Tributes pour in as beloved Kool & the Gang singer dies in horror car crash aged 71
29 May 2025, 09:54
Kool & the Gang singer Michael Sulmer has died aged 71 following a horror car crash.
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Known as “Chicago Mike”, the beloved singer and hype man has been remembered as being the “life of the party” during the group’s long career.
Sulmer was killed in a car crash in Atlanta, Georgia, on Saturday night.
His black Nissan collided with another car on Veterans Memorial Highway on Buckner Road.
The other driver survived the tragic incident.
Tributes have poured in for the beloved soul artist in the wake of his death.
On friend told Fox 5 Atlanta his passing was a “devastating blow" for all those who knew him.
He added: "He always wanted to see other people succeed in the business that he’d been around most of all of his life."
Founding member of the band, Robert “Kool” Bell, added: "It’s a bittersweet feeling.
"We’ve lost another brother, and the stage won’t be the same without Mike.”
Kool & the Gang shot to fame in 1969 and went on to become one of the most beloved R&B and soul groups of their era.
During their illustrious career, the band won two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, earned 25 Top Ten R&B hits, nine Top Ten Pop hits and 31 gold and platinum albums.
Perhaps best known for their iconic single “Funky Stuff”, Kool & the Gang would later be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2024.
