Though many remember him as “the overweight lover,” Heavy D was much more than one of hip-hop’s first pop stars. He made some of his most important moves behind-the-scenes. And even after his untimely death, Hev's lasting influence on the game remains undeniable.

http://www.complex.com/mu...-d-matters

Thanks for posting. I'll check it out later on today.

That was a good one.

How about the fact there is nobody like him in that genre! And I doubt there will be b/c its all about being someone else and its usually the wrong kinda person. Outside of Will Smith I can't think of another rapper who had such success but didn't sell his soul to rise up! He did it with class and smarts yet astoundingly unlike Will he didn't have the uhmm cookie cutter image as far as looks. Yet he still was able to be an actor,do advertisements and have his own brand of sex appeal. Of course he matters! Its sad people have to die before they are rightfully singled out(that is if they aren't new or actively down your throat). He should be a model along with a 2Pac/Biggie or Jay Z or 50 Cent.

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BitetheBeat said:

How about the fact there is nobody like him in that genre! And I doubt there will be b/c its all about being someone else and its usually the wrong kinda person. Outside of Will Smith I can't think of another rapper who had such success but didn't sell his soul to rise up! He did it with class and smarts yet astoundingly unlike Will he didn't have the uhmm cookie cutter image as far as looks. Yet he still was able to be an actor,do advertisements and have his own brand of sex appeal. Of course he matters! Its sad people have to die before they are rightfully singled out(that is if they aren't new or actively down your throat). He should be a model along with a 2Pac/Biggie or Jay Z or 50 Cent.

[img:$uid]http://s8.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s8.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s8.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s8.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s8.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s8.posti.../img:$uid]

Heavy D was rare in that he didn't sell his soul to the devil. He kept it real until he died. Anybody that does that earns my respect. Hell I respected him at FIVE! I knew he wasn't phony. Heavy D forever.

You know how rare he is....since his debut 24 years ago who's been remotely like him?! There have been many wannabee's or similar acts to 2Pac,Biggie,LL,etc. Not one Heavy D! I always knew he was special/different but the older I got the more it hit home and with his death...it came like a ton of bricks! He was commercial but with an edge(that Smith lacked) YET class...its crazy! I don't think it will happen again...maybe thats another reason for my sadness at his passing. It just keeps getting more & more pronounced that special time in rap/hip hop has gone.

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BitetheBeat said:

You know how rare he is....since his debut 24 years ago who's been remotely like him?! There have been many wannabee's or similar acts to 2Pac,Biggie,LL,etc. Not one Heavy D! I always knew he was special/different but the older I got the more it hit home and with his death...it came like a ton of bricks! He was commercial but with an edge(that Smith lacked) YET class...its crazy! I don't think it will happen again...maybe thats another reason for my sadness at his passing. It just keeps getting more & more pronounced that special time in rap/hip hop has gone.

[img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid]

[img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid]

[img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid][img:$uid]http://s9.posti.../img:$uid]

My childhood kinda dies when an icon of my childhood passes on. Started with Phyllis Hyman, Eazy E., 2Pac and BIG, then with Luther Vandross, Michael Jackson, Pimp C, now Heavy D.

The last thing I heard from Heavy D was the song "IT" with Ziggy Marley, from his new album "Wild & Free":

"Let's go, ZIGGY!!!!"

I was definitely shocked and saddened by his sudden death.

R.I.P. Heavy D.

Thanks for posting the article. It's always good to hear the behind-the-scenes stuff. For instance, I've always known about that road trip of Jodeci but I didn't know about Hev getting them the audition.

There were a couple of things though that kind of threw me off a little. For instance, I thought Diddy was born in Harlem, not Mount Vernon. I thought Al B. Sure first signed with Sony after winning their Sony Innovators Award.

Oh.... Hev and Andre Harrell had the best eyes and ears in contemporary R&B at the time. Their early track record on talent still stands the test of time.