James Brown Jr.
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James Joseph Brown Jr. (1933 - 2006)

James Joseph "Godfather of Soul" Brown Jr.
Born in Barnwell County, South Carolina, United Statesmap
Ancestors ancestors
[sibling(s) unknown]
Husband of [private wife (1930s - unknown)]
Husband of — married about 1984 (to 6 Jan 1996) [location unknown]
Husband of [private wife (1960s - unknown)]
Died at age 73 in Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, United Statesmap
Profile last modified | Created 10 Feb 2020
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Biography

Notables Project
James Brown Jr. is Notable.

James Brown, the "Godfather of Soul," was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader who inspired and influenced not only other performers, but several genres of music as well. He built a reputation as a tireless live performer.

James Joseph Brown was born in a shack during the Great Depression in rural Barnwell County, South Carolina, USA, on 3 May 1933. He said he was the only child of Joe Gardner Brown, of "mixed African-American and Native American" descent, and Susie Behling, of "mixed African-American and Asian" descent.[1][2]

About 1940, probably after his mother left (she fled to New York to escape an abusive relationship), the family moved to Augusta, Georgia. He lived with his paternal great-aunt Hansom (Scott) Washington, and his aunt Minnie Walker also helped with his upbringing.[2]

James Brown married four times:[2]

  1. 1953/June/19 in Toccoa, Augusta County, Georgia to Velma Warren (divorced: 23 August 1969, with three sons)
  2. 1970 in Barnwell County, South Carolina to Deidre "Dee Dee" Jenkins (divorced: 10 Jan 1981, with two daughters)
  3. 1984 to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (1950-1996) (separated: April 1994, with no children; widowed 1996)
  4. 2001/December/23 at his home, Beech Island, South Carolina to Tomi Rae Hynie (with one son)

On 15 March 1966 he won his first Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording, for the song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag," -- the first of his eventual seventeen #1 hits on the R&B chart.

By 1967 his emerging sound began to be defined as funk music ... By this time [1969] his vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades.
... For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most spectacular productions in American popular music ... He wore extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. He danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides ... [3]

He was known as the hardest working man in show business - his performances were famous for their intensity and length. In addition, his horn players and singing group typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later included backup dancers. His unique dance style was an inspiration for those who came after him, including Michael Jackson and Prince.

He recorded 17 singles that reached #1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart which did not reach #1. [3] The song "Living in America" was his last Top 10 single and was heavily featured in the movie Rocky IV, starring Sylvester Stallone as his famous character, Rocky Balboa. It helped him win his second Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 1987. In a career that lasted over 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres.[3]

Brown is ranked #1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked #7 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of its "100 Greatest Artists of All Time." Rolling Stone has also cited him as the most sampled artist of all time.[3]

His personal life was scarred by domestic violence and tragedy, beginning with his parents and his mother's flight. But his second wife, "Dee Dee," tracked down his mother in New York City and reunited the two. [4] His eldest son, Teddy Brown, died in a car crash at age 19 on 14 June 1973.

On 26 Jan 1988, James Brown was appointed to the personal military staff of Gov. H. Guy Hunt as Aide-de-Camp with the rank of Hon. Lieutenant Colonel in the Alabama State Militia. [5]

On 1 August 2000, he signed his last will and testament and an irrevocable trust, which list among his heirs his acknowledged children living as of that date.[6][7]

Six years later he died on 25 December 2006 [8] [9] [10] [11] of pneumonia at Emory Crawford Long Hospital in Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, USA [3] and was buried at the Thomas Family Home Crypt in Beech Island, Aiken County, South Carolina, USA. [12] [13] A number of memorial ceremonies were held; one was at the Apollo Theater, where he had performed many times and in 1962 had recorded a live album which spent 66 weeks at the top of the Billboard albums pop chart. [3]

Research Notes

Discrepancy in birth date

b: 03 May 1933 ? (obits) OR
b: 10 Jun 1932 ? (per SSclaim).

James Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them (five sons and four daughters). He also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. According to an article published on 22 Aug 2007 in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least 3 extramarital children.

Found 3 instances of connections in his line to WILLIAMS ...

  1. GGGgrandfather Moses Behling m: c1855 Charlotte Williams
  2. Ggrandfather Perry had a daughter Eva Bryant m: c1915 ??? Williams
  3. grandmother Rebecca (Bryant) Behling had a Catherine Williams living with her in 1940 census.

