Foster Sylvers, former child R&B star and member of popular family group The Sylvers, dies at 64. An artist best known for the mega hit ‘Boogie Fever’ succumbed to pancreatic cancer. The sad news was confirmed by his brother Leon, who said that the singer died in a hospice.
Sylvers was born on February 25, 1962 in Memphis (Tennessee). He started his musical career at the age of 11, when he released his debut solo album in 1973. It contained the successful single “Misdemeanor” and other minor hits that immediately made him a children’s music phenomenon.
However, even greater commercial success awaited him when he started playing bass guitar in the band The Sylvers, which he formed together with his siblings. With his distinctive bass performance, he contributed to the success of the 1975 album Showdown, which also featured the iconic song of the 70s “Boogie Fever”. During the 80s, however, the group’s fame began to decline, so he switched to solo projects and production collaborations with other artists, such as Dynasty or Evelyn “Champagne” King.
However, the later period of the life of the talented singer and musician was overshadowed by serious problems with the law. In 1994, he was found guilty of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman. Based on this judgment, he was officially registered as a sex offender in the state of California, which definitively buried his chances of returning to music prominence.
