US musician and poet Gil Scott-Heron dies at 62

[Gerald]

US musician and poet Gil Scott-Heron, often called the Godfather of Rap, has died in a New York hospital aged 62.

The cause of his death is not clear, but he is believed to have become ill after returning from a visit to Europe.

Scott-Heron's material spanned soul, jazz, blues and the spoken word. His 1970s work heavily influenced the US hip-hop and rap scenes.

His work had a strong political element - one of his most famous pieces was The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.

Scott-Heron's friend Doris Nolan said the musician had died at St Luke's Hospital on Friday afternoon.

"We're all sort of shattered," she told the Associated Press.

Scott-Heron was born in Chicago in 1949 - the son of former football player in Britain - and grew up in Tennessee before moving to New York.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13582880


Note: 28 May 2011 Last updated at 07:58 GMT