Rich Cronin

Richard Burton "Rich" Cronin (August 30, 1974 – September 8, 2010) was an American singer and songwriter, best known for being the lead singer and primary songwriter for the pop group Lyte Funkie Ones (LFO).

Early life and education

Cronin was born in West Roxbury, Massachusetts on August 30, 1974, and grew up in Kingston, Massachusetts, of Irish and Swedish ancestry. His brother, Mike Cronin, was a manager for the pop group O-Town.^[2] Cronin attended Sacred Heart High School, graduating in 1993. He also attended Bridgewater State College and was working part-time in a Blockbuster video store.^[3] Despite the same last name, he was not related to REO Speedwagon band member, Kevin Cronin.

Career

LFO

Cronin was the founding member of the pop group LFO. The group started out in Germany on BMG in 1997 with member, Brian Gillis aka "Brizz". In the spring of 1998 the group opened up for *NSYNC and by this time were signed to BMG/Logic Records in the US. They were labeled as the "bad boys of pop" citing influences: The Beastie Boys and New Edition. They released two singles: "Sex U Up (The Way You Like It)" and "Can't Have You" with original member, Brian Gillis. Brian left the group frustrated with the direction of the group and lack of success.

Harold "Devin" Lima was added to the group to replace Brian Gillis 6 months before the hit "Summer Girls", was released. By this time, the group had transtioned from Logic Records to Arista Records. Executive Clive Davis mentored and worked closely with Cronin on the group's debut release, LFO.

The group's breakout hit "Summer Girls" was written by Cronin in 1999, hit #3 on Billboard's Hot 100, and was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Single Sales chart for six weeks. The single also went platinum in the US with sales of over 1,000,000 units.

The group's second album, "Life is Good", was released on Davis' new label, J Records, with Cronin writing or co-writing each song on the album. The group had success with the album's first single, "Every Other Time."

The group disbanded in 2002.

After LFO

In 2007, Cronin was a cast member for the VH1 Reality Show Mission: Man Band. The show also starred Chris Kirkpatrick of 'N Sync, Jeff Timmons of 98 Degrees and Bryan Abrams of Color Me Badd. The four former pop stars came together in Orlando, Florida to hit the music scene. Recording with producer Brian Michael Cox, performing and pitching their new music to major record labels, VH1 chronicled their month long endeavor in eight episodes. ^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, Cronin released his first solo album Billion Dollar Sound on May 16, 2008. He made an appearance on The Howard Stern Show in January of 2009.

Cronin also formed a rap duo with Doug Ray (formerly of Bad Ronald) called Loose Cannons. They released one album entitled Life Goes On. The band performed shows from 2006 until 2008.

2009 reunion tour with LFO

On June 3, 2009, LFO posted a blog entitled "LFO IS BACK" on their official MySpace page which announced that they had reunited and were going on tour beginning July 9, 2009, with Rookie of the Year, Go Crash Audio, and Kiernan McMullan. A new song titled "Summer of My Life" was also announced in association with the reunion.^[4] In September 2009, however, they announced that they had again broken up.

Personal Life

He technically was never married and without any children. His surviving family members included his own parents, and one sister and brother. He was rumored to be dating Jennifer Love Hewitt in 2001. That is what he had said to Howard Stern’s Sirius radio show during that Wednesday. She was actually cheating on him, allegedly including Jeff Timmons from the band 98 Degrees. The ex-couple were supposed to marry but it never transpired. The relationship concluded in less than a year.

Later life

Illness

In March 2005, Cronin went to the hospital after suffering from constant headaches. He was diagnosed with a form of leukemia known as acute myelogenous leukemia. He was given chemotherapy at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. In January 2006, he went into remission, and subsequently started the Rich Cronin Hope Foundation for Leukemia.

Death

In the summer of 2010, Cronin's condition worsened, and he was admitted for further treatment at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. On the afternoon of September 8, 2010, Cronin died at the Brigham and Women's Hospital after suffering a stroke secondary to leukemia. He was 36 years old.^[5][6]

References