DJ Casper has died at the age of 58, Fox News Digital can confirm.
Willie Perry Jr., known as DJ Casper, passed away Monday evening, according to the musician’s relative Quita D. Perry.
“Casper was a fun-loving, giving person,” the DJ’s wife said in a statement to ABC7. “He was a genuine, family oriented man. He loved Chicago with all his heart. He will be greatly missed.”
DJ Casper was most known for the hugely popular line dance, the “Cha Cha Slide.” The song was originally created by the musician as an aerobic exercise. “When I first did it, I did it as an aerobic exercise for my nephew at Bally’s,” Casper once told ABC7. “From there, it just took off. Elroy Smith from WGCI grabbed ahold of it.”
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Willie Perry Jr., known as DJ Casper, has died at the age of 58. (Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
The song was originally titled “Casper Slide Pt. 1” and later evolved into “Casper Slide Pt. 2.” DJ Casper’s song was picked up by M.O.B. Records as it became more popular in his hometown of Chicago. By 2004, the song reached the number one spot on the U.K. singles chart and was renamed “Cha Cha Slide.”
“I have one of the biggest songs that played at all stadiums: hockey, basketball, football, baseball; they played it at the Olympics,” Casper previously said. “It was something that everybody could do.”
Casper was diagnosed with cancer in 2016 and spoke about his health struggles in what would be his final TV interview this past May.
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DJ Casper performs during rehearsals for his performance on “The Jenny Jones Show” in September 2000. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
“They diagnosed me in 2016 with two kinds of cancer, which is renal and Neuroendocrine, which is kidney and liver,” Casper told ABC7 at the time. “They went in to try to do surgery, and they found out the kidney was connected to the main artery, so they decided not to do it and just treat it.”
He also shared some advice for others struggling with their health during the interview.
“Anybody that’s going through cancer, know that you have cancer and cancer does not have you,” Casper noted. “So, keep on doing the ‘Cha Cha Slide.'”
DJ Casper poses with the award for Best Studio Disney Performance at the 2004 Disney Channel Kids Awards. (Gareth Davies/Getty Images)
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