Belafonte

For me, growing up in the 1970s in inner-city London, in Tottenham, there were a few black American global figures that entered your life and just brought so much colour and vibrancy. And I only really now understand this as an adult, of course, but my parents came alive, too. Our whole parochial existence suddenly became so much bigger at these moments. And there were only a handful of people who could do that. Sidney Poitier was one; the Jackson Five and Diana Ross were others. And then there was the singer and actor…

The musical story of Harry Belafonte is really a story of 20th-century popular music, and how it draws on influences from multiple places and people, circulating throughout the Caribbean, over to the US and back again. Belafonte was an American of Jamaican descent but he came of age before the development of reggae, so he was influenced by other Caribbean genres popular at the time: Jamaica’s mento – a style of folk music – and calypso, which originates from Trinidad and Tobago.Even though Belafonte’s most popular album…

Harry Belafonte, the famed pop star who died Tuesday of congestive heart failure at 96 years old, helped bring calypso to the masses via his 1956 album “Calypso,” which featured his unavoidable rendition of the traditional Jamaican song “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song).” But more central to his mission was uplifting those around him, specifically Black people trapped in the same systems of oppression he faced growing up in New York and Jamaica.Belafonte played a key role in the civil rights movement, fundraising with Dr.…

Harry Belafonte was a hero of mine. He meant everything to me. I met him around the release of 12 Years a Slave, and he became a mentor. I received a best director award at the New York Film Critics Circle awards and Harry gave an amazing speech: he talked about seeing Johnny Weissmuller as Tarzan at the cinema as a child and how the depiction of people of African descent made him feel being ashamed to be Black.Look what he did – his first album sold more than 1m records. He was Martin Luther King’s closest confidant and…

Harry Belafonte, the iconic singer, actor, and ardent supporter of the civil rights movement, has died, The New York Times reports. He was 96 years old.Belafonte passed away from congestive heart failure on Tuesday at his home in Manhattan, per his spokesman, Ken Sunshine. Belafonte was born on March 1, 1927, where he was raised by his parents who were Caribbean immigrants.He joined the Navy during World War II, and began pursuing acting after he was discharged. Belafonte studied drama in the same workshop as Walter…

In the middle of the 20th century, Harry Belafonte was at the dizzying high point of his stunning multi-hyphenate celebrity: this handsome, athletic, Caribbean-American star with a gorgeous calypso singing voice was at the top of his game in music, movies and politics. He was the million-selling artist whose easy and sensuous musical stylings and lighter-skinned image made him acceptable to white audiences. But this didn’t stop him having a fierce screen presence and an even fiercer commitment to civil rights. He was the…

Harry Belafonte, a singer, actor and activist who popularised calypso music in the United States and paved the way for African-American entertainers, passed away at his Manhattan home. FILE - Singer and activist Harry Belafonte speaks during a memorial tribute concert for folk icon and civil rights activist Pete Seeger in New York on July 20, 2014. Belafonte died Tuesday of congestive heart failure at his New York home. He was 96. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, file)(AP) According to Variety report, a US-based media…

Harry Belafonte, the award-winning entertainer who fueled an international calypso craze in the 1950s with his version of the “Banana Boat Song” and whose long career in show business paralleled his off-stage role as a civil rights activist and globe-trotting humanitarian, has died in New York.Belafonte, who squeezed so much into his decades-long career that it was difficult to fathom it all, died at his Manhattan home Tuesday of congestive heart failure, his longtime spokesman Ken Sunshine said Tuesday. His wife Pamela…

Harry Belafonte, the singer, actor and wide-ranging activist, has died aged 96. The cause of death was congestive heart failure, his spokesman told the New York Times.As well as performing global hits such as Day-O (The Banana Boat Song), winning a Tony award for acting and appearing in numerous feature films, Belafonte spent his life fighting for a variety of causes. He bankrolled numerous 1960s initiatives to bring civil rights to Black Americans; campaigned against poverty, apartheid and Aids in Africa; and supported…

Harry Belafonte, the dashing singer, actor and activist who became an indispensable supporter of the civil rights movement, has died, his publicist Ken Sunshine told CNN. He was 96. Belafonte died Tuesday morning of congestive heart failure, Sunshine said. Belafonte was dubbed the “King of Calypso” after the groundbreaking success of his 1956 hit, “The Banana Boat Song (Day-O).” He also became a movie star after acting in the film adaption of the Broadway musical, “Carmen Jones.” But Belafonte biggest contributions took…