Culture
John Forté, Grammy-Nominated Recording Artist and a Collaborator with the Fugees, Dies at 50
John Forté, a Fugees Collaborator, Passes away at the Age of 50
John Forté, a famous recording artist recognized for his collaborations with the Fugees, has died at the age of 50.
His body was discovered on Monday, January 12, at his place in Chilmark, Martha’s Vineyard, as reported by MV Times. No further details on the cause of death have been made available yet.
The Chilmark police department stated that it was a neighbor who found Forté alone and lying on the kitchen floor and after that, they called the police at 2:25 p.m. The officers found him to be unresponsive and not breathing. He was pronounced dead at the scene and there was no indication of any crime.
John Forté: A Beloved Musician’s Journey and Impact
Chilmark Police Chief Sean Slavin recalled the death of Forté and remarked, “Considering it is such a small community, this death has really touched us personally. Being on such a small Island, you get both the good and the bad in that.”
Forté had been through some serious health battles, and one of them was the seizure that led to his hospitalization a year ago.
John Forté grew up in Brooklyn and started playing the violin. Later, at New Hampshire’s Phillips Exeter Academy, he continued with music. Then at New York University he shared a room with rapper Talib Kweli and after a while decided to drop out and join the underground hip-hop label Rawkus Records instead.
Back in the early 90s, Lauryn Hill brought him in contact with the Fugees. Forté was a co-writer and producer on several tracks from their Grammy-winning 1996 album The Score, and he got his first Grammy nomination at the age of 21.
John Forté’s Career Highlights and Legal Conflicts
After collaborating with the Fugees, John Forté went on tour with the group, and later contributed to Wyclef Jean’s 1997 solo debut album, The Carnival. Forté’s first solo album, Poly Sci, with production by Jean, came out in 1998.
Unfortunately, the turn of the century was a turning point for Forté as he was arrested at Newark International Airport with possession and intention to distribute liquid cocaine. Subsequently in 2001, Forté was handed a 14-year sentence behind bars due to mandatory minimum drug laws.
John Forté was not deterred from his passion for music while serving time in a low-security correctional facility in Pennsylvania. He penned and recorded his sophomore album, I John, which included features by Carly Simon and Herbie Hancock, amongst others.
John Forté’s Release and Support from Carly Simon
Carly Simon and her son, Ben Taylor, became the main supporters of John Forté and claimed that a 14-year prison sentence was a severe punishment. Their work caught the attention of the whole country, and in November 2008, President George W. Bush decided to grant Forté clemency. Four weeks after that, he was set free.
In her 2008 Vanity Fair piece, Simon called Forté her “godson.” She shared that she had met him through her son, Ben, and that she had been impressed by his work with the Fugees as well as his debut solo album.
“However, it was life that changed things,” Simon penned. “A 14-year prison sentence for drug charges was inflicted on him, and I became involved, sure the punishment was wildly disproportionate. Before long, my days were all about his liberty.”
John Forté’s Later Period and Musical Impact
During the final years of his life, John Forté was a vibrant and esteemed artist in the local music scene of Martha’s Vineyard where he lived with his wife and two kids.
He wrote the original music for the documentary about Breonna Taylor, Bree Wayy: Promise, Witness, Remembrance. Forté came out with his new album Vessels, Angels & Ancestors in 2021.
When talking about the album to Billboard, Forté said: “For me, unlike the previous projects, I didn’t have to deal with the internal struggle of self-doubts like ‘I’m not sure if I can do this.’ At the very beginning, I understood that I should let go of my resistance and just flow with the experience.”
