Renowned New York DJ, Eddie Cheeba, has died at the age of 67. He was known for being one of the pioneering musicians credited with early hip-hop, and his raspy voice became synonymous with Harlem and downtown New York City.
Eddie Cheeba was famous for his live performances in nightclubs during the mid-1970s, and he performed regularly at Small’s Paradise, Charles Gallery, Hotel Diplomat, and Club 371. He was celebrated for being the original crowd rocker and was known for his catchphrase “Who makes it sweeter?” and nightclub-goers responding “Cheeba, Cheeba, Cheeba!”.
He was also instrumental in shaping hip-hop’s future, and his disco rap song “Looking Good (Shake Your Body)” became one of his most influential tracks.
Eddie’s style of wordplay and rap technique influenced a group out of Long Island; Public Enemy and Russell Simmons acknowledged him as groundbreaking for hip-hop, “One more legendary ground-breaking rapper has passed and the hip hop community was too uneducated about their history to give them the proper flowers that they deserved,” he wrote on Instagram.
The DJ’s passing has seen an outpouring of tributes from hip-hop figures, who recognize his important role in the genre’s early years.
In a follow-up video, Simmons again credited Cheeba, DJ Hollywood, and Lovebug Starski, saying there would be “no rap records” without the trio.
Eddie Cheeba’s death comes after Simmons disclosed in an Instagram post last October that the famed DJ had been hospitalized with a stroke, saying that Cheeba had memory issues but was stable.
The cause of death has not been disclosed, leaving hip-hop fans to remember one of the pivotal figures in the music industry.
