 |
Larry Blackmon | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Laurence Ernest Blackmon |
| Born | May 29, 1956 New York City, New York, United States |
| Genres | R&B, soul, funk, disco |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, bass guitar, drums, percussion |
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Labels | Chocolate City, Atlanta Artists, Mercury, Reprise, Way 2 Funky, Raging Bull, Crash, Private I |
Larry Ernest Blackmon (born May 29, 1956) is an American vocalist and musician, known as the lead singer, founder and frontman of the funk and R&B band Cameo.
Musical career
Starting the band "East Coast", Blackmon formed the "New York City Players" as a complement to the Ohio Players. Having to rename the group because of a conflict, Blackmon later called the group Cameo. Blackmon lived in Harlem and played drums on several hits for the band Black Ivory. He is the son of Lee Black, a former boxer. Along with his unique vocal style, Blackmon's other personal touches included sporting an elaborate hi-top fade haircut and a codpiece over his pants. His signature "Ow!" was used as the intro for some of the band's songs. The group Cameo appeared at Adventureland Palace, sponsored by Black Pride Inc., on April 26, 1978. Blackmon founded Atlanta-based funk quartet CA$HFLOW, which had a hit with "Mine All Mine" in 1986.
Guest appearances
Blackmon appeared as a backing vocalist on Ry Cooder's 1987 album Get Rhythm and Cyndi Lauper's 1989 album A Night to Remember. He also had co-producer credits on Eddie Murphy's 1989 album So Happy. The snare drum sound that Blackmon created for " Word Up!" and " Candy" was duplicated on releases by a wide range of artists. [1]
Personal life
One of Blackmon's sons is heavily involved in the New York political scene, [2] while another son is currently involved in the hip hop music industry.[ citation needed]
See also
References
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
  | This article about a singer-songwriter from the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1956 births
- Living people
- American rhythm and blues musicians
- Singer-songwriters from New York (state)
- Record producers from New York (state)
- Musicians from Manhattan
- People from Harlem
- African-American male singer-songwriters
- American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters
- 20th-century African-American male singers
- 20th-century American male singers
- 20th-century American singers
- American singer-songwriter stubs