Ronald Isley, soul legend, lead singer of the Isley Brothers, and sometime R. Kelly collaborator, suffered a minor stroke last week.
The 63-year-old Isley (a.k.a. Mr. Biggs), whose 2003 Isley Brothers album, Body Kiss, was almost
entirely produced and arranged by R. Kelly, felt ill while walking in London on July 30, according to Reuters. The singer checked himself into a London hospital for a few days before returning to his home in St. Louis, where he is currently recovering.
On August 24, the Isley Brothers will release Taken to the Next Phase, an album of the group's classic tracks, remixed by artists including Mos Def, the Roots' Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson, Raphael Saadiq and the Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am.
The Isley Brothers, legendary for such hits as "Twist and Shout" and "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)," felt a new surge in popularity last year when Body Kiss, which featured collaborations with Snoop Dogg and Lil' Kim, debuted on the Billboard albums chart at #1.
In 2001, their LP Eternal, featuring the single "Contagious" with production work and vocals by R. Kelly, bowed at #3 behind 'NSYNC's Celebrity at #2 and Now That's What I Call Music! Vol. 7 at #1. Eternal also included appearances by Jill Scott and Saadiq.
According to Reuters, Isley's speech was unaffected by the stroke and he hopes to resume performing as soon as possible.
This report is from MTV News.
|
