Little Richard obviously never released a heavy metal album, but it's safe to say without Little Richard heavy metal wouldn't exist. Richard died earlier today, Saturday, May 9th, confirmed by his son to Rolling Stone. Richard was 87-years-old.
One of Richard's biggest fans was Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister, who made no secret of what a big influence Richard was one him.
In a 2011 interview with Chicago Tribune, Kilmister said of Richard "Little Richard sang how I felt. I was 12 years old when I first heard him and that music, and I felt it was mine."
In an interview with Louder Than War, Kilmister said "For me it was Little Richard that was the king. Imagine being black and gay from Macon Georgia, no wonder he became a singer — he could never have been a boxer!"
Richard had a series of hits in the 50s including "Tutti Frutti," “Long Tall Sally,” “Rip It Up,” and “Lucille.” Rolling Stone has a great tribute.