Sources

  1. James Brown and M. Eliot, "Introduction," I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life Soul, (New York: New American Library, 2005).
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Kimberly Powell, genealogist, "Ancestry of James Brown," ThoughtCo, Oct. 2, 2020, thoughtco.com/ancestry-of-james-brown-1421630. Sources not included.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Wikipedia for "James Brown" (accessed April 22, 2022)
  4. "James Brown’s mother, Susie, wrongly depicted in movie" by Don Rhodes in "Augusta Chronicle" on 31 July 2014
  5. "The James Brown Collection: Lot 84, James Brown Proclamation" Christie's; 17 Jul 2008; (accessed Aug 04, 2022)
  6. BROWN-THOMAS v. HYNIE, civil action #1:18-cv-02191-JMC; 367 F.Supp.3d 452 (2019)
  7. S.C. Supreme Court freezes Brown estate case
  8. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index 1936-2007 on ancestry.com for James Joe Brown, Jr., b: 10 Jun 1932 Barnwell County, South Carolina (father: Joseph Brown & mother: Susie Bedhling) race: black; ss#259323801 (notes: 1943/Jul as James Joe BROWN, Jr; 1989/Mar/06 as James BROWN) d: 25 Dec 2006
  9. U.S., Social Security Death Index 1935-2014 for James Brown, b: 03 May 1933; ss#259-32-3801 issued: before 1951 Georgia; res: Beech Island, Aiken, South Carolina, 29842; d: 25 Dec 2006
  10. "Boston Globe" published: 26 Dec 2006 in Boston, MA, USA; for James Joe Brown, Jr., b: 03 May 1933 Barnwell County, SC (father: Joe & mother: Susie) res: Augusta, GA.; d: 26 Dec 2006 Atlanta, GA @73yrs; obituary: 26 Dec 2006 Beech Island, Aiken, South Carolina, USA; spouse: Tomi Raye Hynie
  11. Web: Obituary Daily Times Index 1995-2016 on ancestry.com for James Brown, b: c1933 Barnwell County, SC; d: c2006 Atlanta, GA @73yrs; published: 27 Dec 2006 USA
  12. U.S., Cemetery and Funeral Home Collection 1847-Current citing numerous large city newspapers; for James Joseph Brown, Jr., b: 03 May 1933; d: 25 Dec 2006 Atlanta, GA @73yrs
  13. Find A Grave: Memorial #17147643 for James Brown, b: 03 May 1933 Barnwell, Barnwell County, South Carolina, USA; d: 25 Dec 2006 Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; buried: Thomas Family Home Crypt, Beech Island, Aiken County, South Carolina, USA

See also:

  • "Notable Black American Men" by Thomson Gale Research of Farmington Hills, Michigan in 1998, citing doc#K1622000047 for James Brown
  • "James Brown, the Godfather of Soul" by James Brown with Bruce Tucker (New York, NY: Thunder's Mouth Press 1997)




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Many African Americans that have mixed Native or other ancestry coming from a Black/Native mixed ancestor. Via the one drop rule/laws would still be listed as black or mulatto. African American genealogy isn't as straightforward and requires more work overall. As well as being aware of how the social/political landscape and laws/policies played out in this community. Many of the laws/policies are what shaped the identity of Black/African Americans vs how they self identified which they weren't allowed to express(forced assimilation erasure of culture/identity while enslaved).

The policies were put in place to prevent Black people from gaining access to land or funds through their Native Ancestry. So they would rarely make the rolls depending on if there was still a Native parent/relative present to act as the living proof basically.

Unless they got that part of their Ancestry from a White/Native mixed ancestor. Many won't find a paper trail or specific family to trace it back through. So the next resort from that point on is to use DNA. Seeing as most of this ancestry admixture would occur prior to 1850. Most African Americans don't make it past that mark in research because the trail becomes very sparce or dries up completely. Unless they are attached to FPOC communities, or have roots in Louisiana where they kept better records as far as African related ancestry goes. Not many will break into the late 1700s besides the European portion of their tree. After 1850 your going to be looking for people who are listed sometimes not even by name. In a will with the furniture and cattle, or in probate records maybe church records. Slave schedules list only gender and age. So you would have to be thorough with the comparisons at that point. This is still within the early 1800s and you'd going to be utilizing alot of advanced tricks to get through brickwalls.

Anyone of mixed Native Ancestry whether or not they had black blood was called mulatto. This only shifted later to apply to black/white mixed individuals and from there to just listing them as Black. I've seen this play out in my own tree whether they attempted to enroll or not. The only way to prove James Browns claim as fact or fiction would be for his family to test. Paper trails for African Americans are only going to be as good and accurate as the people recording care to make them. Sadly our genealogy was never considered worthy enough to always get recorded, or to remain free of bias during that time when recorded.

posted by Audrey Moore
I have seen statements to the effect that James Brown believed he had some native American and Asian ancestry. Is there any documentation that substantiates this? So far, I have not found any such evidence in the research I've done. All of his known ancestors seem to be described as Black.
posted by Stephen Harper

Rejected matches › Joe Albert Brown Sr (1934-2006)