Brother Marquis Dies: 2 Live Crew Rapper Was 58

Brother Marquis, the rapper and longtime member of hip-hop group 2 Live Crew, has died at 58.

His death was announced on 2 Live Crew’s Instagram account on Monday night. The post did not indication a cause of death or or where the rapper died.

Founded in 1984 in Riverside, California 2 Live Crew found its most famous line-up after moving to Miami, where in 1986 Brother Marquis (aka Mark Ross) joined Christopher Wong Won (Fresh Kid Ice), Luther Campbell (Luke Skyywalker); and David Hobbs (Mr. Mixx).

That line-up would see the group’s greatest fame and impact in the late 1980s and early-mid 1990s, perhaps reaching a peak with the 1989 album As Nasty as They Wanna Be, which drew praise from fans and critics but condemnation from commentators and law enforcement for its sexually explicit language.

In 1990, a Florida undercover police officer attended a club performance, prompting misdemeanor obscenity charges to be filed against the group. Three of the group’s members, including Brother Marquis, were charged with misdemeanor obscenity charges. The men were found not guilty by a jury.

Also at the time, a court ruled that As Nasty as They Wanna Be was legally obscene, a first in U.S. history for an album. The ruling was overturned on appeal.

Born Mark Ross on April 4, 1966, in Rochester, N.Y., Marquis spent time in both Los Angeles and Miami before joining 2 Live Crew in 1986. His record debut with the group was the The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are in 1986. He also appeared on the albums Move Somethin’ (1988), As Nasty As They Wanna Be (1989), Banned in the U.S.A. (1990) and As Nasty as They Wanna Be Part II (1991).

2 Live Crew disbanded in the mid-1990s, but regrouped for reunion tours in the 2000s, finally calling it quits after the death of Fresh Kid Ice in 2017.

Information on survivors of Brother Marquis was not immediately available.