Rock 'N' Roll Legend Little Richard Dead At 87

#LittleRichard, the man behind such hits as "Good Golly, Miss Molly!" and "Long Tall Sally," has died at the age of 87.

He was perhaps the pioneer behind the androgynous rock star image later popularized by the likes of David Bowie and Prince, frequently coming out in impressive pompadour hairstyles, clothes that glittered under the spotlight, and wearing colors that were a significant departure for other rockers of his generation. Gone were the muted tones that many of Little Richard's contemporaries wore; when Little Richard came on stage, he was wearing androgynous makeup (usually some sort of eyeliner, at the very least), and he would be wearing clothes that, if not brightly colored, were festooned in crystals or sequins. In later years, he would hit the stage in shoes with a slight heel, shoulder length curls and the same bright colors.

Little Richard, born Richard Wayne Penniman, knew just how deep his influence ran. At the 1988 Grammy Awards, he proclaimed, “I am the architect of rock ‘n’ roll! I am the originator!” according to CNBC.

Indeed, his influence ran deep, with Sir Elton John himself acknowledging that Little Richard had a huge impact on his own hugely successful career.

“Without a doubt – musically, vocally and visually – he was my biggest influence,” John wrote in a series of tweets, according to Rolling Stone. “Seeing him live in my teens was the most exciting event in my life at that point. Goosebumps, electricity and joy came from every pore.”

But life wasn't easy for the electrifying piano player. CNBC reported that as early as 14, Little Richard was performing with bands, but was at odds with his family over his sexual orientation, with his father beating him and proclaiming that he was "half a son." When he left to perform with Sugarloaf Sam, he would on occasion appear in drag.

By 1957, Little Richard was so at odds between his faith and the excesses of rock 'n' roll that he actually left the business, enrolled in theological school and got married. The marriage didn't last long; in 1962, he was arrested at a bus station for a homosexual encounter and shortly thereafter was divorced.

Little Richard's relationship with homosexuality wavered throughout the years, where he would admit to Penthouse at one point that he'd known he was gay his whole life and then years later would renounce homosexuality and proclaim that God did not intend for him to be homosexual. He was, however, something of an icon for the LGBTQ community and even inspired an impersonation of him by #KennedyDavenport of Season 7 of RuPaul's Drag Race.

While he announced his retirement from live performances in 2002 when he was 69, Little Richard did continue to perform in his remaining years while he struggled with a range of health problems, including hip replacement surgery and a heart attack. There was some concern about four years ago that Little Richard was lingering in grave condition, but the singer himself came out and said at the time, "not only is my family not gathering around me because I'm ill, but I'm still singing. I don't perform like I used to, but I have my singing voice, I walk around, I had hip surgery a while ago but I'm healthy.'"

According to The Guardian, Little Richard died May 9, 2020 as a result of bone cancer. After an extensive career of rocking it out on stage and influencing his contemporaries as well as a new generation of rockers, one can only hope that Little Richard will now rest easy.

Here is a small sampling of Kennedy Davenport's send up of Little Richard from Season 7 of RuPaul's Drag Race: