Born May 3, 1933 in Barnwell, South Carolina, to Susie and Joseph Brown. His name was suppose to be Joseph James Brown, but through a mix up with filling out the birth certificate James Brown was born... literally. Brown was primarily raised in Augusta, Georgia by his Great Aunt. As a young boy James Brown hustled in the street to survive because he and his family lived in extreme poverty.
James Brown was taught some of his musical abilities through neighbors teaching him to play instruments like the drums, piano and guitar. He started showing his singing abilities as a child by singing in class and at talent shows like the Augusta Lennox Theater; however growing up in the height of the Great Depression in the rural south forced James to chose a life of crime to survive.
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Brown was arrested at 16 years-old for stealing a car and was sentenced to three years in jail - where he made an unusual friendship. While in prison, James Brown organized a prison gospel choir and that's where he met Bobby Byrd, who at the time was an aspiring R&B musician. The pair became friends and musical partners.
By the mid 1950s James Brown had joined Bobby Byrd's musical group The Gospel Starlights. The group would perform at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina, after building a reputation for their remarkable performances, they changed the name to the Famous Flames and relocated to Macon, Georgia. During this time the group reached out to Little Richard and were able to convince him to get time in front of Richard's manager. Later the group signed to Kings Records' Federal. By 1957 the group was changed and renamed to James Brown and the Famous Flames.
From then on Brown continued to grow and perform covers like Night Train and Baby You're Right. By 1964 he and Bobby Byrd created their own production company called Fair Deal, but ran into some legal troubles with Kings Records' Federal. Through out the rest of the 1960s and into the 1970s Brown continued to create and perform hit songs.
It was around the late 1960s or early 1970s when Brown was dubbed the Soul Brother No. 1. It was during this time he was experimenting with different sounds and instruments that helped to round off his musical abilities and reach out to many different types of audiences. Brown recorded hits like Gettin' Down To It in 1969 and Soul On Top in 1970 that had heavy influences of romantic ballads and standard jazz.
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By the 1970s James Brown started running into money troubles with band members walking out on him over money disputes. Still Brown persisted and created amazing hits. By the mid 1970s Brown's self proclaimed nickname "The Godfather of Soul" became his memorable one yet.
The Godfather of Soul unfortunately started to see his decline with the popularity of Disco and Funk emerging. He made attempts to resurrect his fading career by working with an outside producer by the name of Brad Shapiro, who was eager to work with Brown, because he was a huge fan of him. The pair made two moderately successful hits that brought him to the close of the 1970s.
By 1980 Brown saw a brief rebirth of his career as the idea of pop expanded to new audience member that Brown could reach; however by 1988 Brown fell into some legal trouble and spent few years in prison. Following his release in 1992 he won a Grammy Life-Time Achievement award. This solidified his status as a crowd favorite. Sadly brown passed away Christmas Day in 2006.
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