James "JT" Taylor (born August 16, 1953 in Laurens, South Carolina) is an American R&B singer, most known as the lead singer of the funk/R&B band Kool & The Gang. Career Before his rise to fame, Taylor was a schoolteacher and amateur night club singer. When he was 13 years old, he and his friends started their own band. He joined Kool & The Gang in 1978 and became the band's lead singer in 1979. Together, they released the album Ladies' Night. Taylor's creamy voice helped the single "Too Hot" and "Ladies' Night" reach gold and platinum status. The group's change to a pop sound was raised by producer Eumir Deodato, who, starting with Ladies' Night, produced the group's next four platinum and gold albums, between 1979 and 1982. With the help of Deodato, the group's next album, Celebrate!, became one of the biggest hits of their career. In 1988 he separated amicably from Kool & The Gang. A