Larry Blackmon

Larry Blackmon
Born	(1956-05-24) May 24, 1956 New York City, New York, United States
Genres	R&B, soul, funk, disco
Occupation(s)	Singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, actor
Instruments	Vocals, bass guitar, drums, percussion
Years active	1971–present
Labels	Chocolate City, Will Smith, Mariah Carey, Atlanta Artists, Mercury, Reprise, Way 2 Funky, Raging Bull, Crash, Private I
Associated acts	Cameo, Black Ivory

Larry Ernest Blackmon (born May 24, 1956) is the lead singer and founder frontman of the funk and R&B band, Cameo. Starting the band "East Coast", Blackmon and Tomi Jenkins formed the "New York City Players" as compliment to the Ohio Players. Having to rename the group due to a conflict, the band later called itself Cameo. Blackmon lived in Harlem and played drums on several hits for the band Black Ivory. He is the son of Lee Black, a former boxer.

Along with his unique vocal style, Blackmon's other personal touches included sporting an elaborate hi-top fade haircut and a codpiece over his pants. His signature "ow!" was used as the intro for some of the band's songs and was sampled in Black Box's 1990 dance hit, "Everybody Everybody".

Blackmon appeared as a backing vocalist on Ry Cooder's 1987 album "Get Rhythm" and Cyndi Lauper's 1989 album, A Night to Remember. He also had co-producer credits for Eddie Murphy's 1989 album So Happy.

The snare drum sound that Blackmon created for "Word Up!" and "Candy" was duplicated on releases by a wide range of artists. The group Cameo appeared at Adventureland Palace sponsored by Black Pride, Inc., on April 26, 1978.

One of his sons is heavily involved in the New York political scene, while another son is currently involved in the hip hop music industry.

See also

• Atlanta Artists