With the loss of multi-talented instrumentalist Roy Ayers, who died on Wednesday at the age of 84, the hip-hop world is honoring one of its greatest inspirations and sample sources. Hip-hop production stalwarts such as J. Dilla, Dr. Dre, DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, Madlib, and others have sampled from his six-decade-spanning catalog of jazz and funk-laced compositions. The user-based platform WhoSampled tabulated that Roy Ayers has been sampled 964 times, with 85 covers and 54 remixes.
He’s been regarded as “The Godfather of Neo-Soul” for songs like “Everybody Loves The Sunshine,” one of hip-hop’s most sampled tracks. Usually, it’s songs that are minutes or more, with multiple progressions and sonic shifts, that become go-to sample reserves for producers. But Ayers’ title track from his 1976 album is just four minutes. Yet the song’s iconic drone synth and pensive piano play have been flipped hundreds of times, such as Mary J Blige’s “My Life” and Masta Ace’s “Turn It Up,” while the surging bassline was used on songs like Tony Yayo’s “Fake Love.”
Ayers’s momentous career has been chronicled through hip-hop and is likely to inspire music lovers for generations to come. He’s been the sample source for Nineties playlist standards like A Tribe Called Quest’s “Bonita Applebum,” Junior Mafia’s “Get Money,” as well as aughts tracks like Common and Erykah Badu’s “Come Close.” And into the modern era, Roy Ayers’ artistry has transcended on tracks like Kendrick Lamar’s “Good Kid” and “Celebration” as well as “Shine” by Joey Bada$$.
Unsurprisingly, the hip-hop community has already expressed a groundswell of gratitude and respect for Ayers and his artistry. Mary J. Blige posted “RIP Roy Ayers” on X, while Pete Rock noted on Instagram, “I LOVE YOU MAN IM SO HURT! THANK YOU FOR OUR TIME TOGETHER, Touring together with you was so much fun, the james brown stories you shared with me i will never forget. Thank you for your music,thank you for your friendship! Rest Roy.”
DJ Premier posted on Instagram: “ICON is a status we all strive to earn in our journey of greatness. Thank you ROY AYERS for your heavy soul music. Thank you for touring with GURU and being a member of his Jazzmatazz Vol. 1 delivery. R.I.P. to both of you Kings.”
Part of Ayers’s respect in the hip-hop community is derived from his willingness to work with the artists who’ve sampled and interpolated him. While some of his generational peers downplayed hip-hop’s musicality, he frequently toured and collaborated with hip-hop artists to bolster the rap canon.
He worked with late Gang Starr MC Guru on “Take a Look (At Yourself)” from 1993’s Jazzmatazz Vol. 1 project, helping compose a smooth, vibraphonic ode to accountability. In the album’s liner notes, Guru wrote, “Jazz’s mellow tracks, along with the hard rap beat, go hand-in-glove with my voice.” Roy helped him achieve that mission statement. He later toured with Guru and late jazz musician Donald Byrd on the Jazzmatazz Tour.
Ayers played the vibraphone on Tyler, The Creator’s “Find Your Wings” from the rapper-producer’s Cherry Bomb project. The track is an early glimpse of the modern Tyler, who foregoes shock lyrics on a jazzy instrumental featuring inspirational Kali Uchis vocals toward the end. Tweeting about “Find Your Wings” in 2015, Tyler raved, “roy ayers called me like ‘tyler, hey man, those changes are amazing, your chord selection is just beautiful my man’ OMG MY HEART MELTED.” In 2017, Ayers did a set at Tyler’s Camp Flog Gnaw.
In 2007, he collaborated with Talib Kweli and Ye on “In The Mood,” where he played vibraphone over bouncy drums and vocal chops crafted by Ye. He also played on Talib Kweli’s “Something Special” with Madlib last year.
Renowned music aficionado and The Roots drummer Questlove eulogized Ayers on Instagram by calling him “The cat who birthed us all in the “vibes only” movement. The Soundtrack that ALL the incense you ever burned was truly made for. Thank You Roy Edward Ayers Jr for EVERYTHING you gave us. taught us. showed us. soothed us.”
In 1999, Ayers collaborated with The Roots on “Proceed II,” sprinkling his Vibraphone atop a smooth, bass-driven composition. In 2020, he also co-crafted Roy Ayers JID002 from the Jazz Is Dead series with composers Adrian Yonge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (from A Tribe Called Quest).
The Vibraphone, which Roy Ayers played expertly, is nicknamed “the vibes” in the jazz community for the way its reverberative chime emits reflective energy. It’s no wonder that a beloved vibraphonist would be a key sample source in hip-hop, a genre where aspiration and inspiration loom so large. In 2011, Ayers told Out Da Box TV that he realized he was being sampled when his kids told him about hearing a song of his that “sounded different.” He adds, “It was a wonderful experience because I was wondering how they all knew about my music.” He said he asked hip-hop artists such as A Tribe Called Quest why they liked his music, and he said they told him “they liked the sound,” which he said made him “feel good.”
