Questlove broke sad news via Instagram that his father, singer Lee Andrews, passed away on March 16 at the age of 79.
The Roots’ drummer shared a photo of his late father with his ’50s doo-wop group Lee Andrews & The Hearts and credited him for being influential in his passion for music.
In the lengthy post, Quest called his father the “greatest teacher” he had. The post accompanied a video which played some of Andrews’ songs.
“The Greatest Teacher in my life, my dad Lee Andrews June 2nd 1936-March 16 2016. I love you,” he wrote. “For every backstage experience. For every drum lesson. For giving me your tireless work ethic. For our father & son record binging expeditions. For our arguments over the summer I discovered #ItTakesANationOfMillions.”
E! News noted that the hashtag is a reference to the group Public Enemy as it is the title of their sophomore album.
The post went on, “For the look on your face when I told you ‘imma give this rap thing a try’ (I waited til our 2nd album to have this convo btw). For the look on your face 5 years later when I told you ‘You don’t have to work no more.’ For the look on your face when a year later I was like ‘Seriously dad, you don’t have to work anymore!’
“For bringing my mom & my sister into my life. For the years we fell out. For the years we put it back together,” Questlove concluded. “But really, for the last 2 conversations we had. I understand why you were so hard on me praying I didn’t succumb to a fate not meant for a teenager in west philly in the mid 80s. I didn’t understand it at the time. But I appreciate it now. I hope Donn & I do you proud.”
Andrews founded The Hearts in 1953 in Philadelphia. The band’s hits included “Teardrops,” “Long Lonely Nights” and “Try the Impossible.”