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Earth, Air and Fire drummer Fred White died, the band and White’s brother, Verdine, announced yesterday (January 1). No cause of death was given. Fred White is 67 years old.
White is an amazing drummer, touring with the likes Donny Hathaway before finishing high school (including in the show immortalized in Donny Hathaway Live) and joining his brothers Earth, Wind & Fire before his 20th birthday. His arrival in the band in 1974 put him in the twin-drummer engine room of a hitmaking powerhouse; The band’s commercial heyday began a year later with “Shining Star,” a No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100. With a mix of soulful ballads and body-moving soul, Earth, Wind & Fire became pop figureheads of the disco era. Songs like 1976’s “Saturday Nite” established the band as a transatlantic success even before “September” and “Boogie Wonderland” caused international sensations later in the decade.
White left the group in the early 1980s but returned for their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2000. He continued to sing with artists including Diana Ross and Bonnie Raitt, most recently on Ross’ 2021 comeback album.
on Instagram, Verdine White wrote that her brother “joined our brothers Maurice, Monte, and Ronald in heaven and is now fighting with the angels.” He continued:
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