For most artists, it's difficult to sustain a long-lasting career in the ever-changing
music business. And although some musicians do manage to hit it big with one song — they
fade away just as quickly. Meet the one-hit wonders you didn't know passed away.
In July 2021 the world lost one of the biggest one-hit wonders of all time, Biz Markie. His
song "Just a Friend" peaked at Number 9 on Billboard in 1990, and stayed on the charts
for 22 weeks. The song is a rap by Markie mixed with some of the beat and lyrics of
the 1968 song "(You) Got What I Need" by Freddie Scott. It went platinum in the year of its
release.
Biz Markie was born Marcel Theo Hall in Harlem, New York in 1964. According to Vulture, Markie
burst onto the rap scene in 1985 as a "reputed beatboxer." He came up alongside famous rappers
such as Doug E. Fresh and often worked with Big Daddy Kane. His hip hop talents mixed
with his humorous lyrics earned him the title the Clown Prince of Hip Hop. Markie released
a few more albums after the success of "Just a Friend," and continued to perform for decades,
but he never entered the charts again.
The rapper's health took a downturn starting in April 2020. He died July 16, 2021 in Baltimore,
Maryland at just 57 years old. Markie's cause of death is unconfirmed, but he was known
to have struggled with Type 2 diabetes.
In 2010, Cali Swag District's first single, "Teach Me How to Dougie" became a national
dance sensation. Michelle Obama could be found doing the Dougie at her "Let's Move!" events
and on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. According to the Guardian, the Dougie was inspired by
the dance moves of 1980s hip-hop artist, Doug E. Fresh.
In May 2011, one of the members of Cali Swag District, Montae "M-Bone" Talbert, was killed
in Inglewood, California in a drive-by shooting. According to Billboard, M-Bone was the comedic
center of the group and helped launch the Dougie to mainstream audiences. Talbert was
only 22 years old. After his death, the remaining three members continued and released an album,
The Kickback.
In 2014, the group lost a second member, Cahron "JayAre" Childs. He was suffering from sickle
cell anemia and died of a cardiac arrest after being admitted to a hospital. He was 25 years
old. Following these two tragedies, Cali Swag District dissolved.
Adam Schlesinger formed Fountains of Wayne with Chris Collingwood in the mid-'90s. The
band didn't have a hit until 2003, when they released the song "Stacy's Mom." According
to UDiscoverMusic.com, Schlesinger and Collingwood wrote the song based on a friend of Schlesinger's
who was attracted to his grandma. It was an ode to early puberty. Schlesinger said,
"It's a combination of sexual awakening and limited contact with a large number of people."
The song earned them a Grammy Nomination for Best Vocal Performance and Best New Artist.
Adam Schlesinger was a talented writer and musician who wrote a lot of music for television
in addition to his Fountains of Wayne success. Schlesinger won a Grammy for A Colbert Christmas:
The Greatest Gift of All! He also won three Emmys, one for his work on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,
and two for co-writing for the Tony Awards telecast.
Furthermore, Schlesinger was nominated for an Oscar for the title track in the 1996 film
That Thing You Do! On April 1, 2020, it was announced that Schlesinger had died from complications
caused by COVID-19. He was 52 years old.
Johann "Hans" Holzel went by the stage name Falco, and his song "Rock Me Amadeus" hit
Number 1 on the Billboard charts in 1986. While only known for "Rock Me Amadeus" in
the U.S., Holzel's 1982 debut hit "Der Kommissar" hit European charts when he was only 25 years
old. According to Der Spiegel, Holzel was philosophical about his fame. He said,
"Today platinum, tomorrow tin, today they kiss your feet and tomorrow the dog won't
even look at you."
Technically, "Rock Me Amadeus" is a rap song, meaning that the Austrian singer holds the
distinct recognition of being the first rap artist to reach Number 1 on the U.S. charts.
While Falco never had another hit at the same level, he did sell 60 million records over
the course of his career. While vacationing in the Dominican Republic in 1998, a car Holzel
was driving was hit by a truck. He died at age 40.
