TORCHBEARER AWARD

Robert “Kool” Bell is the co-founder, leader and master bassist for the legendary pop/R&B group Kool & the Gang, the seven-time Grammy awardwinners, who also earned many American Music Awards. Bell and his family moved to Jersey City, NJ in the early 1960s, where he and his late brother, Ronald (Khalis Bayyan), formed Kool & the Gang. A multi-platinumselling group and the most sampled band of all time, Kool & the Gang has sold over 80 million albums worldwide and influenced the music of generations with 25 Top Ten R&B hits, 9 Top Ten pop hits, and 31 gold and platinum albums. Kool’s business ventures include the successful Le Kool champagne and with his departed wife, Sakinah, co-founded the non-profit music education initiative, the Kool Kids Foundation.