A popular ex-rapper turned singer from Staten Island has reportedly passed away at the age of 58.
Jessie Lee Daniels also known as Jessie D, lead vocalist of the R & B group, Force MD’s has recently died.
On Tuesday evening, a message was posted on the Force MD’s Facebook page acknowledging the loss of the group member. Sadly, he is the fifth member of the singing group to have passed away.
“TO ONE HELL OF A ENTERTAINER “JESSIE D” OF LEGENDARY FORCE MDS. HE ATE, SLEEP AND BREATHE MUSIC EVERYDAY. PLEASE PUT A HEART UP FOR HIM. HE WAS LOVED!!!!!!!!!! TO THE FAMILY, FRIENDS AND FANS TODAY WE LOST A REAL TALENT. OUR CONDOLENCES GOES OUT TO HIS SIBLINGS, KIDS AND THE FORCE MDS….”
Jessie D’s son, Jesse Lee Daniels Jr. also confirmed and acknowledged the loss of his father on his Facebook page.
Before there was The Wu-Tang Clan, there was a Hip-Hop group from Staten Island that made the Staten Island Ferry famous.
According to Billboard, Daniels formed a Hip-Hop group with his nephews Stevie D. Lundy, Antoine “T.C.D.” Lundy
and Rodney “Khalil” Lundy and then added their friends “Trisco” Pearson and Charles “Mercury” Nelson and DJ Dr. Rock in 1981. In the early days of Hip-Hop, the group was known for their rhyming skills which incorporated their vocal abilities as they harmonized in their routines. As they grew more popular through cassette tapes and singing on the Staten Island Ferry, before signing with Tommy Boy Records in 1984, the group change its name from the Force MC’s to the Force MDs which solidified their transition to an R&B group.Only two of the original members of the group are still alive. Mercury died of a heart attack in 1995, DJ Dr. Rock died of natural causes in 1996, while “T.C.D.” died of Lou Gehrig’s disease in 1998, and “Trisco” died of cancer in 2016.