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James Brown

James Brown was born on May 3, 1933 in Barnwell, South Carolina. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was around five years old and lived in one of his aunt’s brothels. He was only enrolled in school until the sixth grade.

He would sing in talent shows as young child, making an appearance at Augusta’a Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad “So Long”. Brown became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five perform “Caldonia”. Brown would become an American singer, songwriter, dancer,musician ,record producer, and bandleader. Often referred to as the “Godfather of Soul” and ” Mr. Dynamite”.

brown officially began his career being a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia . In the 1950s, Brown rose to national public attention as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a R&B group founded by Bobby Byrd. He would later pen chart topping ballards such as “Please, Please ” and “Try Me”. Brown became known as the hardest working man in show business as a tireless performer. His dedication and perfection to performing garnered him success during the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apolloand hit singles such as “PAPA’S Got a Brand New Bag”, “I Got You (I feel Good)” and “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World”. A;sp during the 1960s, Brown peenned a social justice hit “Say it Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud”. He had created  his own henre of the funk sound after forming of the J.B.s by the 1970s with records such as “Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine” and ” The Payback”.

In a career that lasted over 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first ten inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986. He recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2012 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall Of Fame. Among the honors, brown is listed as the most sampled artist of all time. He ranked seventh on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. Brown countinued to perform and record until his death from peneumonia in 2006.