Jun Mhoon obit

Jun Mhoon: touring drummer for The Bee Gees, The Chi-Lites and The Doors, dies at age 69

 Jun Mhoon made his debut as a touring drummer at the age of 14, before becoming a respected music producer before his death at the age of 69.

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Jun Mhoon, a respected touring drummer who has worked with the likes of The Bee Gees and The Staple Singers, has died at the age of 69. Mhoon died on April 13 2024 from what is being reported as a cardiac arrest.

Mhoon started touring as a drummer with the Staple Singers at the age of 14, and over the following decade, he performed and toured with numerous artists such as Thad Jones, Jessy Dixon, the Bee Gees, the Doors, Paul Simon, and the Count Basie Orchestra. During the early 1970s, Mhoon worked as a staff drummer at Brunswick Records and Chess Records, contributing to tracks by The Chi-Lites, Gene Chandler, Jackie Wilson, Jackie Ross, and many others.

n the 1970s, Mhoon took on a warehouse clerk position at Warner Bros. Records and later advanced to director of Midwest Local Marketing. He joined RCA Records in 1978 as the Midwest regional director and held the position until 1986. During this time, he enrolled at Columbia College and founded AEMMP Records, a student-run record label. After completing his bachelor's degree, Mhoon became vice president of A&M Records in Los Angeles, California.

In 1987, Mhoon established I AM Records (later I AM Music and I AM Music Online), focusing on hip-hop, jazz, gospel, inspirational music, and spoken word albums. In 1999, he created I AM Digital Media, supplying digital content for platforms such as iTunes, Amazon.com, Spotify, Pandora, and Facebook. Mhoon also worked as Chief Digital Aggregator/Consultant for Johnson Publishing Company and JPC Digital, as well as vice president of TV production at Burrell Communications.

As a TV producer, Mhoon co-created The Stellar Awards with Milton Brunson and Don Jackson and co-produced “Steppin’ at Club 7” with Anna Morris, along with other TV shows. In 2014, he began presenting a weekly segment titled "Your Digital Media Evangelist" on WVON radio's The Urban Business Network. Mhoon has served as a resident lecturer at Chicago State University, Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, Tribeca Flashpoint Academy, North Park University, and the Chicago Urban League.

Long before he was a record producer, before he was even a teenager, Jun Mhoon was playing drums on tour with the Staple Singers, gazing in amazement at thousands of faces while warming up crowds for bands like the Doors, passing love notes from Bob Dylan, and asking “Who’s Bob Dylan?”

“Jun was a little kid and just as cute as he could be,” recalled singer Mavis Staples. “And he really became a member of our family, the baby of the family. We all loved him and looked after him.”

Mr Mhoon died April 13 from cardiac arrest. He was 69.

Mr. Mhoon (his name is pronounced like June Moon) was in the sixth grade when Mavis’ brother, Pervis Staples, a South Side neighbor of Mr. Mhoon, recruited him to join the family group and tour on weekends.

The cub performer didn’t understand the scale of the shows they were playing until the house lights unexpectedly came on one night and he saw thousands of faces, Mr. Mhoon recalled in an interview with the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum.

“It was incredible, and I didn’t know it was incredible,” he said of the surreal childhood experience, noting that Bob Dylan used to hand him love notes to deliver to Mavis Staples.

“I didn’t know who Bob Dylan was,” he said.

Mavis Staples laughed at the memory.