Godfather of house music dies

RENOWNED house music DJ Frankie Knuckles has reportedly died in Chicago from complications with diabetes.

Widely-known as the “Godfather of House Music”, the openly-gay DJ was 59 years old.

Knuckles, who is also a member of the Dance Music Hall of Fame, is widely known as a pioneer of the house music genre in the 1980s.

He has also performed in Australia throughout his career, with the most recent time being 2011 when he was part of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras line-up.

Chicago house music publication 5 Magazine first broke the news of Knuckles’ death, with several other DJs and friends of the dance icon, including David Morales and Paul Johnson, soon taking to social media afterwards to leave tributes.

I am devastated to write that my dear friend Frankie Knuckles has passed away today. Can’t write anymore than this at the moment. I’m sorry.

— David Morales (@DJDavidMorales) April 1, 2014

 

There was still little detail or police confirmation surrounding his death at the time of writing, but according to 5 Magazine, they had “received word this evening from people close to” the famed DJ about his passing.

Knuckles was born in the Bronx, New York City, in 1955 and became a DJ in the early 1970s, spinning with childhood friend and fellow Larry Levan.

In 1977, Knuckles moved to Chicago to become the resident DJ at the Warehouse, which was to eventually become the birthplace of house music.