British vocalist and founding member of the band UB40, Terence Wilson, better known by his stage name Astro, died after facing “a short illness”, confirmed the band via social media.
“We are absolutely heartbroken and heartbroken to tell you that our beloved Astro passed away today after a short battle with an illness,” said a post on the Twitter accounts of Ali and Astro, founding members of UB40, on Saturday.
“The world will never be the same without him.” Wilson was part of British reggae band UB40 for over 30 years, until he left the group and joined Ali Campbell, another founding member of UB40, in another band lineup in 2013.
UB40 formed in Birmingham in the late 1970s and over the next three decades enjoyed success with songs such as “Red Red Wine” and “(I Can’t Help) Falling In Love.”
The band dealt with social and political issues in their songs, giving voice to working class dissatisfaction with the status quo of the time.
We are absolutely devastated and completely heartbroken to have to tell you that our beloved Astro has today passed away after a very short illness. The world will never be the same without him.
We ask you to please respect his family’s privacy at this incredibly difficult time. pic.twitter.com/GRDjtApyzy
— ALI CAMPBELL & ASTRO (@UB40) November 6, 2021
“I went through the same bureaucracy as most blacks in the late 70s,” Astro told The Guardian in May, recalling the “sus law”, law that gave police permission to search and arrest people they considered suspect – often under racist pretexts.
“We found it harder to write love songs than militant lyrics because it was so much easier to write about things you had witnessed or read. It felt natural to us,” he said.
The current UB40 lineup also paid tribute to the musician, writing on Twitter this Saturday: “We heard this evening the sad news that former UB40 member Terence Wilson, better known as Astro, has passed away after a short battle with an illness. Our sincere condolences to your family.”
Another of the band’s founding members, Brian Travers, died of cancer in August, aged 62.
(This text is a translation. To read the original, in English, click here)
Reference: CNN Brasil
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