Sly Stone, the frontman of Sly and the Family Stone, has died after a long battle with COPD, which is a lung condition. He was 82.
Sly, legally known as Sylvester Stewart, was born in Denton, Texas, in 1943.
By 1966, Sly had his own band, Sly and the Stoners, and his brother, Freddie, had his group, Freddie and the Stone Souls. They decided to merge their bands, creating Sly & the Family Stone. The group began performing together in 1967.
In 1983, Sly was arrested for cocaine possession and went to a rehabilitation center in 1986. He stayed out of the public eye, except for a few rare moments over the past several decades.
Sly finally broke free of his struggle with drugs and came clean in 2019. He spoke to The Guardian at the time and said that a doctor told him the drugs would kill him eventually.
Sly, legally known as Sylvester Stewart, was born in Denton, Texas, in 1943.
By 1966, Sly had his own band, Sly and the Stoners, and his brother, Freddie, had his group, Freddie and the Stone Souls. They decided to merge their bands, creating Sly & the Family Stone. The group began performing together in 1967.
In 1983, Sly was arrested for cocaine possession and went to a rehabilitation center in 1986. He stayed out of the public eye, except for a few rare moments over the past several decades.
Sly finally broke free of his struggle with drugs and came clean in 2019. He spoke to The Guardian at the time and said that a doctor told him the drugs would kill him eventually.