Leonard “Hub” Hubbard, longtime member of the trailblazing Philadelphia hip-hop crew the Roots, has died, The Philadelphia Inquirer and ABC 6 report. Hubbard’s wife Stephanie confirmed the news to the Inquirer; the cause of death was multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer that Hubbard was diagnosed with in 2007. The Roots posted about Hubbard’s death on their official social media accounts earlier this evening (December 16). “It’s with the heaviest of hearts that we say goodbye to our brother Leonard Nelson Hubbard,” the Roots wrote. “May your transition bring peace to your family to your friends to your fans and all of those who loved you. Rest in Melody Hub.” Hubbard was hospitalized last night at Lankenau Hospital. He was 62 years old.
Hubbard joined the Roots in 1992. At the time, the band was known as the Square Roots, and had not yet issued their debut album Organix, which arrived the next year. Hub played on a string of early Roots albums, including 1994’s Do You Want More?!!!??!, 1996’s Illadelph Halflife, 2004’s The Tipping Point, and more. His final recording with the group appeared on 2006’s Game Theory. Hubbard left the Roots following his 2007 cancer diagnosis. In 2008, he briefly reunited with the band onstage at the annual Roots Picnic.
In addition to recording with the group, Hubbard co-wrote and arranged a number of Roots compositions, and performed as a member of the live band during his 15-year tenure. One particularly notable performance occurred in 2001, when the Roots supported JAY-Z during his MTV Unplugged concert, which was later released as a live album.
In 2016, Hubbard alleged that a contract he’d previously entered with the Roots made him co-owner of the band. He sued former bandmates Questlove and Black Thought, as well as the group’s manager, over failure to pay him as co-owner. Last year, Roots co-founder Malik B. died at the age of 47.
Hubbard’s wife told The Philadelphia Inquirer that her husband had been in remission until last month, and that he’d spent the past several years working on musical compositions. Hubbard was reportedly compiling a record featuring collaborations with Ben Harper, Vernon Reid, and others. Stephanie Hubbard told the Inquirer that the album was finished last week.
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