Jellybean Johnson, founding drummer of Prince’s band The Time and Minneapolis Sound architect, dies immediately at 69.

Jellybean Johnson’s household confirmed the devastating information that the legendary musician handed away unexpectedly on Friday night, marking the top of an period for Minneapolis music historical past.

The 69-year-old drummer, born Garry George Johnson, served because the rhythmic basis for one among Prince’s most celebrated musical tasks, The Time. His loss of life comes simply days after celebrating his birthday on November 19, including a very heartbreaking component to the loss.

Johnson’s musical journey started within the late Nineteen Seventies when he joined forces with future superstars Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis within the band Flyte Tyme.

This early collaboration would show instrumental in growing what turned identified worldwide because the Minneapolis Sound – a revolutionary fusion of funk, rock and soul that dominated the music panorama all through the Nineteen Eighties.

When Prince assembled The Time in 1981, Johnson turned the group’s sole drummer, a place he maintained all through the band’s varied incarnations, together with Morris Day and the Time and the Original 7ven.

His distinctive drumming model helped outline the group’s signature sound on classics like “Jungle Love” and “The Bird.”

Beyond his work behind the equipment, Johnson demonstrated outstanding versatility as a guitarist and producer. His manufacturing credit embody Janet Jackson‘s chart-topping 1990 single “Black Cat,” which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The musician’s affect prolonged into Hollywood when he appeared as a fictionalized model of himself within the iconic 1984 movie “Purple Rain,” serving to deliver The Time’s electrifying stage presence to the large display screen alongside Prince.

Johnson’s dedication to preserving musical historical past led him to determine the Minneapolis Sound Museum alongside his spouse and daughter.

The establishment serves as a everlasting tribute to the cultural motion that put Minneapolis on the worldwide music map, with followers capable of be taught extra and contribute by the museum’s web site.

The drummer’s legacy encompasses not solely his technical prowess however his position as an architect of a sound that influenced numerous artists throughout a number of genres.

His work with Prince and The Time helped set up Minneapolis as a reliable music capital, rivaling conventional facilities like Nashville, Los Angeles and New York.

Related