DJ Casper, the Artist Behind ‘Cha Cha Slide’ Dies At 58

Willie Perry Jr. was a popular Disc Jockey in the U.S. and was known as DJ Casper worldwide. The now 58-year-old artist has died from his long battle with cancer. The famously known creator known for his iconic ‘Cha Cha Slide’ was diagnosed with cancer in 2016, and it was his wife who confirmed the news of his death on Monday via a statement given to WLS-TV. “Casper was a fun-loving, giving person,” his wife, Kim, said in the statement. She further stated, “He was a genuine, family oriented man. He loved Chicago with all his heart. He will be greatly missed.” In 2016, the musician was diagnosed with liver and kidney cancer and on Monday breathed his last breath, following the losing battle with the long illness.

 DJ Casper was born in Chicago as Willie Perry Jr. and continued to live throughout his entire life. This is also the place where in 1998 he created ‘Cha Cha Slide’ as a musical exercise routine or dance routine. He crafted this for his personal trainer nephew at Chicago at that time who was an aerobics instructor at Bally Total Fitness. He was then inspired by Chicago Stepping dances and the song was signed locally. Soon it gained popularity and it was signed again by a major record label, finally taking it to an international level. The routine has now become a staple primarily at any event where dancing is involved. The line dancing routine featured in the music video and especially the upbeat commands from Casper contributed heavily to the popularity of the song.

 When Casper decided to release the song officially, he needed to record the track as instrumental and he did that at his own expense. He acquired The Platinum Band and distributed the song himself. He later worked with a publishing company to release the track that we are familiar with today. The song was produced for an album titled ‘Cha Cha Slide: The Original Slide Album’ and it was released in 2000 by Universal Records. It took time for the song to break through the charts and eventually, it was picked up by a Chicagoland hip-hop station. The song then was expanded from there and a Universal executive stated that “The Electric Slide”—that would “never go away completely.” fulfilling his words, the song is now an international hit, and even to this day it is relevant.

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