INDIO, CA – APRIL 18: Musician Sly Stone performs during day 3 of the Coachella Valley Music & Art Festival 2010 held at The Empire Polo Club on April 18, 2010 in Indio, California. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images)
By Mason & Angie Starr | 105.9 KISS-FM
Some legends don’t just make music—they redefine what a band can be. That’s exactly what happened when Sly Stone, a classically trained musician with deep soul roots, got tapped to lead something bigger than himself—and brought his entire family along for the ride.
During one of our recent studio conversations, I started telling Angie and Devon how the band Sly and the Family Stone got started. Most people know the hits—“Everyday People,” “Dance to the Music,” “Family Affair”—but not everyone knows how it all came together.
Sly was already making moves in radio and music, singing and spinning, doing things his own way—even skipping commercials just to sing on-air. (Don’t get any ideas, Angie!)
But the real magic happened when one of the horn players in Sly’s band showed up at the station and said: “You need to be the leader.” The guy was ready to start something new—and Sly was the guy to run it. But Sly had one condition: “I gotta bring my brother and my sister. My father won’t let me do this without them.” And just like that, Freddie Stone and Rose Stone were in.
What’s wild is how organically it all came together. Sly’s band wasn’t put together by a label or crafted in some industry boardroom. It was built with family, with soul, and with some straight-up funky street-level hustle. That brings us to Larry Graham, one of the most iconic bassists in history. Back then? He was just playing bass and drums at the same time while his mother banged out rhythms on a washtub to help them make ends meet. That was their act—and how they literally ate every day.
Sly brought Larry into the mix, even though he was overqualified. But it worked because it wasn’t about ego—it was about energy, connection, and a vision bigger than any one player.
That’s what made Sly and the Family Stone so revolutionary. Not just because they made music that crossed racial and genre lines, but because they were living proof that funk, family, and fearless creativity can shake up the world.
So yeah, when Angie starts talking like she’s stuck in the ’70s—I get it. That era left a mark. And the story of Sly? That’s the kind of funk you don’t just hear—you feel it in your bones.
