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Johnny Otis

 


Singer, musician, composer, bandleader, record producer, and talent scout Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes (Johnny Otis) was born in Vallejo, California on 28 December 1921 and grew up in Berkeley, California. He began playing drums while a teenager. By 1940 he was playing in swing bands and formed his first band in 1945. He discovered Big Jay McNeely in 1948 and Esther Phillips in 1949. In 1950 Billboard identified Otis as the Rhythm and Blues artist of the year.

Johnny Otis (front centre in the image) died from natural causes in Los Angeles, California, on 17 January 2012.

Image: NPR

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