Sly Stone, a legendary musician who helped propel funk to its elevated heights within the realm of Black music, has died. Hip-Hop artists of varied eras have sampled Sly Stone’s work over time, and we’ve bought a playlist highlighting a few of these audio classics.
As Hip-Hop Wired reported earlier, Sly Stone, born Sylvester Stewart in Denton, Texas, handed away Monday (June 9) on the age of 82. After establishing his roots within the Bay Space as a musical prodigy, Stone ventured into turning into a front-facing artist along with his Sly and The Stones within the Nineteen Sixties with the late Cynthia Robinson, the trumpeter who was a founding member of Sly and the Household Stone, the band that catapulted Stone into the annals of music historical past.
Alongside enjoyable pioneers such asJames Brown and Parliament-Funkadelic, Stone and his band loved a profitable run of album releases extending into the late Nineteen Seventies. Stone’s life was captured within the 2023 biography, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), written with Ben Greenman, that includes a foreword from Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson. Thompson additionally produced the stirring 2025 documentary centered on Stone’s life and legacy, Sly Lives! (aka the Burden of Black Genius).
Hip-Hop artists equivalent to LL Cool J, Queen Latifah, The Jungle Brothers, Public Enemy, and scores extra dug into the crates to seize bits of Stone’s music to kind the backdrop of their works. Beneath, we’ve bought a handful of these songs featured within the playlist under.
Lengthy dwell Sly Stone. Could he relaxation powerfully in peace.
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Picture: Michael Putland / Getty
1. LL COOL J – “Mama Stated Knock You Out
Samples “Journey To Your Coronary heart.”
2. Queen Latifah – “Dance For Me”
Samples “Dance to the Music.”
3. Jungle Brothers – “As a result of I Bought It Like That”
Samples “You Can Make It If You Attempt.”
4. Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg – “Deep Cowl
Samples “Sing A Easy Music.”
5. Cypress Hill – “Insane In The Mind”
Samples “Life.”
6. Arrested Growth – “Folks On a regular basis”
Samples “On a regular basis Folks.”
7. A Tribe Known as Quest – “Skypager”
Samples “Recommendation.”
8. De La Soul – “Description”
Samples “Poet.”