Doug Fieger was the lead singer of the band the Knack, whose hit "My Sharona" was Number
1 in the summer of 1979. The song gained attention again in 1994, when it was part of the film
Reality Bites's soundtrack. According to NPR, Fieger was inspired to write the song by a
teenager named Sharona Alperin.
While the two did date, they never married, but remained friends. In an interview for
Variety, Alperin said the song took Fieger less than 15 minutes to write. Fieger was
born in Detroit in 1952, and grew up in Oak Park, Michigan. Before graduating high school,
his band Sky signed to RCA. Sky recorded two albums, but then the band dissolved. In 1978,
Fieger created the Knack. After the success of their debut album and the hit "My Sharona,"
the Knack went on to release a few more albums, but never again reached the success of their
first run. In 2010, Fieger died of lung cancer. He was 57.
Pete Burns was the lead singer of the band Dead or Alive, whose song "You Spin Me Right
Round" reached the Billboard Top 20 in 1985. According to Newsweek,
"The track was also covered by Adam Sandler in the movie 'The Wedding Singer,' Jessica
Simpson in 2005 and had even greater success in 2009 when it was sampled on Flo Rida and
Kesha's 'Right Round.'"
The song was produced by S.A.W., a trio that went on to create other hits such as Rick
Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up." Burns was born in Cheshire, England in 1959. His
father was English and his mother, who was German, had survived the Holocaust. He dropped
out of school at age 14 and had formed the band Dead or Alive by 1980. According to the
Guardian,
"Burns became famous for his androgynous style and his progressive approach to gender."
He even accused Boy George of stealing his style.
"Anybody who sets themselves apart visually is not like anyone else. It's the most obvious
statement you can make, you know, you're visual side."
Dead or Alive recorded several albums, but never again achieved the same level of success
as with "You Spin Me Right Round." Burns remained in the limelight through appearances on reality
shows including Big Brother and Celebrity Wife Swap, and was a well known figure in
the U.K. According to the BBC, Burns died of a cardiac arrest in 2016. He was 57 years
old.
Minnie Riperton is most famous for her song "Lovin' You," which was released in 1974.
The song is a high-pitched lullaby that was originally created for Riperton's daughter,
Maya Rudolph. Yes, the well known comedian from Saturday Night Live and Bridesmaids.
"I didn't really put together that 'Loving You' was for me and my brother."
"Lovin' You" has been featured in commercials for large companies such as Burger King and
Visa. It has also been used in films such as Vegas Vacation and The Nutty Professor.
Riperton was born in Chicago in 1947, and studied music, drama and dance as a young
girl. Before graduating high school, she joined a band called the Gems, which signed with
Chicago's Chess Records. She also performed back up vocals for the Dells and Etta James.
In the late '60s she partnered with her husband, Richard Rudolph, a prolific composer.
Because she had worked as a backup singer for Stevie Wonder, the legendary musician
agreed to help her produce her album, Perfect Angel, which featured the song "Lovin' You."
Riperton's fame grew slowly, but soon she was doing appearances on American Bandstand
and Soul Train. Just as she was offered the opportunity to release another album, she
was diagnosed with breast cancer. She continued to perform for live audiences until her death
in 1979. She was just 31.
Pauly Fuemana was the lead singer of OMC, whose song "How Bizarre" was Number 1 on the
U.S. Billboard Charts in 1997, and stayed on the charts for 32 weeks. OMC stood for
Otara Millionaires Club, in homage to the neighborhood where Fuemana grew up in Auckland,
New Zealand. According to the Guardian, Otara was one of New Zealand's poorest communities,
hence the irony of the name.
Fuemara was born to a Maori mother and a Niuean father and spoke Niuean first. He reportedly
had a rough childhood, joining gangs and later spending time in youth prison. Then, success
came at him fast and he did not handle it well. He was sued by his producer for royalties
and by 2006 had declared bankruptcy. Fuemana continued to work at building his music career,
but never reached the success of "How Bizarre" again.
