Legendary jazz trumpeter Roy Hargrove died this weekend, according to reports.
Hargrove passed away in New York on Friday of cardiac arrest stemming from a longtime fight with kidney disease, longtime manager Larry Clothier said in a statement.
Hargrove was only 49.
Heartbroken, but the rumor is true: the brilliant trumpeter Roy Hargrove died this morning, at 49. We have confirmed with his longtime manager. I’m working on a full obituary. #RIP
Hargrove was a genius talent who had worked with the like of D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Common, Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, Jackie McLean, Oscar Peterson, and many more. According to CBS News, many of these peers regarded him as the greatest trumpeter of his generation.
A two-time Grammy winner, Hargrove was first discovered by Wynton Marsalis when he was still in high school in his native Texas. After one year at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, he transferred to the New School in New York. He soon started releasing solo albums and working with many notables, Pitchfork reports.
Tonal, Melodic, from BeBop to Hip-hop. Soulful, BRILLIANT, Young Master... Roy Hargrove🙏 https://t.co/bz1RPJI0TY
The Great Roy Hargrove. He is literally the one man horn section I hear in my head when I think about music. To watch him harmonize with himself stacking nine horn lines on mamouth 10… https://t.co/ytaw0i8RWV
Hargroves “was known just as intensely for his brimming fire and fury as he was for his gorgeous, signature balladry. Over and over, his sound attested to and sanctified his deep love for music. His unselfish timbre covered the waterfront of every musical landscape,” his manager said.
Hargrove is survived by his wife Aida, daughter Kamala, mother Jacklyn and brother Brian. Memorial plans are in the works, but no details have been announced yet.
