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Obituaries

Toots Hibbert, the man who coined the word reggae, passes away at 77

Jamaican reggae legend Toots Hibbert has died at age 77, his band Toots and The Maytals announced on Twitter.

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Toots Hibbert (Karl Simpson, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Toots-Hibbert.jpg)

Jamaican reggae legend Frederick Nathaniel “Toots” Hibbert has died at age 77, his band Toots and The Maytals announced.

Toots Hibbert death details

Toots Hibbert “passed away peacefully” in Jamaica “surrounded by his family” at the University Hospital of the West Indies late Friday, the Twitter statement said.

While the cause of his death was not revealed, the band said on September 3 that Hibbert had been taken to intensive care and was waiting to receive the results of a coronavirus test.

“The family and his management team would like to thank the medical teams and professionals for their care and diligence, and ask that you respect their privacy during their time of grief,” Saturday’s statement said.

Music career

Hibbert, dubbed the “father of reggae”, was the first artist to use the word reggae on a record, on the 1968 single “Do the Reggay” by his group, which was originally billed simply as the Maytals.

The word reggae

To some, it was an accidental coinage.

Mr. Hibbert has said he was thinking of “streggae,” a local slang for a “raggedy” woman but reggae stuck, branding the new sound that would become Jamaica’s greatest cultural phenomen.

While Mr. Hibbert never achieved the same level of global success as Bob Marley, he was extremely popular in Jamaica and was highly respected for his  body of work that helped establish some of reggae’s fundamentals.

About Toots and The Maytals’

Toots and The Maytals’ hits include “Pressure Drop,” “Monkey Man” and “Do The Reggay.”

Toots Hibbert Legacy

Hibbert is survived by his wife of 39 years and his seven of eight children.


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Unheard Voices Magazine LLC is a news reporting platform covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.

Unheard Voices is an award-winning news magazine that started in 2004 as a local Black newsletter in the Asbury Park, Neptune, and Long Branch, NJ areas to now broaden into a recognized Black online media outlet. They are the recipient of the NAACP Unsung Hero Award and CV Magazine's Innovator Award for Best Social Justice Communications Company.

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Black Excellence

In Memoriam : Renée McMillan (1963 – 2024)

Renée McMillan was a well-respected educator, real estate agent, and community organizer, who will be sorely missed.

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Renée McMillan
Renée McMillan

Renée McMillan was born in Brooklyn, New York. As a child, she was adopted and decades later, Renee was reunited with her biological family which brought her a great sense of joy and fulfillment.

She was a product of the New York City School System and would not hesitate to tell you that she was from Brooklyn, more specifically, “Do or Die Bed-Stuy” which signified the Bedford Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn.

Highly educated

Renée was highly educated and every facet of the word excellence.

She obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Office Management and Supervision from Buffalo State University, an Master of Arts in Educational Leadership from Georgian Court University, and a Master of Arts in Education from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Career

She started her career as an Accounts Payable Bookkeeper for the Gamma Liaison Photo Agency in NYC. After that, she served as a Sales Representative for Nabisco before entering her calling: the field of Education.

Renee McMillan as an educator

Renée worked many years in the Asbury Park and Neptune Public School systems before finishing up her career as Vice Principal, at the School of Architecture, Construction, and Trades at John F. Kennedy High School in Paterson, New Jersey. She had a passion for education and spent countless summers tutoring students in math. Renée received great satisfaction in inspiring her students to set goals and understand their purpose for their lives.

Real estate

After retiring from the Paterson Board of Education, Renée worked as a Real Estate Agent at Keller Williams Realty.

Renée McMillan served the community

She continued her service by being actively involved in the community. She held positions as Director of Neptune Township Biddy Basketball, a humble servant in the Women’s Ministry at St. Stephen AME Zion Church in Asbury Park, New Jersey, a former County Committee Member for District 10 in Neptune, a member of The PAC Program at Monmouth University, and also coordinated the GOTV activities for local, state, and national campaigns which provided the youth of Neptune with employment during the political season.

Renée’s hobbies were cooking and reading. She became well-known for her culinary and baking skills, extending her love towards others with her incredible gift.

