Velvety-voiced R&B singer-songwriter Leon Haywood was known best for his 1970s single “I Want’a Do Something Freaky to You.”
Leon Haywood, a velvety-voiced R&B singer-songwriter known best for his 1970s single “I Want’a Do Something Freaky to You,” died April 5, 2016, according to multiple news sources, including Rolling Stone and The Associated Press. Haywood was 74.
The death in Los Angeles was verified by Haywood’s godson Darnell Price, a rapper who goes by the name OG Cuicide. The cause of death was not announced.
Haywood’s hit was sampled on “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang,” Dr. Dre’s duet with Snoop Dogg. 50 Cent also sampled “I Want’a Do Something Freaky to You” on his song “Corner Bodega,” as did Aaliyah on her single “I Gotcha Back.”
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Haywood was born Feb. 11, 1942, in Houston, Texas. He started playing piano as a young boy. By the 1960s, he had moved to Los Angeles, ending up as a keyboard player in the band of R&B singer Sam Cooke until Cooke’s death.
In 1965, Haywood released the R&B single “She’s With Her Other Love.” In the 1970s, as the funk and disco hit a groove in the U.S., Haywood altered his style. “I Want’a Do Something Freaky to You” reached No. 15 on the pop chart. He followed up with “Strokin’ (Pt. II)” in 1976 and “Party” in 1978. Both tunes rose to the top 25 on the R&B chart.
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