"It was a good ride while it lasted and I got to see the world. Like, I really got to
see the world."
In 2010, Fuemana died of a rare autoimmune disorder. He was 40 years old and left behind
his wife and six children. According to UDiscoverMusic.com, the hit continues to be popular. It reports
that more than 100,000 TikTok videos incorporate the song's lyrics and that the #HowBizarre
hashtag has generated more than 1.4 billion views.
Chrissy Amphlett was the lead singer of the Australian rock band the Divinyls, best known
for their 1991 hit song "I Touch Myself." The song was a collaboration between the band
and songwriters Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg, who are famous for hits including Madonna's
"Like a Virgin". The music video for the song was directed by none other than Michael Bay.
While the band released seven albums between 1983 and 1996, none of their songs reached
the same level of success as "I Touch Myself."
Amphlett was born in 1959 in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. She formed the Divynals in 1980.
Along with singing and songwriting, Amphlett was an actress, appearing in an Australian
film called Monkey Grip and a stage production of Blood Brothers. In the late '90s, Amphlett
left the band to pursue acting further. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2006,
and breast cancer in 2010. Fittingly, the song "I Touch Myself" has been used in a campaign
to educate women about breast cancer. In 2013, Amphlett died of breast cancer. She was 53
years old.
R&B singer Jermaine Stewart's hit song "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" reached
Number 5 on the Billboard 100 charts in 1986. The song has popped up on the soundtracks
for the film Zack and Miri Make a Porno and TV shows such as Scrubs. According to All
Music, Stewart started off as a dancer on Soul Train and moved on to be a backup singer
for large acts such as Boy George. He landed a deal with Arista records, and released four
albums, with "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" his biggest success.
Stewart was born in Columbus, Ohio, but his family moved to Chicago when he was still
young. He died in 1997 of liver cancer caused by AIDS, according to a book written by AIDS
advocate Dr. Terri Easley. Jermaine Stewart was only 39 years old.
Not to be confused with the Bon Jovi song released in 2000, "It's My Life" was written
and sung by Mark Hollis in 1983. No Doubt also covered it in 2003. "It's My Life" initially
entered the charts in 1984, and it was the first and last hit for the band Talk Talk.
The band was formed in 1981 in London by Hollis. Shortly after, it signed with EMI and began
touring with Duran Duran. After the success of "It's My Life," the band decided to change
its sound, which made them less commercial, but nevertheless they continued to work together
until they released their final album in 1991.
Hollis was born in Tottenham, London in 1955. He was heavily influenced by his older brother,
Ed, who was a music producer. After Talk Talk released its last album, Hollis dropped out
of public life to focus on his family. He later released a solo album, and was commissioned
to do the music for the TV show Boss in 2012, but other than that, he flew under the radar
until his death in 2019. Per NPR, Hollis' manager stated that the musician died due
to a short illness from which he never recovered. The style and genius of Mark Hollis has been
credited as the inspiration for many bands, including Radiohead.
"(I Just) Died in Your Arms" was a Number 1 Billboard hit in 1987 for the band Cutting
Crew. Kevin MacMichael was not the singer, but the lead guitarist and writer for the
group. "(I Just) Died in Your Arms" earned the band a Grammy nomination for best new
artist, and Cutting Crew released a few more albums after their debut success, but failed
to enter the charts again. They ultimately disbanded in 1993.
MacMichael was born in New Brunswick, Canada in 1951. He started playing guitar in high
school, and learned hundreds of Beatles songs. He formed Cutting Crew with Nick Van Eede,
the band's lead singer, in 1985. When MacMichael left the group, he went to work with Robert
Plant as a guitarist and writer. In 2002, MacMicheal was diagnosed with lung cancer.
He died later that year at the age of 51.
It's hard to call Dan Hartman a one-hit wonder, because he wrote many great songs, but he
is only known for singing one. Aside from writing and performing "I Can Dream About
You," which peaked at Number 6 in 1984, he wrote and produced James Brown's "Living in
America," which made it to Number 4. Hartman also wrote "Living in America" for Rocky IV,
which earned Hartman a Grammy nomination.