Her legacy will live on forever

Renée leaves to mourn her memory to her loving and dedicated husband, her beloved children, two daughters and one son, her precious grandchildren, one girl and boy, a devoted and caring godmother, god sister and godbrother, godson and goddaughter, two doting sisters, three adoring brothers, two special brothers-in-law, and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and other relatives as well as a countless number of friends and colleagues.

Renée was loved by the Unheard Voices community and she sorely be missed.

Visit James Hunt Funeral Home to read Renee McMillan’s obituary in full.


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Obituaries

O.J. Simpson, football Hall of famer, dies at 76 after cancer battle

O.J. Simpson, the football hall of famer and Hollywood actor who was acquitted of charges he killed his former wife and her friend, has died. He was 76.

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O.J. Simpson dies at 76
OJ Simpson (Gerald Johnson, DOD, Public Domain Image | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:O.J._Simpson_1990_%C2%B7_DN-ST-91-03444_crop.JPEG)

O.J. Simpson, the football hall of famer and Hollywood actor who was acquitted of murder charges, has died.

He was 76.

Family announces passing

The family announced on Simpson’s official X account that Simpson passed Wednesday after battling prostate cancer. He died in Las Vegas, officials there said Thursday.

“On April 10th, our father, Orenthal Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace,” the family posted on Simpson’s X account.

Life of ups and downs for O.J. Simpson

Simpson was a former NFL star, actor, and broadcaster whose athletic achievements and fame were eclipsed by his 1995 trial in the slayings of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman.

The infamous case

Simpson assembled a “dream team” defense for the trial.

He didn’t testify, but the prosecution asked him to try on the gloves in court. He struggled to squeeze them onto his hands and spoke his only three words of the trial: “They’re too small.”

His attorney Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. told the jurors, “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”

Acquitted

Simpson was acquitted of murder for both his ex-wife and Goldman.

The proceedings captivated the country, with tens of millions of viewers tuning in at home and at work and sparked heavy debates on race.

Though acquitted of murders, in 1997, a civil trial jury unanimously deemed Simpson liable for the deaths and ordered him to pay $33.5 million in damages.

Served time

Years later at 61, Simpson served about nine years in prison for an unrelated case involving a memorabilia robbery in Las Vegas. He was released in 2017 on parole.

Football career

After graduating from high school, Simpson enrolled at City College of San Francisco for a year and a half before transferring to the University of Southern California for the spring 1967 semester to play football.

At USC, Simpson dominated the collegiate football and received the Heisman trophy in 1968.

NFL

Simpson went on to play 11 seasons in the NFL, nine of them with the Buffalo Bills, where earning him the moniker “The Juice” and ran behind an offensive line known as “The Electric Company.”

He won four NFL rushing titles, rushed for 11,236 yards in his career, scored 76 touchdowns and played in five Pro Bowls. His best season was 1973, when he ran for 2,003 yards, the first running back to accomplish breaking the 2,000-yard rushing mark.

O.J. Simpson’s Legacy

Simpson leaves behind five children. He shared three children, Arnelle, Jason and Aaren, with his first wife, Marguerite Whitley, and welcomed two kids, Sydney and Justin, with his second wife Nicole Brown Simpson.


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Obituaries

Legendary DJ Mister Cee passes away

Mister Cee, the legendary New York City radio DJ, has died. He was 57 years old.

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Calvin LeBrun, the legendary New York City radio DJ known as Mister Cee, has died. He was 57 years old.

DJ Mister Cee passes

Cee, who grew up in Brooklyn,was a prominent figure in the hip-hop scene in New York City.

He got his start as a DJ and producer for Big Daddy Kane, taking part in Kane’s debut album. Cee is also often credited with discovering another pillar of Brooklyn hip-hop, the Notorious B.I.G. He also played a role in launching the careers of  Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, 50 Cent, Drake among others.

Cee’s long-running “Throwback at Noon” show became one of the most listened to programs in NYC radio at Hot 97. At the time of his death, he was working for Audacy’s 94.7 The Block in New York.

“We have lost the iconic Mister Cee. I listened to him yesterday and am in complete shock. He was a dear friend to all of us, a wonderful man, and one of the most important and impactful DJs of all time. I love you Cee”, Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg said.

No cause of death has been revealed.


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