Foster Sylvers, former child star of 1970s band The Sylvers, dead at 64
Foster Sylvers, the former child star of the 1970s family band The Sylvers, has died aged 64.
The Sylvers achieved a number of huge chart successes during the era with hits such as ‘Boogie Fever’, ‘Hot Line’, and ‘Fool’s Paradise’, often being compared to the Jackson family in doing so.
The news of Sylvers’ passing was announced in a Facebook post by his daughter Erin, who wrote “Rest well, Daddy. I love you so much,” before following this up with a separate Instagram post.
“My Daddy,” she wrote. “You fought a good fight and ran your race the best you could. I’m happy you’re no longer suffering. You’re finally with God. Thank you for all the lessons and laughs. For teaching me how to rely on God and walk in faith. This is hard, but I will be okay.”
Sylvers’ daughter stated no cause of death in these posts, but TMZ reported that he died in hospice care following a battle with stage four pancreatic cancer, as confirmed by his brother, Leon Sylvers III.
The Sylvers were an acclaimed R&B group of the 1970s, with nine of the ten siblings from the family performing in the group throughout various times in their career.
For his own part, the bassist and vocalist also embarked on his own solo career in 1973 at the age of just 10, releasing his first hit single ‘Misdemeanor’, which had been written by his older brother, Leon.
However, Sylvers was perhaps best-known for his lead vocals, alongside his brother Edmund, on the band’s number one single ‘Boogie Fever’ in 1976, which topped both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot Soul Singles charts.
In 1994, Sylvers was convicted of a sexual offence and sentenced to a prison term, for which he remained on the sex offenders’ register in California.
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