In Memoriam
Joseph Robinson Jr., owner of pioneering hip-hop label Sugar Hill Records, dies at 53
Joseph Robinson Jr., one of the heirs of the legendary hip-hop music label Sugar Hill Records, has died after a battle with cancer
Joseph Robinson Jr., one of the heirs of the legendary hip-hop music label Sugar Hill Records, has died after a battle with cancer, reports NorthJersey.com.
The 53-year-old music executive died at his Tenafly home on Saturday, the site said.
Robinson was part of one of hip-hop’s pioneering families. His parents, Sylvia and Joseph Robinson Sr., founded the Englewood-based label in the 1970s, and released the famous hit “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugar Hill Gang in 1979 – a song often credited with introducing the music to the mainstream.
He and his two younger brothers, Rhondo and Leland, eventually took over the imprint from their parents in the 1980s.
Robinson was executor of the Sugarhill Music Publishing estate, helping to keep his family’s legacy alive.
In addition to handling the business side of the label, Robinson in 1985 became a member of the Sugarhill Gang, replacing Guy O’Brien and touring with Big Bank Hank and other band members.
Discover more from Unheard Voices Magazine®
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Queen Latifah’s Newark affordable housing mission takes center stage in new BET documentary
Asbury Park High School: Veterans Day 2026
Scott Colom makes history as Mississippi’s first Black U.S. Senator since reconstruction
Remembering: Irma P. Hall, beloved ‘Soul Food’ actress who found Hollywood success later in life, dies at 91
Ole Miss Black students speak out after viral video shows white women making monkey noises outside their apartment
North Carolina A&T, UNC Greensboro and Bennett students march nearly an hour after campus voting sites removed
Baltimore artist MIDDEKO releases new single “FALLINLUV”
OWN for the Holidays returns with new movies
New Jersey woman who outsmarted serial killer and escaped in 2016 dies at 44
Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine earns preliminary accreditation, becoming nation’s fifth historically Black medical school
Woody Shaw’s Avant‑Garde ‘Song of Songs’ returns to vinyl after 50 years through Jazz Dispensary’s Top Shelf Series
Kansas City’s Copper Boyz Ranch provides youth violence‑prevention through horsemanship
Nolan Wells’ family demands ‘thorough’ investigation: “What we’ve been told does not make sense”
Peabo Bryson, Grammy‑winning voice behind two Disney classics, dies at 75
OWN greenlights first-ever ‘Belle Collective’ spinoff Belle Collective: Birmingham
-
Crime & Justice2 weeks agoFamily of slain Bronx teen Javits Frimpong demands justice after fatal shooting
-
Culture2 weeks agoBurger King employee wears Blackface, tells customer, “I just want to be Black”
-
Police2 weeks agoVirginia mother loses her car after police mistake her vehicle for shooting suspect’s using flock cameras
-
Sports1 week agoFort Lewis football player Jordan ‘JT’ Thomas suffers severe spinal cord injury during game
-
Police2 weeks agoSuspected arson damages Senatobia Police headquarters months after officer fatally shot 1-year-old Kohen Wiley
-
Health & Wellness1 week agoTikTok star Marcel Johnson dies at 32 after courageous battle with stage 4 stomach cancer
-
In Memoriam1 week agoThe Rude Boys founding member Melvin ‘Boy Baby’ Sephus dies at 61
-
Politics1 week agoFive Black governors make history in 2026 U.S. elections