Full Name: James Joseph Brown; Profession: American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader, widely known as the pioneering “Godfather of Soul” and central progenitor of funk music; Nationality: American; Born: May 3, 1933; Birthplace: Barnwell, South Carolina, United States; Generation: Silent Generation (part of the cohort born roughly between 1928 and 1945 who came of age during the Great Depression and Second World War); Chinese Zodiac: Water Rooster (1933 Rooster year with Water element in Chinese astrology); Zodiac Sign: Taurus; Age in 2026: 93 (he would have been 93 years old in 2026 if still alive); Marital Status: Officially married three times—to Velma Warren, Deidre “Dee Dee” Jenkins, and Adrienne Rodriguez—with a later long-term but legally disputed union with Tomi Rae Hynie, leaving him effectively unmarried in a legal sense at the time of his death after separations and widowhood; Children: Father of at least nine acknowledged children and possibly as many as thirteen, including sons and daughters born within his marriages and through other relationships, with several additional offspring confirmed by paternity tests after his death; Description: James Brown emerged from extreme poverty in the rural American South to become one of the most influential and hard‑driving performers in twentieth‑century popular music, transforming rhythm and blues into a new, rhythm‑centered sound that laid the foundations for funk, reshaped soul, and profoundly influenced later genres such as disco, hip‑hop, and modern R&B. Raised amid economic hardship and frequent instability after his mother left and he was sent to reform school as a teenager, he channeled his experience into raw, intensely physical performances that earned him enduring nicknames like “Mr. Dynamite,” “Soul Brother Number One,” “The Hardest Working Man in Show Business,” and “The Godfather of Soul,” reflecting marathon tours in which he sometimes performed hundreds of shows a year. Across a career spanning more than five decades, Brown recorded a string of landmark hits—including “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag,” which helped define funk and won him a Grammy; “I Got You (I Feel Good)"; and the civil rights era anthem “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud,” whose assertive lyrics became an unofficial rallying cry for Black Power and Black pride—while his tightly drilled bands, polyrhythmic grooves, and explosive dance routines influenced generations of artists from soul and rock to pop and rap. Honored as one of the first ten inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and later recognized with major awards, including Grammys and national cultural honors, he is frequently cited by historians and popularity-ranking projects as the single most famous and historically significant person born on May 3, his commanding stage presence, relentless work ethic, and emphasis on rhythmic innovation making him a foundational figure for countless later performers and producers worldwide. Cause of Death: Brown died in Atlanta, Georgia, in the early hours of December 25, 2006, after being hospitalized with symptoms of early congestive heart failure and a mild heart attack, with his official cause of death recorded as congestive heart failure related to heart disease and fluid in his lungs, widely reported at the time as complications from pneumonia, at age seventy-three.