(ThyBlackMan.com) While driving home yesterday, I received an urgent phone call from someone seeking confirmation that one of hip-hop’s most successful and revered artists, Heavy D had passed away.
She assumed that I would be a reliable source because in addition to being a fan of his classic hits such as the “Overweight Lover,” “Girls They Love Me,” “I Want Somebody,” and “Got Me Waiting,” I also promoted some of Heavy D’s music videos during my tenure as an executive at MCA Records and also while working closely with him, during his stint as president of the 
Uptown/Universal label.
I immediately called another close friend of Myers, who confirmed that at around 11:25 AM PST, a 911 call was placed in regards to an unconscious man, who had collapsed on the walkway of his Beverly Hills home. After regaining consciousness in the ambulance, about 90 minutes later, Heavy D was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Although not officially confirmed, the cause of death has been cited as “respiratory complications.”
Heavy D, whose real name was Dwight Arrington Myers, was 44 year old.
Heavy D is one of the few artists, who I first enjoyed as a fan, then became involved with in a business relationship and finally with whom I made the transition into having a real friendship. I reminisced back to 1996 about an irate Heavy D calling my office to complain about not enough promotion on his protege artists, Monifah and Soul for Real.
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