“Godfather of House Music” DJ Frankie Knuckles passes away.

Our hearts hang heavy as soon as we got to know of this tragic piece of news.

According to news reports, the Godfather of House Music DJ Frankie Knuckles has passed away. It is being reported that Knuckles passed away of complications related to Type II Diabetes.

Knuckles has always been regarded as one of the most important figures in modern music especially electronic music.

Knuckles became a disco DJ in the early 1970s, spinning with childhood friend and garage pioneer Larry Levan at the Continental Baths. In 1977, the Warehouse nightclub opened in Chicago, and Knuckles moved to the city to become its premier DJ. Knuckles would make music by layering heavier drum machine beats over disco records. This style spread like wildfire and almost every DJ used it. This gave way to the use of synthesized beats and electronic music that we recognize as House Music.  As legend has it, the music Knuckles would spin at “The Warehouse” became extremely popular among his regular club goers, who would then go to record stores to request “house” music—music spun at “The Warehouse.”

The Warehouse became the crucible of a genre that would conquer the world and can still be heard on radio stations to this day.

His peers, Chicago house artists Paul Johnson and DJ Deeon, had expressed their condolences as well

We at Bangin Beats would like to express our deepest sympathies to all the family and fans of the pioneer of House Music. It is a sad day for all of us in the Electronic Music industry. We all owe a large part of who we are to DJ Frankie Knuckles

Some of Frankie Knuckles’ work:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LOLE1YE_oFQ]

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=QIdimVDuSEU]