Andre Williams
Andre Williams was renowned as one of the coolest R&B acts of the 1950s and
'60s, but he was later better known by many critics as "the godfather of rap.
Born in Bessemer, Alabama, Williams' mother died when he was six years old and
he was raised by his aunt before making his way to Detroit, where he won a
talent contest organised by Fortune Records and began crafting his bawdy,
half-spoken, half-sung style and writing songs for the independent company. He
was soon nicknamed 'Mr Rhythm' and scored his biggest hit in 1956 when his
low-slung bar-room classic 'Bacon Fat' reached num...
