Kool & The Gang drummer George Brown dead at 74: Musician passes away from lung cancer after creating the hit songs Ladies Night and Jungle Boogie

George Brown has died at the age of 74.

The musician was the key drummer and one of the founding members of the popular 70s band Kool & The Gang which had dozens of hit songs that had heavy radio play.

He died from lung cancer at his home in Los Angeles on Thursday night, according to TMZ. The star had been battling stage four cancer for a while and was even in remission for a time before the cancer came back.

'George Brown died November 16, 2023 in Los Angeles after a battle with cancer,' his representative told the site.

In addition to being a drummer, he was a songwriter for the hit band that had many classic disco tunes.

Some of their top songs were Ladies Night, Too Hot, Jungle Boogie, Celebration and Cherish.

He had battled lung cancer and was in remission and going back to work when the cancer came back. 

'George was diagnosed in September of 2021 with very rare form of non-small cell lung cancer, with an EGFR exon 20 insertion mutation,' said Dr. Robert A. Nagourney, MD who met with Brown when he was ill.

He wrote about treating the musician for the Nagourney Cancer Institute. 

'Although he responded to initial therapy, within the year the tumor came roaring back with metastasis to lymph nodes, lung, pleura and liver.

'His physicians in Los Angeles treated him with every drug they could imagine, from the newest classes of targeted drugs to conventional chemotherapies, to immune and anti-vascular therapies all to no avail. George was in trouble.'

He went on to she was 'emaciated and weak' but they treated him and he felt better for a while.

The band formed in 1964 in Jersey City, New Jersey and by 1969 had their self-titled first album.

The other founding members included brothers Robert Bell (bass) and Ronald Bell (keyboards), Dennis Thomas (saxophone), Robert Mickens (Trumpet), Ricky West (keyboards) and Charles Smith (guitarist).

Robert 'Kool' Bell is the only surviving member of the band left.

Kool & the Gang have won numerous awards, including two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, and, in 2006, a Music Business Association Chairman's Award for artistic achievement. 

In 2013 the group released a Christmas album Kool for the Holidays. This was the group's 24th studio album.

In 2015, the group received their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Brown is survived by his wife, Hanh Brown, and his five children.

A spokesperson for Brown asked that donations be made in his honor to the Lung Cancer Society of America.