Otis Brown

Otis Brown Jr. was born March 14, 1942 in Memphis, Tennessee, before moving out to the hinterlands of Marianna, Arkansas, on the periphery of the Mississippi Delta. Discovering a bad childhood case of asthma, Brown's mother moved the family to Chicago to visit the (then) state-of-the-art Cook County Hospital facility to treat his ailment. Growing up in the now-notorious Englewood neighborhood, it was at the time a cultural oasis, with the Tivoli Theater near by, and doo-wop groups everywhere. Soon he was carousing with local luminaries Tyrone Davis and Major Lance, and opening for the Isley Brothers at Club Delisa or Jr. Walker & the All-Stars at The Packing House. His career on the rise, he joined forces with his mother's boyfriend, Browly Guy, and his uncle King Bevil to form the Ole label. Their first release was Brown's ode to his adopted hometown, Chicago's South Side, recorded at the top studio in town, Universal. The label was short-lived, only issuing another single on Brown and one other single on The Paramonts. After disputes with his partners disintegrated the enterprise, Brown would found his own pair of labels within a few years, Lujuna (named for his daughter), Gossip Tree, and ExSpectMore, continuing to release records on himself, his son, and groups that he managed for several more years before leaving the music business behind altogether.