PORTLAN -- Popular Portland drummer and composer Obo Addy has died. He was 76.
Addy's wife, Susan, confirms that Addy died Thursday. She says he had been in hospice care with liver cancer.
More: Pop music writer Ryan White on Addy
Addy was the son of a West African medicine man and was given the designation of "master drummer" at the age of 6. He built a career playing in numerous bands that blended Western pop with traditional African sounds.
In 1978, he moved to the United States and settled in Portland.
In 1986, Addy and his wife founded Homowo African Arts and Cultures, later renaming it the Obo Addy Legacy Project. It focuses on "creating, performing and teaching African arts."
Addy continued to tour and perform and joined the staff at Lewis and Clark College, where he taught music.
In 1996, the National Endowment for the Arts named Addy a National Heritage Fellow.
