Heavy D, whose real name was Dwight A. Myers, was a highly respected icon in the Hip Hop/ Entertainment Industry. His contributions to the game in the late 80's and 90's made resounding waves that live on forever. This week WNWP-TV (http://wnwp.tv) pays a special tribute to The Over-weight Lover himself on Soul TV Music Videos, featuring clips of some of his biggest hits and footage of interviews with the artist. Airing @ 10:00pmEST.
Myers was born on May 24, 1967 in Mandeville, Jamaica, the son of Eulahlee Lee, a nurse, and Clifford Vincent Myers, a machine technician. His family moved to Mount Vernon, New York, in the early 1970s, where he was raised.
Heavy D & the Boyz were the first group signed to Uptown Records; their debut, Living Large, was released in 1987. The album was a commercial success, though Big Tyme was a breakthrough that included four hits. Trouble T. Roy died at age 22 in a fall on July 15, 1990, in Indianapolis. Dixon's death led to a tribute on the follow-up platinum album, Peaceful Journey. Pete Rock & CL Smoothcreated a tribute to Trouble T. Roy called "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" which is regarded as a hip-hop classic.
Heavy D & the Boyz gained even more fame by singing the theme song for the television program In Living Color and also MADtv, and Heavy D performed the rap on Michael Jackson's hit single "Jam" as well as sister Janet Jackson's hit single "Alright". Heavy D then began focusing on his acting, appearing in various television shows before returning the music charts with Nuttin' But Love. After appearing in the off-Broadway play Riff Raff at Circle Repertory Company, Heavy D returned to recording with the hit Waterbed Hev. In 1997, Heavy D collaborated with B.B. King on his duets albumDeuces Wild rapping in the song "Keep It Coming." Heavy D was referred to in the song "Juicy" by the Notorious B.I.G., and appeared in his music video for "One More Chance".
In the mid-1990s, Myers became the first rapper to head a major music label, when he became the president of Uptown Records. Myers helped to develop rhythm-and-blues singer Mary J. Blige's career and hired Sean “Diddy” Combs as an intern. He later became the senior vice president at Universal Music.
Heavy D performed at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards in October 2011. It was his first live performance in 15 years. Myers died on November 8, 2011, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 44. He collapsed outside his Beverly Hills home and was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. It has been reported that his death was due to respiratory distress and that no foul play was involved.
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