Rudolph Isley, the singer and founder of the legendary soul/funk band The Isley Brothers, has died at the age of 84. This is reported by the US celebrity portal “TMZ”. Accordingly, Isley probably died of a heart attack in Illinois on Wednesday. However, according to the report, the cause of death has not yet been officially confirmed.
Together with his brothers O’Kelly (1937-1986) and Ronald (82), Rudolph founded the band as a teenager in the 1950s. A short time later, her fourth brother Vernon (1942-1955) joined them, but he was hit by a car while cycling in 1955 at the age of 13 and died. From New York, the trio conquered the hearts of soul and funk fans in the United States of America from the 1960s onwards. The younger brothers Ernie (71) and Marvin (56) as well as Rudolph’s brother-in-law Chris Jasper (71) later joined the band.
Her best-known songs include classics like “Twist
The group is still active today, but currently only consists of Ronald and Ernie Isley. They most recently released their album “Power of Peace” in 2017 together with guitar legend Santana (76). Many hip-hop fans will also be familiar with songs by The Isley Brothers, for example Ice Cube (54) sampled in “It Was a Good Day” or Notorious B.I.G. (1972-1997) in “Big Poppa” well-known melodies of the soul and funk icons.
