The global reggae community is in mourning following the sudden death of singer Leroy Gibbon, who passed away on Tuesday morning at the age of 74. The cause is suspected to be a heart attack, which occurred after he collapsed at a recording studio in Hanover, Jamaica.<\/p>\n
Born on September 18, 1950, Gibbon\u2019s music journey spanned decades and continents. He rose to prominence in the mid-1980s with a distinctive Lovers Rock style and a powerful, soulful voice that captured the hearts of fans worldwide. He became a key figure in the King Jammys camp, performing regularly on the King Jammys sound system and releasing the acclaimed album \u2018This Magic Moment<\/em>.\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Though born in Jamaica, Gibbon spent over 50 years living, creating, and performing in Canada, where his influence on the reggae scene ran deep. Tributes have poured in across social media from fans, friends, and fellow artists. Many reflected not only on his musical legacy but also on his kindness, humility, and passion for the craft.<\/p>\n Promoter TripleA Liz shared a heartfelt message: \u201cFarewell my friend, you will always hold a special place in my heart. We spoke two weeks ago\u2014you were looking forward to your tour in Europe. One Love to an icon.\u201d<\/p>\n Singer Winston Hewitt added, \u201cYou will be missed big time from the reggae musical family worldwide. You will always be one of my favorite reggae artists and a respected musical friend. My sincere condolences to all your family and friends. R.I.P. my brother.\u201d<\/p>\n Fellow reggae artist Leroy Brown, who last saw Gibbon just weeks ago, reflected on their shared history. \u201cHe was a good all-rounder, nice bass singer, and great tenor. We had a lotta good times in di early days,\u201d he said. \u201cWe lost another great artist.\u201d<\/p>\n In recent years, Gibbon had turned his focus to gospel music, working with The Gospel Proclaimers\u2014a return to the spiritual roots of his career, dating back to the 1970s.<\/p>\n Tributes have highlighted Gibbon\u2019s generosity with his time, his gift for performance, and his unwavering dedication to his fans. JUNO Award winner Kairo McLean described meeting and performing with Gibbon as \u201cmind-blowing,\u201d adding, \u201cYou get to rest in paradise with JAH after a long life of working the stage.\u201d<\/p>\n Reggae artist Lascelles Douglas called him a \u201cgiant of an artist,\u201d while community member Nessa St Louis remembered Gibbon singing in her childhood church and performing at Rebel Salute: \u201cI\u2019m sure that your music will live on.\u201d<\/p>\n Elaine Thompson, Entrepreneur, radio host and longtime supporter of Gibbons, captured the sentiment felt by many: Carrie Mullings, radio host and reggae promoter, reflected on Gibbons\u2019 lasting musical legacy: For those who knew him, Leroy Gibbons was more than a singer. He was a joyful presence, a serious musician, and a bridge between eras of Jamaican music.<\/p>\n As fans continue to share memories and tributes, one thing is clear: Leroy Gibbons’ magic moment isn\u2019t over\u2014it lives on in every note he ever sang.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The global reggae community is in mourning following the sudden death of singer Leroy Gibbon, who passed away on Tuesday morning at the age of 74. The cause is suspected to be a heart attack, which occurred after he collapsed at a recording studio in Hanover, Jamaica. Born on September 18, 1950, Gibbon\u2019s music journey […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10874,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[240,239],"tags":[82],"class_list":["post-10881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-canadian-news","category-international-news","tag-featured"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10881","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10881"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10881\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10882,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10881\/revisions\/10882"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandbox.reggaenorthca.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u201cAs an artist he was pure talent\u2014in his delivery, sound, melody and presence. As a man, he was \u2018a real one.\u2019 Gwaan go fyah up Zion, Gibbons!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n
\n\u201cLeroy Gibbons gave us some of the most memorable Jamaican hit songs Jammy\u2019s produced. He toured the world with 80\u2019s classics like \u2018Cupid,\u2019 \u2018This Magic Moment,\u2019 and \u2018I\u2019m in the Mood for Love.\u2019 A jovial man who took music very seriously\u2014that\u2019s how I remember him.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n