THE co-founder of Spring Records who signed R&B stars Millie Jackson and Joe Simon has died at age 94.
Roy Rifkind passed away on Monday at his Boca Raton, Florida home, according to Billboard.
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Roy and his brother Julie formed influential R&B label Spring Records with Bill Spitalsky in 1967 and ran it for decades, the entertainment magazine reported.
Big stars they signed include Millie Jackson and Joe Simon.
They are also credited with charting one of the first-ever hip-hop hits, Fatback’s 1979 “King Tim III (Personality Jock),” according to Billboard.
Other hits highlighted by Ace Records include Fatback's "(Are You Ready) Do The Bus Stop," Joe Simon's "Drowning In The Sea Of Love," and Millie Jackson's "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Wanna Be Right)."
Julie Rifkind died in 2014, and a cause of death for Roy has not yet been revealed.
EARLY LIFE
Roy Rifkind grew up in Brooklyn and followed his father Harry's footsteps into the music industry.
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He and his brother Julie co-managed artists who played at their dad's nightclubs and rode the train from Long Island into the city with Neil Diamond and future record mogul Doug Morris, Billboard reported.
Family members said Roy loved to joke around.
They recalled him inviting them to a black-tie party only to laugh when they arrived in tuxedos while everyone else was in jeans.
His nephew Steve Rifkind described him as "a wise guy" and "the funniest human being you ever met in your life."
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