Roy Ayers was a beloved sample source who made it a point to collaborate with rappers as the genre rose to prominence

Roy Ayers, the jazz-funk vibraphonist known for the album Everybody Loves the Sunshine which has been sampled countless times since it was released, has died. He was 84. Ayers died Tuesday in New York after a long illness, his family announced in a statement, describing him as “highly influential and sought after as a music collaborator.”