Victor Willis, lead singer of the 1970s disco band Village People, has died. He was 74 years old.
“It is with great sadness that I must announce the passing of my husband… Victor passed away on Tuesday… as a result of a short but aggressive illness,” Willis’ wife, Karen Huff Willis, wrote on the musician’s Facebook page on Wednesday. She added: “The family requests privacy at this time of great loss.”
Texas-born Willis was the front man for the Village People, a name inspired by New York City’s Greenwich Village, which dominated the charts with “Macho Man,” “In the Navy” and “YMCA,” which was undoubtedly their biggest single. Willis was co-writer of their most successful songs.
Originally formed by Welles with French producers Jacques Morali and Henri Bellolo, Willis rose to international fame, performing as a policeman or naval officer alongside bandmates including Randy Jones, Glenn Hughes, Felipe Rose, David Houdo and Alex Brealey. Tension arose in 1980 when Willis left the band, in what would be the beginning of decades of legal battles over copyright concerns. They were about to begin filming Nancy Walker’s feature film, a pseudo-biopic about the village people called Can’t stop the music.
During this time, he consistently refused to perform any Village People songs and turned down offers to make further recordings. In 1979 he recorded a solo album entitled Single mandespite not being released for 35 years. In August 2015, Single man out. Willis re-teamed with the Village People in 2017 after reaching an out-of-court settlement and has toured with the band internationally. And just last year, they took to the stage at the rally leading up to President Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Willis was a prolific stage actor and performed in a large number of musicals and plays throughout his career, including the original Broadway production of the play. Wiz.
Later in life, he spoke openly about his struggles with drug addiction after leaving the Village People. In 2007, after leaving rehab, Willis said in his first public statement in 25 years: “The nightmare of drug abuse has been lifted from my life… I look forward to living the second part of my life without drugs.”
From 1978 to 1982, Willis was married to Felicia Ayers Allen, now Phylicia Rashad, who played Claire Huxtable. The Cosby Show. On November 17, 2007, Willis married Karen Huff, an attorney and entertainment executive.
