Last updated: 2 hours ago
Wesley Willis was a schizophrenic street singer who built up a small cult following with his bizarre, three-chord rants about trivial everyday items, music, and people he knew. Willis was discovered singing on the streets of Chicago in the early '90s. For the first part of the decade, several independently released tapes of his songs appeared, eventually followed by indie recordings of his albums. By 1995, he had gained the attention of several well-known musicians, including <a href="spotify:artist:40Yq4vzPs9VNUrIBG5Jr2i">Smashing Pumpkins</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:1w5Kfo2jwwIPruYS2UWh56">Pearl Jam</a>. Shortly before signing a major-label contract with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22American+Records%22">American Records</a> in 1996, Willis was profiled on MTV, which resulted in increased recognition in certain alternative rock circles. However, it didn't result in good sales, and both of his <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22American+Records%22">American Records</a> of 1996 -- Fabian Roadwarrior (released in August) and Feel the Power (released in October) -- were flops. Black Light Diner appeared to little notice in 1997. And in mid-2000, Willis released Dr. Wax and Rush Hour. Shake Your Piggy Bank followed in early 2001. Willis was diagnosed with leukemia in 2002 and was recovering from surgery when he died at the age of 40 on August 21, 2003.~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Monthly Listeners
68,263
Monthly Listeners History
Track the evolution of monthly listeners over the last 28 days.
Followers
58,675
Followers History
Track the evolution of followers over the last 28 days.
Top Cities
1,525 listeners
871 listeners
865 listeners
828 listeners
786 listeners
Related Artists
The Yellow River Boys
Tay Zonday
PLUMMCORP RECORDS
Vincent Gargiulo
Alfred Montejano
Scott Gairdner
Gmcfosho
Waffle House Records
The Kids of Widney High
The Whitest Kids U' Know
Maxeboy
Daniel Larson
mrgirl
Binky the Slinky
lil Cumtism
Lil Jesus
