(December 18, 2023) The music world is in deep mourning today at the passing of Joseph “Amp” Fiddler, the Detroit-based singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and producer who was as beloved as he was talented. He was 65, and died after an extended illness.
A Wayne State University alum, Fiddler first came to the attention of R&B fans when working with the vocal group Enchantment, but really came into his own as part of the late 80s and early 90s edition of Parliament-Funkadelic.
(December 18, 2023) The music world is in deep mourning today at the passing of Joseph “Amp” Fiddler, the Detroit-based singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and producer who was as beloved as he was talented. He was 65, and died after an extended illness.
A Wayne State University alum, Fiddler first came to the attention of R&B fans when working with the vocal group Enchantment, but really came into his own as part of the late 80s and early 90s edition of Parliament-Funkadelic.
Fiddler’s talent as a keyboardist and producer led to him becoming one of the most in-demand players for the emerging R&B and Neo Soul communities. Over a decade he worked with such luminaries as Prince, Maxwell, Was (Not Was), Jamiroquai and countless other acts. He also worked as an educator, training a generation of young artists in both Los Angeles (where he lived for a period) and then back in Detroit when he came home in the early 2000s. Most notable among them was legendary producer J Dilla.
In Detroit, Fiddler was seen as music royalty, and played a role in that city’s post-Motown re-emergence as a hotbed for new R&B music. And his albums, from 2004’s influential Waltz of a Ghetto Fly right through 2017’s Amp Dog Knights, were essential listening.
It is difficult to grasp the magnitude of this loss of an artist so young and so universally loved. May Amp rest in peace.
By Chris Rizik
Thanks to SoulTracker Gary for letting us know