Legendary music exec
Andre Harrell has passed away at age 59.
DJ D Nice confirmed the news on Instagram Live during his quarantine mix, announcing that he’d be cutting it short because the news was too much to bear.
Harrell, who founded Uptown Records and part of the Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde rap duo in the 80s, was responsible for launching the careers of
Mary J. Blige,
Robin Thicke,
Heavy D,
Jodeci,
Anthony Hamilton,
Teddy Riley and more. In 1995, he became the president and CEO of Motown Records, overseeing
Stevie Wonder,
Diana Ross and
Queen Latifah, all the while launching the careers of
98 Degrees and
Mario Winans. As a mentor to
Diddy, he later went on to work side-by-side with the rap mogul as president of
Bad Boy Records and later, vice chairman of Revolt TV & Media. According to
reports, Harrell had been working on a TV special about Uptown with BET.
Andre Harrell was responsible for discovering a generation of artists and his legacy will live on forever. See photos below!
