Donny Hathaway
Overview
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
singer-songwriter and musician. Hathaway contracted with Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
in 1969 and with his first single for the Atco label, "The Ghetto, Part I
The Ghetto (song)
"The Ghetto" is a socially conscious, mostly instrumental Jazz/Latin Jazz flavored anthem, released as the first single off American soul singer Donny Hathaway's debut album, Everything Is Everything, released as a single in 1970 on Atlantic Records....
" in early 1970, Rolling Stone magazine "marked him as a major new force in soul music."
His collaborations with Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
scored high on the charts and won him the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
The Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals was awarded between 1966 and 2011...
for the duet, "Where Is the Love" in 1973.
His body was found outside the luxury hotel Essex House
Jumeirah Essex House
The Jumeirah Essex House, commonly known as the Essex House, is a luxury hotel located on 160 Central Park South in Manhattan. Built in 1931 as the Park Tower Hotel, it is situated across the street from the southern border of Central Park and is convenient to both the stylish shops on Fifth Avenue...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
; his death was ruled a suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
Hathaway, the son of Drusella Huntley, was born in Chicago.
