LOS ANGELES — Rapper and actor Heavy D, who played an
influential role in shaping rap music in the late ’80s and early ’90s
with a fusion of New Jack Swing and reggae, has died. He was 44.
Heavy
D, who was born Dwight Arrington Myers, died Tuesday in the emergency
room at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after collapsing on
the walkway outside his Beverly Hills home, according to law enforcement
sources. The Los Angeles County coroner’s office is investigating the
cause of death.
Myers, who was 6-foot-3 and
weighed more than 300 pounds at one point, anointed himself the
“Overweight Lover,” but he had slimmed down in recent years.
He
burst on the scene in the late 1980s as the front man of the hip-hop
group Heavy D and the Boyz, which he formed with neighborhood friends
Eddie F (Edward Ferrel), G-Whiz (Glen Parrish) and Trouble T-Roy (Troy
Dixon).
The Boyz were the first group signed to
burgeoning Uptown Records, and their 1987 debut, “Living Large,” reached
the No. 10 spot on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
Their
1989 album “Big Tyme” went platinum and yielded the hits “We Got Our
Own Thang,” “Somebody For Me” and “Gyrlz, They Love Me.”
They
went on to release three more albums and recorded the theme songs for
the TV shows “In Living Color” and “MADtv” before Myers embarked on a
solo career.
Born May 24, 1967, in Jamaica, Myers
was the youngest of six children. His mother Eulah, a nurse, and father,
Clifford, a film technician, moved the family to Mount Vernon, N.Y.,
when he was young.
He found success in the music
industry despite having dropped out of school after the eighth grade.
Myers garnered praise for his radio-friendly, playful flows and was
embraced as an unlikely sex symbol by female fans who called him a “big
teddy bear.”
Suave and profane-free in his raps,
Myers was often heralded as the “Barry White of rap” — an image he
played up on hits such as “Mr. Big Stuff,” “Big Daddy” and “The
Overweight Lover’s in the House.” But by no means did he consider
himself soft.
“I’m not one of those pop guys.
That’s for wimps like Vanilla Ice,” he told the Los Angeles Times in
1991. “I aim my music at the hip black, hip-hop audience. In my kind of
rap, I like to make these statements — like rapping (about) sexism and
paying tribute to black women or raising consciousness of kids about the
ghetto. Making those statements and being heard — that’s one of the
best things about being a rapper.”
It wasn’t long
before industry players wanted to tap into his charm. Heavy D landed on a
remix of Janet Jackson’s hit single “Alright,” and he went on to lend a
verse to Michael Jackson’s 1992 smash “Jam.” He also collaborated with
Cee-Lo, Q-Tip, Quincy Jones and B.B. King.
“I am
in total disbelief. … I was so blessed to not only meet him, but to
collaborate with him,” said R&B singer Brandy, who teamed with Myers
on a remake of Michael Jackson’s “Rock With You” for Jones’ 1995 “Q’s
Jook Joint.”
Myers joined Sean “Puffy” Combs,
Jermaine Dupri, Suge Knight, Dallas Austin and Russell Simmons as moguls
who were able to transform street credibility into boardroom positions.
In 1997 he was appointed president and chief executive of the label
that launched his career and had gone on to become a well-oiled machine
of New Jack Swing — which placed R&B melodies over hard-knocking
hip-hop beats — with artists Jodeci, Mary J. Blige and Monifah. Myers
was then promoted to senior vice president for Universal Music.
Later
he focused on a successful acting career which included film roles in
“The Cider House Rules,” “Life” and the recently released “Tower Heist.”
He was also featured in recent episodes of “Law&Order SVU” and
“Tyler Perry’s House of Payne.” Myers received a 2006 NAACP Spirit Award
for his starring role as a Vietnam veteran in the play “Medal of Honor
Rag.” He also earned a Drama Desk Award nomination for his 1995 starring
role in the off-Broadway play “Riff Raff.”
In September, Myers digitally released his ninth and final album, “Love Opus.”
Myers’ survivors include a daughter.
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©2011 the Los Angeles Times
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Heavy D’s last televised performance at the 2011 BET Hip-Hop Awards:
