Current:Home > StocksFrankie Beverly, soulful 'Before I Let Go' singer and Maze founder, dies at 77 -ForexStream
Frankie Beverly, soulful 'Before I Let Go' singer and Maze founder, dies at 77
View
Date:2025-04-13 21:43:09
Frankie Beverly, the "Before I Let Go" hitmaker with his band Maze, has died. He was 77.
His death on Tuesday was announced by his family on the official Frankie Beverly and Maze Facebook page Wednesday.
"He lived his life with pure soul as one would say, and for us, no one did it better," the family wrote. "He lived for his music, family and friends. Love one another as he would want that for us all."
The family also asked for privacy as they grieve the soul singer's loss.
"Grieving the loss of a loved one is a deeply personal and emotional experience. During this time, as we are navigating feelings of sorrow, reflection, and remembrance we kindly ask for privacy and understanding, allowing us the space to grieve in our own way," the family wrote. "This period for is one of healing, and your respect for our need for solitude is appreciated as we honor the memory of our beloved Howard Stanley Beverly known to the world as Frankie Beverly."
Remembering those we lost: Celebrity Deaths 2024
USA TODAY has reached out to Beverly's rep for comment.
Read about the celebrities you love: Sign up for USA TODAY's Everyone's Talking newsletter.
The Philadelphia native founded Maze, under the original name Raw Soul, in 1970 and would open for Marvin Gaye, who reportedly suggested the name change. The band, also billed as Maze feat. Frankie Beverly, went on to release nine gold albums from the late 1970s to early 1990s, including hits like "Joy and Pain," "We Are One," "Can't Get Over You" and "Golden Time of Day."
More stars we've lost in 2024:James Earl Jones, Sérgio Mendes, Rich Homie Quan
But it was Beverly and Maze's record "Before I Let Go," from their 1981 fifth album, "Live in New Orleans," that the band is most known for, becoming synonymous with Black cookouts, family reunions and other gatherings.
"'Before I Let Go' really did turn out to be something more than I even imagined," Beverly told Essence in 2020. "I got blessed with that."
The upbeat song, he said at the time, is actually about a love lost.
"I was seeing some lady but I was just with someone (else) and we broke up, he told the outlet. "And it got kind of hard because I wasn’t with the woman I wanted to be with and I couldn't stay with the one I was with."
In 2019, Beyoncé covered the track for her "Homecoming" film and corresponding live album following her Coachella performance.
Beverly told Billboard that year that the platinum-selling cover was "one of the high points of my life."
The band remained active in recent years, performing live in their signature all-white at festivals, and touring as recently as earlier this year on the six-city I Wanna Thank You Tour, which also marked his retirement.
In March, Beverly was awarded the lifetime achievement award from the NAACP Image Awards.
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- Flight recorder recovered from Navy spy plane that overshot runway in Hawaii
- NBA investigating accusation against Thunder guard Josh Giddey of improper relationship with minor
- Crocodile egg hunter dangling from helicopter died after chopper ran out of fuel, investigation finds
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- Derek Chauvin, ex-officer convicted in George Floyd's killing, stabbed in prison
- Rosalynn Carter, former first lady, remembered in 3-day memorial services across Georgia
- Finding a place at the Met, this opera sings in a language of its own
- Nearly half of US teens are online ‘constantly,’ Pew report finds
- A critically endangered Sumatran rhino named Delilah successfully gives birth in Indonesia
Ranking
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Mississippi Rep. Banks gets probation on tax conviction and intends to remain in office
- Horoscopes Today, November 26, 2023
- Jennifer Lawrence Reacts to Plastic Surgery Speculation
- 'As foretold in the prophecy': Elon Musk and internet react as Tesla stock hits $420 all
- Man fatally shot in the parking lot of a Target store in the Bronx, police say
- Remains of a WWII heavy bomber gunner identified nearly 80 years after his death
- Paul Lynch, Irish author of 'Prophet Song,' awarded over $60K with 2023 Booker Prize
Recommendation
McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
How the Roswell 'UFO' spurred our modern age of conspiracy theories
Mississippi Rep. Banks gets probation on tax conviction and intends to remain in office
US closes border crossing to vehicles and limits traffic at another in response to illegal entries
Travis Hunter, the 2
Texas governor skydives for first time alongside 106-year-old World War II veteran
Nebraska woman kills huge buck on hunting trip, then gets marriage proposal
US closes border crossing to vehicles and limits traffic at another in response to illegal entries