Uploaded August 2014 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
James Brown, the “hardest working man in show business” redefined soul music with his emphasis on the funk beat and his style would be copied, sampled, and stolen, by many who followed. But his legacy was tarnished by charges of drug use, wife beating, and a police chase that landed him in prison. This is a story I did when he was in prison about his descent into drug use and features footage of some of his bizarre behavior, and a retelling of the police chase by the cops involved. It also contains an interview with boyhood friend & band member Bobby Byrd describing how Brown cheated him out of royalties.
James Brown, the “hardest working man in show business” redefined soul music with his emphasis on the funk beat and his style would be copied, sampled, and stolen, by many who followed. But his legacy was tarnished by charges of drug use, wife beating, and a police chase that landed him in prison. This is a story I did when he was in prison about his descent into drug use and features footage of some of his bizarre behavior, and a retelling of the police chase by the cops involved. It also contains an interview with boyhood friend & band member Bobby Byrd describing how Brown cheated him out of royalties.
