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Curtis Mayfield
Feb 1, 2025
“He broke his back but not his spirit.”
– Altheida Mayfield
This month, we will recognize and honor Black musicians in the 60s and 70s who possessed incredible talent and versatility like Neil Diamond.
Curtis Mayfield was a brilliant songwriter, singer, guitarist, producer, composer and more! Through his music and his career that spanned 4 decades, Curtis addressed themes of social justice and urban life with a poetic sensibility that was both powerful and moving, which turned Curtis into a musical force for change within the Black community.
Singer Mavis Staples once said that Curtis “had a long history of writing wonderful love songs that made you want to dance slow to in the basement. And then, all of a sudden, he went and wrote some of the best message songs that could be out there.”
In the 1970s, Curtis transformed yet again — writing music for films. The era of “Blaxploitation” films had quickly arrived and despite low budgets, Curtis believed these films needed the right music for the soundtrack.
His “Super Fly” album became an instant hit of 1970s soul and funk and becoming a rare example of a soundtrack that outsold the movie.
His final record, “New World Order”, was made in 1995 following a on-stage accident which left him paralyzed. His resilience persevered and he recorded one line at a time while lying on his back. Curtis Mayfield lived to be 57 years old.
We’re proud to honor Curtis Mayfield’s life and legacy today.
To learn more about Curtis Mayfield, we recommend visiting his website, curtismayfield.com.
Part of Curtis’ legacy includes samples of his music and recordings that can be heard today in an ever-increasing number of new formats. Artists like Notorious BIG, Eminem, MC Hammer, and more have sampled Curtis’ music and a selection of samples can be found on his website.
Stream music from Curtis Mayfield here.