James Ingram, Grammy-Winning R&B Singer, Dies at 66

R&B singer James Ingram, who collected two Grammy Awards and a pair of No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits over his decades-long career, has died. He was 66.

The news was shared via Twitter on Tuesday by Ingram’s friend and creative partner Debbie Allen. There are no details yet about when or how Ingram died.

“I have lost my dearest friend and creative partner James Ingram to the Celestial Choir,” Allen tweeted. “He will always be cherished, loved and remembered for his genius, his love of family and his humanity. I am blessed to have been so close. We will forever speak his name.”

Ingram collected two Grammys during his career: His song “One Hundred Ways” was named best male R&B performance in 1981, and his duet with Michael McDonald on “Yah Mo B There” earned the award for best R&B performance by a duo or group with vocals in 1984. He also was nominated for back-to-back best original song Oscars in 1993 and 1994, for co-writing “The Day I Fall in Love” from Beethoven’s 2nd and “Look What Love Has Done” from Junior.

Ingram charted nine hits on the Hot 100, including a pair of No. 1s: “Baby Come to Me,” with Patti Austin, in 1983, and “I Don’t Have the Heart” in 1990. Other top 20-charting hits included “Just Once” (No. 17 in 1981, Quincy Jones featuring Ingram), “Yah Mo Be There” (No. 19 in 1984, with McDonald) and “Somewhere Out There” (No. 2 in 1987, with Linda Ronstadt). He also logged 19 hits on the Adult Contemporary airplay chart and 18 entries on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

Ingram also tallied hits as a songwriter, co-penning Michael Jackson’s top 10 hit “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing),” from the Thriller album, as well as songs recorded by Pointer Sisters, George Benson, Ray Charles, Shalamar and others.

This story first appeared on Billboard.com.

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