Chuck Brown, pioneer of 'go-go' funk music, dies

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chuck Brown, who styled a unique mix of funk, soul and Latin party sounds to create go-go music in the nation's capital, has died after suffering from pneumonia. He was 75.

Brown died Wednesday at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore. Hospital spokesman Gary Stephenson confirmed Brown had died after a hospital stay that began April 18.

Thanks to Brown and his deep, gravelly voice, go-go music was uniquely identified with Washington. That's where he continued to play the city's club circuit late in life.

Brown's hit "Bustin' Loose" with his group, the Soul Searchers, helped define go-go's sound. It spent several weeks atop of the R&B chart in 1979. Rapper Nelly later sampled Brown's "Bustin' Loose" for his massive hit "Hot in Herre," which won Nelly a Grammy.