Big Bank Hank of Rapper's Delight fame dies at 57

Big Bank Hank, a member of the pioneering hip-hop group the Sugarhill Gang responsible for one of the most popular rap songs of all time, Rapper's Delight, has died of complications of cancer.

Big Bank Hank, aged 57, died at a hospital in the US state of New Jersey, according to David Mallie, a business manager for two former members of the group, and Aree Booker, a funeral home director.

Big Bank Hank, whose real name was Henry Jackson, was born in the Bronx borough of New York. He was a part of the Sugarhill Gang in 1979 when it had hip-hop's first hit with Rapper's Delight. The song was released as hip-hop music started to emerge as a genre, and it landed in the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

The Sugarhill Gang, which was formed in Englewood, New Jersey, also included Master Gee and Wonder Mike.

"So sad to hear about our brothers passing," Gee and Mike said in a statement issued through Mallie, who didn't work with Big Bank Hank. "The 3 of us created musical history together with the release of Rapper's Delight. We will always remember travelling the world together and rocking the house. Rest in peace Big Bank."

Rapper's Delight became a success thanks to the late Sylvia Robinson, the record label owner who released it on her Sugar Hill Records.