Esteemed members of the music trade are talking out after the dying of legendary artist Harry Belafonte on Tuesday, April 25, on the age of 96. Motown founder Berry Gordy will at all times keep in mind his late pal’s profession achievements and his lifelong humanitarian work.
“My pal, Harry Belafonte, was actually a person of trigger, conviction and precept,” he mentioned in a press release to Closer. “Besides being an amazing entertainer, he was a significant political activist throughout the Civil Rights Movement. I nonetheless keep in mind the day in 1968 when Harry and I marched aspect by aspect on the Poor People’s March to Freedom. He can be missed, and my honest condolences exit to his household.”
Belafonte died at his New York house from congestive coronary heart failure, his publicist, Ken Sunshine, confirmed to The New York Times. The late Grammy Award-winning musician acquired an outpouring of tributes from followers, buddies and colleagues on social media following the information of his passing.
Bernice King, the youngest youngster of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, took to Twitter to share a childhood reminiscence of the late performer.
“When I used to be a toddler, #HarryBelafonte confirmed up for my household in very compassionate methods,” the lawyer captioned a photograph of Belafonte at her father’s memorial in 1968. “In reality, he paid for the babysitter for me and my siblings. Here he’s mourning with my mom on the funeral service for my father at Morehouse College. I received’t neglect … Rest effectively, sir.”
For Belafonte, activism was at all times on the forefront of his profession, even when his music took off within the ‘50s with the discharge of his Calypso album.
“The portion of my life that’s of significance to me has to do with my activism,” the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee as soon as mentioned, per The Dallas Morning News. “I’ve usually responded to queries that ask, ‘When as an artist did you determine to turn out to be an activist?’ My response to the query is that I used to be an activist lengthy earlier than I grew to become an artist. They each service one another, however the activism is first.”
Belafonte is survived by his spouse, Pamela Frank, who was by his aspect on the time of his dying. The “King of Calypso” was a dad to children Adrienne and Shari from his first marriage to Marguerite Byrd and David and Gina from his second marriage to Julie Robinson.
