It's a Shame: '90s Music Stars We Lost Too Soon
Remembering Brownstone's Maxee and other 90s stars.
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Never Forgotten - Charmayne 'Maxee' Maxwell of the 90s R&B group Brownstone passed away suddenly on Friday after a tragic fall where her throat was slit. Condolences to her family and friends as this freak accident took a life way too soon. As we pay our respects to Maxee, read on as we take a look at other stars from the 90s who left us early.we lose another star from the 90s (Photos from left: Margaret Norton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images, Epic Records)
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Never Forgotten - It's been a year since tragedy struck the music community. May 1, 2013, Chris "Mac Daddy" Kelly, one half of '90s teen sensation Kris Kross, died from a sudden drug overdose. The duo's 1992 hit "Jump" spent eight weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 — the first time a rap song had ever done so, and an important benchmark in the genre's commercial takeover in the years to follow. The song also put their now-legendary mentor and producer, Jermaine Dupri, on the map. (Photo: AP Photo/Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jonathan Phillips)
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Heavy D - Though Heavy D debuted in the '80s, he was a key force in rap's crossover the following decade via pop hits like "Now That We Found Love" and "Nuttin' But Love." In 2011, just 10 days after rocking a comeback performance at the BET Hip Hop Awards, Heavy passed away suddenly due to a pulmonary embolism. (Photo: Marsaili McGrath/Getty Images)
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Big Pun - After a series of epic guest verses, Big Pun's 1998 debut, Capital Punishment, established him as one of the most skilled, charismatic MCs of the era. His versatility made him capable of crafting both crossover hits like "Still Not a Player" and dramatic corner bangers like "The Dream Shatterer." In 2000, after struggling with extreme obesity for years, he suffered a fatal heart attack. (Photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic, Inc)
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Tupac - 17 years after his death in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Tupac is still a global icon today. While his slew of blockbuster records including Me Against the World and All Eyez on Me keep his memory alive, he was also ressurected in 2012 in hologram form at Coachella in Indio, Calif. Thanks to his one-of-a-kind poetic mix of street rage and player's cool, Pac will never be forgotten.(Photo: Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
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The Notorious B.I.G. - Big's two classics, Ready to Die and Life After Death, established him as one of the greatest rappers ever and set a blueprint for successfully treading the line between street cred and crossover success. On March 9, he was murdered in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, a (still unsolved) crime many attribute to his beef with Tupac and rap's then-burgeoning bicoastal war. (Photo: Clarence Davis/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
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Natina Reed - A protégé of Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, Reed was a member of the TLC-like female trio Blaque, who scored hits with songs like “808” and “Bring It All to Me.” In October 2012, Reed was killed after being hit by a car on a Georgia highway. (Photo: Frank Micelotta/ImageDirect)
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Kenny "G-Love" Greene - The lead vocalist for R&B trio Intro, Greene also wrote and produced for the group. Their biggest hits were 1993’s "Come Inside" and a 1994 remake of Stevie Wonder's "Ribbon in the Sky." Shortly after revealing he had the AIDS virus in an interview, Greene died of complications from the disease. (Photo: Atlantic Records)
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Melanie Janene Thornton - The American-born singer found fame in Europe singing lead for the Eurodance outfit La Bouche, who cranked out the mid-'90s hits "Be My Lover" and "Sweet Dreams." Thornton died in a plane crash in 2001. (Photo: WikiCommons)
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David Cole - David Cole was one half of the early '90s hit-making dance music duo C+C Music Factory. The group shot to fame following the multi-platinum success of their 1990 debut album Gonna Make You Sweat. After battling a long illness, Cole passed away in 1995. (Photo: Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
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Orish Grinstead - In the '90s, Grinstead was a one of the original members of the female vocal trio 702, who landed on the R&B charts with songs like "Pootie Tang" and "Where My Girls At." At the age of 27, Grinstead died from kidney failure. (Photo: Biv Town/Motown Records)
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Aaliyah - Known for multi-platinum LPs like One in a Million, R&B superstar Aaliyah was on the verge of becoming a huge film star, too, having garnered notice in the action movie Romeo Must Die. She died in 2001, at the age of 25, in a plane crash. (Photo: Rose Prouser REUTERS /Landov)
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Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes - Before her untimely death in a car crash in 2002, Left Eye was part of the iconic female R&B trio TLC. Their mega-platinum success included ‘90s LPs like CrazySexyCool and Oooooooh… on the TLC Tip. (Photo: Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage)
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Tony Thompson - Thompson was the lead vocalist for the quintet boy band Hi-Five, whose hit singles included 1991's "I Like the Way (The Kissing Game)" and "I Can't Wait Another Minute." Thompson was killed in 2007 after accidentally inhaling a lethal amount of fumes of Freon. (Photo: Giant Records)
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Kevin "Dino" Conner - Ten years before Kevin Conner's life ended in a car accident, he was the front man for Houston vocal trio H-Town, who had everyone in the summer of 1993 singing their hit "Knockin' Da Boots." (Photo: Luke Records)
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Eazy-E - The Godfather of Gangsta Rap, Eazy-E came straight off the streets of Compton and co-founded Ruthless Records, signing the likes of now West Coast royalty Dr. Dre and Ice Cube. The trio formed N.W.A, one of the most controversial rap groups of all time. Together they went on to sell more than 10 million albums even though they were pulled from radio. When he was diagnosed with AIDS, his story helped to spread awareness of the disease. He died at age 31 in 1995.(Photo: Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
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Guru - Although Gang Starr got their start in 1987, Guru and DJ Premier released their first game changing album in 1993, Jazzmatazz Vol. 1. It was the first in a series and critically acclaimed for successfully bridging that gap between eras of music with features from jazz greats Donald Byrd and Roy Ayers. Guru's philosophy was to collaborate with the the types of musicians others were sampling. He died from cancer in 2010. He was 43. (Photo: Paul Natkin/WireImage)
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Nate Dogg - Nate Dogg debuted on Dr. Dre 's instant classic The Chronic and his laid back, melodious rap-singing made it cool for a gangsta to croon, sealing his voice as one of the most unique in the genre. His first hit was 1994's "Regulate" with Warren G, and as a Death Row artist he was featured on many Tupac songs. He died in 2011 after suffering a series of strokes. (Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
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Big L - Still one of your favorite rappers' favorite rapper, Big L's death in 1999 shook the industry. While he wasn't well known in the mainstream, those who heard him praised him as a sleeper cell of lyrical talent — witty one-liners, metaphors, and story-telling. He almost signed to Roc-A-Fella after his most popular song, "Ebonics," released, but he was viciously murdered — shot nine times in his own Harlem doorway in 1999.(Photo: KOI SOJER/LFI)
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Freaky Tah - Freaky Tah was only 27 when he was shot in the back of the head. He was a member of The Lost Boyz along with Mr. Cheeks, DJ Spigg Nice and Pretty Lou, and his gruff hype-man style helped the group chart on Billboard's Hot 100 with their debut single, "The Rich & Shameless," and their debut album, Legal Drug Money, which included 'hood classics "Renee" and "Lex Coups, Bimaz & Benz." That album, and their second, went gold.(Photo: Universal Records)
