‘Cha Cha Slide’ creator DJ Casper has died aged 58

He hoped his hit song would serve as a reminder of the power of unity, community and positivity.

The DJ behind the world-famous 'Cha Cha Slide' has died aged 58. Willie Perry Jr, better known as DJ Casper, revealed in 2016 that he had been diagnosed with kidney and liver cancer, and detailed the impact it was having on his health last year. On Monday (7 August), the DJ's wife, Kim, confirmed his death to ABC7. Perry previously shared with the publication that he was having trouble eating and was losing a lot of weight, explaining:

“I used to weigh 236 pounds and I think I’m about 60 pounds less. If you know me, you know I’m not going to stop. I’m going to continue to go. I’m going to continue to go until I can’t go.”

DJ Casper, the creator of the world-famous "Cha Cha Slide," has died after a battle with cancer. He was 58 years old.https://t.co/yWIbaYcq1S pic.twitter.com/aysad5DB06

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) August 8, 2023

In May 2022, Perry sat down with ABC7 in what was his last television interview and spoke about how he came up with one of the most popular line dances of all time. He said he never thought 'Cha Cha Slide' would be an international sensation but that he hoped it would serve as a reminder of the power of unity, community and positivity. “When I first did it, I did it as an aerobic exercise for my nephew at Bally’s. From there, it just took off. Elroy Smith from WGCI grabbed ahold of it,” Perry told the outlet. The DJ has performed the popular line dance all over the world. “I have one of the biggest songs that's played at all stadiums - hockey, basketball, football, baseball. They played it at the Olympics," he stated.

“It was just something that everybody could do.”

The performer came up with the 1990's version of 'Cha Cha Slide' after his nephew, a PE teacher in Chicago, asked him to write a track for a step aerobics class. The craze started soon after, when the hypeman was inundated with requests to play the song at parties and events. The original backing is from 1992 house hit 'Plastic Dreams', performed by Dutch producer Jaydee. A new version of the song was released as a single in 2000 and went on to be a chart hit around the world.

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