Heavy D & The Boyz

Founded by rapper, producer, and actor (and Pete Rock’s cousin) Heavy D – born Dwight Myers in Mandeville, Manchester, Jamaica on May 24, 1967 – Heavy D and The Boyz was a rap / hip-hop group who achieved their greatest success between the late 1980s and the late 1990s. With Heavy D as the frontman and sole rapper, the group also featured DJ / producer Eddie F (Edward Ferrell), and dancers T-Roy (Troy Dixon) and G-Wiz (Glen Parrish). The group’s debut album, Living Large (1987), was the first release on the influential label Uptown Records. The album was a success and hit number 10 on Billboard’s R&B / Hip-Hop Albums chart. Their next album, the New Jack Swing-influenced Big Tyme (1989), was their commercial breakthrough and reached the top of Billboard’s R&B Albums chart. The album included musical assistance from Teddy Riley, Al B. Sure!, Marley Marl, and Pete Rock. With hit singles such as "We Got Our Own Thang" and "Somebody for Me,” the group became regular fixtures on television and in entertainment magazines. In 1989, Heavy D appeared on Janet Jackson’s hit single “Alright,” which brought him even more acclaim. Unfortunately, group member T-Roy was killed in an accident on July 15, 1990. The group chose to continue and dedicated their next album, Peaceful Journey (1991), to T-Roy. The album was almost as successful as Big Tyme, reaching number 5 on the R&B Albums chart. In 1992, Heavy D guested on Michael Jackson’s “Jam” single and followed that with performing the theme to the sketch comedy TV series In Living Color. Several years later, he also performed the theme to another sketch comedy TV series, MADtv. After two more albums, Blue Funk (1992) and the chart-topping Nuttin’ but Love (1994) – the group split up and Heavy D continued as a solo artist and pursued a career in acting. Heavy D died of a pulmonary embolism on November 8, 2011, at the age of 44.