Foster Sylvers died on Saturday, May 30, 2026, his family confirmed the following day. He was 64.
The bassist and vocalist behind The Sylvers’ 1976 chart-topper “Boogie Fever” had been fighting stage four pancreatic cancer. His brother Leon Sylvers III confirmed the death. His sister Pat Sylvers is expected to provide additional details.
His death marks the end of a career spanning more than four decades, from his breakthrough as an 11-year-old solo artist in 1973 to session work that continued into the 2000s. It also brings renewed attention to a 1994 conviction for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman, which required him to register as a sex offender in California for life.
The Sylvers and “Boogie Fever”
“Boogie Fever” topped both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot Soul Singles chart in 1976. Foster played bass on the track and shared co-lead vocals with his brother Edmund on what became the family’s defining hit.
He joined The Sylvers in 1975, right as the group reached its commercial peak with the album “Showcase.” The Sylvers had originally formed under the name The Little Angels, featuring siblings Olympia, Leon, Charmaine and James, and had been gaining momentum for years before Foster’s arrival.
The family act released a string of hits including “Fool’s Paradise” and “Hot Line,” along with albums titled “The Sylvers,” “The Sylvers 2” and “The Sylvers 3,” becoming one of the defining groups of the disco era. The group disbanded in 1985.
Memphis Roots and Solo Stardom
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Foster Sylvers was 11 years old when he became a star.
His 1973 self-titled debut album featured “Misdemeanor,” written by Leon Sylvers III. The single reached No. 7 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100, launching the Memphis native to immediate fame on American Bandstand and Soul Train, the two most influential music programs of the era.
A second album came in 1974. Then he joined his siblings.
Decades as a Session Musician
After The Sylvers disbanded, Foster continued working as a multi-instrumentalist and accomplished bassist based in Los Angeles, California. He lent his talents to Dynasty and Evelyn “Champagne” King, earning a reputation as a respected session musician while also pursuing solo work.
He co-wrote and performed on “Shake Down,” which became an R&B hit in 1984. In 1989, he formed the band Hy-Tech and released music as Foster Sylvers and Hy-Tech through EMI America and A&M Records, maintaining work as a songwriter, producer and studio collaborator long after the group’s heyday ended.
A Criminal Record
In 1994, Foster Sylvers was convicted of a sex offense for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman. He served a prison sentence and was required to register as a sex offender in California, remaining on the registry for the rest of his life.
The conviction became a permanent part of his public record, sitting uneasily alongside his chart triumphs. His family has never tried to erase that duality, which resurfaced in obituaries announcing his death over the weekend.
Remembering a Musician and Father
His daughter, Erin Sylvers, paid tribute on social media with a photograph of her father, saying “Rest well, Daddy. I love you so much.”
Kevin H. Donan, a Hollywood record store owner who had known Foster for nearly five decades, recalled meeting him as a teenager. Donan remembered, “Foster Sylvers and I met at the Sylvers family Bel-Air home when I first arrived in 1978 from Flint, Michigan,” and recalled early demo sessions with members of the family before the group’s records reached commercial release.
Donan added: “My heart goes out to the entire Sylvers family in prayer. Rest in music Heaven my friend.” Musician Lawrence “LAW” Worrell shared his own remembrance, saying he had watched Foster fight the cancer in their final visits but preferred to remember the years of working together.
The Third Brother Lost
Foster’s death is the latest blow to a family that has buried two brothers already.
Edmund Sylvers, who sang co-lead vocals with Foster on “Boogie Fever,” died of lung cancer in 2004. Christopher Sylvers, the youngest sibling, died in 1985 at age 18. The 1975 group photograph that has circulated widely since the news broke shows James, Foster, Edmund, Ricky and Angie — three of the five now gone.
