vibes,' 'Stoned Soul Picnic' and 'Daddy Bug' — and wrote and produced the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film 'Coffy' starring Pam Grier. He also moved on to work with David 'Fathead' Newman, the tenor mainstay of Ray Charles' great '60s orchestra. In 2017, he appeared alongside such acts as Tom Petty, the Shins, Alabama Shakes, Charles Bradley and William Bell at the eclectic Arroyo Seco Festival in Los Angeles. Ayers is survived by his wife Argerie, and their children Mtume and Ayana Ayers.
