Rob Base, the rapper who helped shape late-1980s hip-hop with the landmark track "It Takes Two," died on Friday, May 22, following a private battle with cancer. He was 59 years old.
His family announced the news through his official Instagram account. "Today, we share the heartbreaking news that hip hop legend Rob Base passed away peacefully on May 22, 2026, surrounded by family after a private battle with cancer," the statement began. The family continued: "Rob's music, energy, and legacy helped shape a generation and brought joy to millions around the world. Beyond the stage, he was a loving father, family man, friend, and creative force whose impact will never be forgotten. Thank you for the music, the memories, and the moments that became the soundtrack to our lives. Rest in Paradise, Rob Base. May 18, 1967 – May 22, 2026."
His final public post came just four days before his death, when he marked his 59th birthday on Instagram. "Happy 59th Birthday to me. God thank you for allowing me to see another year," he wrote.
Born Robert Ginyard in Harlem, Base and his childhood friend Rodney Bryce, known as DJ E-Z Rock, met in the fourth grade. According to Rolling Stone, they were inspired early on by a local group called Crash Crew. "We used to watch them and looked up to them. We said to ourselves, 'This is something that we want to do.' Seven of us put together a group; a lot of them didn't take it seriously, but me and him did," Base told Rolling Stone in 2014.
The duo released their first single, "DJ Interview," in 1986. Two years later, they signed to Profile Records and released their debut album, It Takes Two. The title track became a cultural phenomenon. Built around a vocal sample from Lyn Collins' 1972 song "Think (About It)," the song blended hip-hop and house music and reached Number Three on the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Songs chart, according to Rolling Stone. On the Billboard Hot 100, it peaked at No. 36 and spent 16 weeks on the chart. It is certified platinum by the RIAA. The album itself peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 31 on the Billboard 200.
"It Takes Two" proved to have remarkable staying power. Artists including Snoop Dogg, Gang Starr, the Black Eyed Peas, and 2NE1 all sampled the track in subsequent years. It appeared in films such as Love & Basketball, The Proposal, and Iron Man 2, and was featured as part of a radio station in the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Rolling Stone placed it at No. 24 on its Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of All Time list. "Base and DJ E-Z Rock's irresistible 1988 smash was a pop-rap landmark and an ode to understanding and respect that brought people together under a groove," reads the Rolling Stone review of the track. "The song was produced by Teddy Riley, who deployed a similar jump-up syncopation as the king of New Jack Swing."
The duo followed the album with additional singles, including "Get on the Dance Floor," which topped Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart, and "Joy and Pain," which peaked at No. 58 on the Hot 100 in July 1989. They released a second album together, Break of Dawn, in 1994. Base also released one solo record, The Incredible Base, in 1989.
DJ E-Z Rock died in 2014 due to complications from diabetes. Base continued performing in the years that followed, including appearances on the I Love the 90's Tour with Vanilla Ice and others. He also extended his work into film production, executive producing the horror movie Urban Flesh Eaters in 2025.
