NEW YORK – Andre Harrell, the Uptown Records founder who shaped the sound of hip-hop and R&B in the late ’80s and ’90s with acts such as Mary J.
Blige and Heavy D and also launched the career of mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, has died, several members of the music community revealed late Friday.
He was 59. Outlets including Variety and Billboard, which cited sources, reported the death. No details about Harrell’s death were available.
Russell Simmons, who Harrell worked for at Def Jam Records before debuting Uptown, and Teddy Riley, whose career was launched by Harrell, were among Harrell’s close friends who posted about his death on social media.