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The Hip-Hop community is mourning the loss of Detroit legend Amp Fiddler.
On Monday morning, December 18, the official Instagram account for Joseph “Amp” Fiddler confirmed that he passed away overnight. The longtime member of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic band and famed mentor of the late J Dilla had been suffering from an undisclosed illness over the past year. In 2022, Fiddler underwent surgery for his condition and spent months in the hospital. Even after the surgery, Fiddler still had a long recovery and still faced health challenges. Following the news of Fiddler's passing, Hip-Hop figures like Questlove, Posdnuos of De La Soul and more paid homage to him.
"Rest easy brother Amp," Questlove wrote on Instagram. "For all those talks during the Pfunk tour. For all the music. Especially of course mentoring the one who mentored us (Dilla)——thank you brother 🙏🏾 #AmpFiddler"
Amp Fiddler began his journey in the music industry as a member of the band Enchantment before he joined George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic from 1985 to 1996. He was known as an "ambassador of funk, soul, and electronic music." As a musician, he was a singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and producer. After he worked with the likes of George Clinton, Prince and Maxwell, he went on to become a mentor to J Dilla. Fiddler gave Dilla his first Akai MPC sampler, and later introduced him to Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest. Fiddler released his first solo album Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly in 2004 and followed up with six other projects.
Following his release from the hospital, Fiddler's family launched a GoFundMe to help Fiddler pay for his medical bills. Earlier this month, several artists like Dez Andrés, Monica Blaire, Bevlove and Britney Stoney got together to perform at a benefit concert to help generate funds. So far, his family has raised over $78,000.
Rest in peace, Amp Fiddler. See more tributes to the respected musician below.