Andre Harrell, the Uptown Records founder who shaped the sound of hip-hop and R&B in the late 80s and 90s, has died aged 59.
Harrell helped promote acts such as Mary J Blige and Heavy D, and also launched the career of mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs. Outlets including Variety and Billboard, which cited sources, reported his death.
Russell Simmons, who Harrell worked for at Def Jam Records before debuting Uptown, and Teddy Riley, whose career was launched by Harrell, were among Harrell’s close friends who posted about his death on social media.
Harrell launched his New York City-based label in 1986, eventually dominating the urban music scene with multiple hit songs and platinum-selling albums.
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