King Floyd

King Floyd (born King Floyd III on February 13, 1945 in New Orleans, Louisiana) was an R&B singer from the early ’70s.

He was raised in Kenner, Louisiana and began singing on street corners as a teenager, befriending local musicians such as Willie Tee & Earl King. With the help of New Orleans blues legend, Mr. Google Eyes, King Floyd landed his first paying gig at the Bourbon Street club, Sho-Bar in 1961.

However, King Floyd’s career was put on hold due to his military duty. After his discharge from the Army in 1963, he went to New York City where he signed with booking agents Shaw Artists and regularly performed throughout Manhattan along with writing songs.
A year later, King Floyd moved to Los Angeles, California where he met record producer Harold Battiste. In 1965, he released his debut single “Walkin’ And Thinkin’.”
Four years later in 1969, he released his debut album, “A Man in Love” on the Pulsar Records label to little fanfare. After his album flopped, he returned to New Orleans where he worked for the post office.

Not long after returning to New Orleans, King Floyd met music producer Wardell Quezergue (who worked at the Malaco Records label) who persuaded him to record a song that Floyd had written called “Groove Me”; he wrote the song while working at a box factory in East Los Angeles in honor of a young college girl who worked at the factory.
In May of 1970, he traveled to Jackson, Missisippi to record “Groove Me.” With the help of Quezergue, the song was transformed into a funky, soulful jam. The song first appeared on the b-side of his song “What Our Love Needs.” After New Orleans DJ George Vinnett flipped the record over, “Groove Me” became a local hit.

After Atlantic Records scooped up the national distribution rights to “Groove Me,” the song became a hit, peaking at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart for four weeks. It was certified Gold by the RIAA on December 25, 1970.

Due to the success of “Groove Me,” King Floyd quit his job at the post office to tour the United States.
In 1971, his self-titled second album was released; the album peaked at #130 on the Billboard 200 and #19 on Billboard’s R&B Albums chart.
The follow-up single from the album, “Baby Let Me Kiss You” peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart (staying on the chart for 9 weeks). However, differences between King Floyd and Wardell Quezergue started to emerge.
During that same year, he released the single, “Got To Have Your Lovin'” which peaked at #35 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart (staying on the chart for 5 weeks) and #1 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
In 1973, King Floyd released his third album, “Think About It” which failed to make any impact on the charts at all.

The lead single, “Woman Don’t Go Astray” managed to peak at #53 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #3 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart (staying on the chart for 15 weeks). The title song managed to peak at #49 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for only 2 weeks.

In 1974, King Floyd released the single “So Much Confusion” which peaked at #95 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for 4 weeks.

During that same year, his single, “Don’t Cry No More” peaked at #96 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for 2 weeks. After that, Atlantic Records’ agreement with Malaco Records came to an end and King Floyd ended up signing a new distribution deal with the TK Records label.
In 1975, he released his fourth album, “Well Done” which didn’t make any album charts at all.

The lead single from the album, “I Feel Like Dynamite” peaked at #35 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for 12 weeks.

During that same year, he released the single, “We Can Love” (featuring R&B singer Dorothy Moore) which peaked at #76 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for 6 weeks.
In April of 1977, King Floyd released his fifth album, “Body English” which didn’t chart, but the title song peaked at #25 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for 16 weeks.

By 1978, he returned to Louisiana to try to revive his career along with battling some personal demons. He returned to Kenner, Louisiana three years later where he performed a few local gigs. In 1982, he spent a month touring South Africa.
For the next two decades, King Floyd found himself drifting in and out of the music business. In 2000, he released his last album, “Old Skool Funk” which didn’t generate a whole lot of success.

On March 6, 2006, King Floyd died due to complications from a stroke and diabetes; he was 61 years old at the time of his death and survived by his wife, kids & grandchildren.

To see a video for “Groove Me,” go to:

To see a video for “Baby Let Me Kiss You,” go to:

To see a video for “Woman Don’t Go Astray,” go to:

To see a video for “Think About It,” go to:

To see a video for “I Feel Like Dynamite,” go to:

To see a video for “Body English,” go to:

To see a video for “Walkin’ and Thinkin’,” go to: