Local Residents Remember The Life Of Baltimore Club Musician Jimmy Jones
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Since 1993, you've heard Jimmy Jones' songs on every dance floor in Baltimore City and beyond.
Even after his death Tuesday, "Watch Out for the Big Girls" is a hit not going away anytime soon.
Jones was a fixture in Baltimore Club Music, leading the way for others.
In a video posted to Instagram by Chris Burley, Jones explained the origin of the famous genre.
"The reason why they started calling it Baltimore Club is because people outside of Baltimore started playing and started saying this is Baltimore Club but to us, it was just called Club Music," he said.
Dre Johnson is a host on the radio station 92Q Jams. He's been in the radio industry for over 20 years.
"I remember at one time, a party wouldn't get started unless Baltimore Club Music came on," Johnson said in his studio. "This guy was a fixture at these clubs, man. That voice. He had that voice."
Jimmy Jones was, and still is the soundtrack of Baltimore City.
Travvon Stancil is a 22-year-old from Baltimore. He wasn't born when Jones' record released, but even he knows it was a classic.
"It's for the culture. He meant a lot because that's how we dance. It's a way of letting out our energy, letting out our anger. We take our problems to the club, dancing listening to good music that gets you pumped and live. It makes you forget your problems," he said.
Monty is from Baltimore, too.
"That's the first song! You have to get the party started."
La- Green is a 33-year-old Baltimore native. She tells WJZ she remembers going to the clubs to dance to Jimmy Jones.
"It used to have a good impact on me because it kept me out of trouble. It was dancing, it was exercise too and it was fun," she said.
A Park Heights native who went to Morgan State, Jones was someone this big, small-town could relate to even after the beat stops.
His family has posted a GoFundMe page for funeral expenses. It can be found by clicking here.
