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Seasoned R&B singer Jesse Powell has suddenly died at age 51.
On Tuesday night, September 13, the crooner's younger sister, Tamera of R&B duo Trina & Tamera, announced Powell's death in a touching post on Instagram. In the message from the Powell family, they explained the "'Bout It, 'Bout It" singer passed away peacefully at his home in Los Angeles. The message, which also includes a black-and-white photo of the singer, doesn't list any other details about his passing nor does it provide a cause of death. At the moment, the family is asking for complete privacy while they mourn Powell.
"It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of our beloved son, brother and uncle Jesse Powell," the message said. "He passed away peacefully in his Los Angeles home. The family asks for privacy at this time as we mourn this tremendous loss and celebrate his everlasting legacy. Jesse loved music and he especially loved his fans who supported him throughout his career. We want you all to know that you meant the world to him."
Born in Gary, Indiana, Powell got his break in 1993 when he signed to Silas Records. Three years later, he dropped his debut album which features contributions from Stokley Williams, Poke & Tone aka Trackmasters, Chris Stokes and others. His self-titled LP also features his smash hit "You." The song garnered so much attention that Powell decided to include it on his second album 'Bout It, which dropped in 1998. The following year, Jesse Powell released "You" as an official single and it really took off. It ended up peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Powell dropped his third album JP in 2001 and followed up with Jesse in 2003, which was his fourth and final album before he retired from the music industry. Rest in peace, Jesse Powell.