Dennis “Dee Tee” Thomas: Co-founder of Kool & the Gang is dead

Dennis “Dee Tee” Thomas
Co-founder of Kool & the Gang is dead

Dennis “Dee Tee” Thomas died in New Jersey at the age of 70.

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Dennis Thomas is dead. The co-founder of the cult band Kool & the Gang, known as “Dee Tee”, died at the age of 70.

The music scene is in mourning: The Kool – & – the-Gang co-founder Dennis “Dee Tee” Thomas is dead. The band announced this in an emotional Instagram post. Accordingly, the saxophonist died at the age of 70 in his home in New Jersey. He fell asleep there peacefully. The exact cause of death is not yet known. Thomas leaves behind his wife Phynjuar Saunders Thomas, two sons and a daughter.

“Dee Tee” was a multi-instrumentalist, sat behind the drums for his band, played the flute and was largely responsible for the musical direction. Until recently he was on stage with Kool & the Gang, most recently on July 4th. Together with the bandleaders and brothers Ronald (1951-2020) and Robert “Kool” Bell (71) Thomas made music together in different line-ups since 1964. From 1969 they called themselves Kool & the Gang and achieved international success with a mix of jazz, funk, soul and disco.

Huge successes, especially in the 1980s

Her best-known hits include numerous classics such as “Ladies Night”, “Celebration”, “Fresh”, “Get Down on it”, “Joanna” and “Cherish”. The band celebrated their greatest successes in the 80s. Lately it has been getting quieter for the Americans. The last album “Still Kool” was released in 2007.

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