According to Songfacts, "I Can Dream About You" was initially written for the film Streets
of Fire. It was sung by a fictional group, The Sorels, and the vocals were provided by
Winston Ford. It is Hartman's voice on the soundtrack and the single released that same
year.
Hartman was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in 1950. According to DanHartman.com, he began
playing piano at age 7 and by 13 was writing songs for his brother's band, the Legends.
Dan worked with the Edgar Winter Group in the '70s, until he broke out with his first
solo album in 1976. While his music did well in the U.K., it was not until "I Can Dream
About You" that he reached the U.S. charts. Though he continued to write and produce,
nothing else he released had the same success. According to Metro Source,
"Those close to him believe he contracted HIV some time in the late 1980s. He kept his
status a secret, although he died in 1994 from a brain tumor considered related to his
AIDS diagnosis."
Shannon Hoon was the long-haired, 20-something lead singer for the band Blind Melon. The
group's hit song "No Rain" invaded the public's consciousness in 1993. Released in MTV's glory
days, lots of people remember it from watching the video. It featured a young girl tap dancing
in a bee costume on stage and then wandering around Los Angeles looking for applause until
she finds a field full of bee people just like her.
Hoon was born in Lafayette, Indiana — the same hometown as Axl Rose — in 1967. The
Blind Melon frontman sang backing vocals on several Guns N' Roses tracks, and also shared
lead vocals with Rose on the song, "Don't Cry."
"He invited me to come down to the studio, just to see what it was like to watch an album
be recorded."
At the same time, Hoon was working with Blind Melon, which formed in 1990. In 1995, Hoon
was found dead from a cocaine overdose on his tour bus in New Orleans. His daughter,
Nico Blue, had been born only three months prior. Blind Melon had just released its second
album, "Soup," and Hoon had turned 28 just a month before.
Rob Pilatus was one half of the infamous duo Milli Vanilli, along with Fab Morvan. The
act rose to fame with the hit song "Girl You Know It's True" in 1989. That same year, while
performing a concert in Connecticut, the song that they were mouthing along to skipped.
Pilatus told Biography,
"I knew right then and there, it was the beginning of the end for Milli Vanilli."
It took the rest of the world a bit longer, but a year later it became widely known that
Milli Vanilli was lip-syncing and not the true artists behind the hit. "Girl You Know
It's True" was not even a new song. It was first released by the band Numarx. Music producer
Frank Farian reportedly heard the track and knew he could make it better. He remixed the
song with new vocals and hired Pilatus and Morvan to be the frontmen.
When the news that the performers were not the same artists who recorded their album
broke, Pilatus and Morvan were stripped of their Grammys and ostracized. Though the two
tried to make a comeback on an album of their own, they were never able to reach the level
of success made with Milli Vanilli.
"Money's not that important. For me, music's important just to find my happiness, my inner
peace. And I can't do this with money."
Pilatus died in 1998 of a suspected drug overdose. He was just 33 years old.
Stuart Adamson was the lead singer of the band Big Country, best known for their hit
song, "In a Big Country." The song made it to the U.S. Billboard charts in 1983. According
to Songfacts, Adamson said of the song,
"The lyrical idea was about having hope, a sense of self in times of trouble."
Big Country was nominated for two Grammys, for best new artist and for best rock performance
by a duo or group for their song "In A Big Country." Born in 1958 in Manchester, England,
but raised in Dunfermline, Scotland, Adamson began singing in the punk band the Skids in
his teens. He formed Big Country in the 1980s, and, according to the Guardian, the band once
competed with U2 as contenders for the "Celtic Rock" crown.
Big Country continued to make records and perform until 2000, when Adamson decided to
leave the group. They never had another hit in the U.S. Adamson moved to Nashville to
start an alternative country band called the Raphaels. In 2001, it was reported that Adamson
had taken his own life in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was 43 years old.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit
the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's
National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline​ at​ 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.