6 Iconic Songs The Late, Great Roy Ayers Influenced 

roy ayers performing
Via Wikipedia
Leslie Grover-Taylor
March 12, 2025

Roy Ayers was only five when he was gifted musical mallets.  Since then, those mallets beat out Black music’s melody, one key at a time.  Here are six iconic musicians his music transformed into powerhouses.

#1 Brand Nubian: With 3 MCs, one of the earliest rap groups, sampled Ayers’ work for “Wake Up (Reprise in the Sunshine)”.

 #2  Mary J. Blige: MJB is an icon, and Ayers’ work appears on her sophomore album in “My Life.”

#3 2Pac: A hip-hop legend meets a jazz legend in “Lost Souls” and “Tattoo Tears.” Pac’s song featured Ayers’ vocals and lyrics.

  #4 Coffy Soundtrack: Ayers’ work, of course, touched anything our music did. The 1973 action movie Coffy made Pam Grier a star and helped tell the story of the mixed politics of Blackness when our communities were seeking to heal and to radically reimagine liberation.

#5 Notorious B.I.G.: Ayers’ work criss-crossed from coast to coast, defying hip-hop’s boundaries. “Get Money” was one of Junior MAFIA’s most popular songs.

   #6 Fela Kuti: The Afrobeats legend and activist’s work challenged the Nigerian government. And Ayers’ work helped fuel the revolution.

Ayers’ sound is unmistakably his, but we are forever lucky to be able to revel in his work because he shared it with others in our community. Who will you share your gifts with to create our future?

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