A former child star, who rose to fame with his family music group in the 1970s, has died aged 64 after a battle against stage four pancreatic cancer
19:38, 31 May 2026Updated 20:16, 31 May 2026
Foster Sylvers has died(Image: Facebook)
Former child star Foster Sylvers has died aged 64. The musician rose to fame in the 1970s alongside the rest of his family in their band The Sylvers.
His brother, Leon Sylvers III, confirmed that Foster had died in hospice following a battle with stage four pancreatic cancer. Following the death, his daughter Erin shared a photo of her father on Facebook and captioned it with: “Rest well, Daddy. I love you so much.”
Foster was the bassist for his family band, which had hits including Boogie Fever, Fool’s Paradise and Hot Line. This is the second time one of the siblings has died of cancer, as his brother Edmund died from lung cancer in 2004. Before that, the youngest brother Christopher, who was never part of the group, died in 1985 of hepatitis, when he was only 18.
Foster Sylvers in 1978(Image: Michael Ochs Archives)
The Sylvers family band(Image: Getty Images)
The remaining Sylvers siblings are Olympia, Leon, Charmaine and James, who formed the original quartet known as Little Angels, as well as Joseph, Ricky, Angie and Pat. When they were still a band, the siblings made 10 albums, all released across the 1970s, and were often compared to the Jackson family.
The first album Foster featured on, a solo album he worked on with his brother Leon, was released in 1973, when he was just 10 years old. Because of his popularity, Foster appeared on many American TV shows, including American Bandstand and Soul Train. Two years later, he joined the family band and sang co-lead with Edmund on their 1976 number one hit Boogie Fever.
By the 1980s, the band decided to move in a new direction to keep up with the musical changes of the era. As such, Foster took over lead vocals for their 1981 hit Come Back Lover, Come Back. The band officially disbanded four years later, and Foster went on to start his own group, Hy-Tech, in 1989.
The Sylvers at a recording studio in 1979(Image: Getty Images)
The band’s biggest hit was Boogie Fever, which was released in November 1975. In the song, the narrator is thinking baout how his girlfriend has recently changed and now “boogies” to disco music while eating, watching movies, and so on. Realising that she has “boogie fever”, he calls a doctor, only to realise, he has the fever too.
While Edmund sang most of the song, a 13 year old Foster was heavily featured in the bridge. Since its release, the the song has been used in a series of films and TV shows including Despicable Me, Roll Bounce and the Stephen King miniseries The Stand.
Following his death, fans flooded social media with tributes to the singer. One said: “RIP you were a great talent along with your siblings you will never be forgotten.”
Another added: “I remember him performing with his older siblings. However, my favorite song of his was/still is “Misdemeanor”, with his sisters Angela and Patricia singing background and doing their choreographed dance steps (on Soul Train). R.I.P. Foster Sylvers.”
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