Leroy Burgess is a NYC born and raised multi-instrumentalist, singer, producer, arranger and composer whose impact on the history of dance music, from the birth of house to the founding of boogie & disco, is beyond measure. Ask producers such as Theo Parrish, Larry Heard, Ron Trent, Dam Funk, Spinna, Little Louie Vega or Motor City Drum Ensemble what they think about the man. Take a random pile of underground disco and boogie vinyls from the late-1970s to mid-1980s and scan the credits. If you're yet to find the name of Leroy Burgess by the time you reach your fiftieth album, consider yourself the victim of bad fortune. The discography of the man is far-reaching and iconic.

Burgess first broke through as part of RnB group Black Ivory, signing to Adams’ Today/Perception imprint and released a string of hits throughout the ’70s. As a solo artist, he moved into disco territory, before joining funk outfit Aleem and helming tracks like ‘Confusion’, ‘Release Yourself’, and ‘Hooked On Your Love’. However, Burgess has arguably become best known for his cameos across various projects, such as Universal Robot Band’s disco grail ‘Barely Breaking Even’, Bumblebee Unlimited’s ‘Lady Bug’ or Larry Levan’s Paradise Garage favourite Logg.

A pivotal figure in the NYC underground who provided a foundation for the house vocalists of the following decades – Burgess’ legacy carried over into this world with Convertion’s ‘Let’s Do It’ given a makeover by Louis Vega on Nurvous Records – his tracks are now sought after by new generations of DJs and dancers. This year, Leroy Burgess will celebrate 50 years of music as he started to work with his first band Black Ivory and producer and friend Patrick Adams back in 1969. Collaborating with Patrick Adams, Inner Life, Aleems, Dazzle and Universal Robot Band & solo artists such as Eddie Kendricks, Rick James or Fonda Rae as well as his own iconic groups Convertion & LOGG.

After a historical gig backed by a ten-piece live band at Nuits Sonores festival in 2016, Mr Burgess is now on the road with Saving Coco, a full backing band described by the man himself as among “the finest that I’ve ever had the honour of sharing a stage with, in 50 years performing”.