Brother Marquis Rochester, NY – Mark D. Ross better known by his stage name Brother Marquis, a longtime member of 2 Live Crew has died. 2LC’s manager confirmed that he died to the media, but didn’t have any further details on the cause or manner. The rapper died on Monday, this according to the group’s official social media accounts. He was 50 years old.
Who Was Brother Marquis?
Brother Marquis, was an American rapper and a Miami bass pioneer. Ross was born in Rochester, New York, in his teens, and with his mother, they moved to Los Angeles, California. By the early 1980s, Ross started to release music with his group The Cautious Crew, and shortly after he made an impression DJ and producer David Hobbs (Mr. Mixx) due to his battle rap abilities.
Early career
In 1983, Ross and fellow rapper Rodney-O, as The Caution Crew, released twelve-inch singles, “Westside Storie” and “Rhythm Rock”. Ross explained that they were created during his time living in California while he was in Junior High. Ross explained that his rapper’s name, Brother Marquis, was coined by his cousin, who, due to his Muslim faith, frequently referred to others as “Brother.” The two would engage in Islamic practices and spend time together in a Grand Marquis car. Over time, his cousin began calling him Brother Marquis.
Career As A 2 Live Crew Member
By the time Marquis joined 2LC, they were already making waves, having released “Throw the D” and other raunchy songs that were putting them on the map and he only bolstered that with witty tongue-in-cheek lyrics that were full of double entendres. He ended up appearing on their album ‘The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are’ … and went on to be featured as a rapper on other albums of theirs as well, including “Move Somethin’,” “As Nasty As They Wanna Be,” “Banned in the “U.S.A.” and “As Nasty as They Wanna Be Part II.”
By the early ’90s, most of the Crew was broken up — but Marquis went on to find more success in the music biz on his own … forming the group 2 Nasty, and he also went on to be featured on a ton of records as well … including for MCs like Ice-T and others. He eventually reunited with some of the 2 Live Crew guys to put out more music, and also released some solo stuff as well.
Tributes
2 Live Crew’s Uncle Luke (aka Luther Campbell) paid tribute to Brother Marquis on social media, writing on X, “My Condolence goes out to the Family of Brother Marquis and so many of his Fans from around the World after learning his passing.
“We took on so many fights for the culture (and) made Great music together something I would never forget. We had recently got back together to take on another fight to get back our catalog that was stolen from us. We will continue that fight in his name for his Family.” He added, “The Brother Marquis that I know would want us to celebrate his life (and) that’s exactly what I’m gonna do. R.I.P My Brother.”
