Wesley Willis

Wesley Willis (May 31, 1963 – August 21, 2003) was a 6 ft 5 in, 350 lb. African American musician from Chicago, Illinois diagnosed schizophrenic who gained a rather large underground following in the 1990s as a musician after releasi

Wesley Willis (May 31, 1963 – August 21, 2003) was a 6 ft 5 in, 350 lb. African American musician from Chicago, Illinois diagnosed schizophrenic who gained a rather large underground following in the 1990s as a musician after releasing several hundred songs of bizarre and simplistic music which became internet phenomenons during the early days of p2p file sharing. He was also a visual artist.

Willis and his siblings spent most of their childhoods in various foster homes. In 1989, Willis began hearing "demon voices" and was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He called his psychotic episodes "hell rides". Alternatively, rock-and-roll was "the joy ride music" and Willis often indicated that listening to and performing music helped him battle the voices.