Rude Boys Founder Melvin Sephus, Who Helped Shape '90s R&B, Dies at 61
The Rude Boys appear on the cover of their 1990 debut album, "Rude Awakening." The group scored two No. 1 R&B hits with "Written All Over Your Face" and "Are You Lonely for Me." Founding member Melvin Sephus died Oct. 28, 2026, at age 61. (Atlantic Records/Rhino)
Melvin Sephus, a founding member of the Cleveland R&B group the Rude Boys, whose hits "Written All Over Your Face" and "Are You Lonely for Me" topped Billboard's R&B chart in the early 1990s, has died. He was 61.
Sephus died Oct. 28, according to Gaines Funeral Home in Ohio, which has announced funeral arrangements. No cause of death has been publicly disclosed. The singer, songwriter and musician was part of a quartet whose success grew out of Cleveland's thriving R&B scene and a chance encounter with Gerald Levert, the singer and producer who helped launch their career.
The Rude Boys — Sephus, Larry "Bingo" Marcus, Edward "Buddy" Banks and Joe Little III — came together in the late 1980s. Levert discovered the group performing locally and helped secure a recording deal with Atlantic Records.
Their 1990 debut album, "Rude Awakening," initially struggled to produce a major hit. That changed with "Written All Over Your Face." The Rude Boys featuring Gerald Levert, "Written All Over Your Face," from the 1990 Atlantic Records album "Rude Awakening." (Audio: Rhino Atlantic)The song, written by Marcus and featuring guest vocals from Levert, reached No. 1 on Billboard's R&B chart in 1991 and crossed over to No. 16 on the Hot 100. It spent 31 weeks on the R&B chart and finished the year as Billboard's top R&B single.
The recording prominently featured the voices of Little and Banks, supported by the quartet's harmonies and Levert's unmistakable presence.
The follow-up, "Are You Lonely for Me," also topped the R&B chart, giving the group two No. 1 hits from its debut album. Another single, "Heaven," reached the R&B top 20. "Are You Lonely for Me," the Rude Boys' second No. 1 R&B single from their debut album. (Audio: Rhino Atlantic)The Rude Boys arrived during the rise of new jack swing, but their music retained much of the traditional vocal-group sound associated with the O'Jays, LeVert and other soul acts from their hometown.
Sephus' contributions extended beyond singing.
On the group's second album, "Rude House," released in 1992, he received credits for vocals, keyboards, production and vocal arrangements.
That album produced "My Kinda Girl," another R&B hit with an unexpected place in hip-hop history. A remix by DJ Clark Kent featured a young Jay-Z, years before the Brooklyn rapper released his debut album, "Reasonable Doubt."
Sephus also maintained his musical relationship with the Levert family.
He contributed production and background vocals to "I Got Your Back," a song from Gerald Levert's 1995 collaboration with his father, Eddie Levert of the O'Jays, on the album "Father & Son.
The Rude Boys returned with a third album, "Rude as Ever," in 1997. Their commercial success never again matched the early Atlantic recordings, but the group's ties to Cleveland's soul music community endured.
Following Gerald Levert's death in 2006, members reunited to sing at his funeral, honoring the man who helped bring their music to national audiences.
The Rude Boys were inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame in 2019.
Sephus was the third member of the group's best-known original lineup to die. Marcus died in 2016 and Banks in 2020, leaving Little as the last surviving member of that quartet.
His family has established an online fundraiser to help pay for funeral services, burial expenses, a headstone and a gathering in his memory.
"He gave the world his voice, his music, his talent, and his heart," relatives wrote in the appeal, organized by Maleya Johnson on behalf of the Sephus and Johnson family.
A public viewing is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 13, from 5 to 8 p.m. at Gaines Funeral Home, 5386 Lee Road in Maple Heights, Ohio.
A wake will follow at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, with a celebration of life at noon at Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church, 11115 Kinsman Road in Cleveland. Burial is scheduled at Evergreen Memorial Park Cemetery.
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