This is a sad story.  Guru, originally from Roxbury, MA, has passed away from cancer at the age of 43.

I remember back when Jazzmatazz, Volume 1 came out.  It was 1993, the year I graduated college, when white people could listen to "college radio rap" and hip-hop like the Beastie Boys with our sense of irony, intelligence, and some of our self-respect intact.  Just like the Beasties (whose Adam Yauch has recently battled cancer ), Guru seemed not only to transcend labels but to revel in breaking them down, making music that, like he says in his intro to Jazzmatazz, is "real, based on reality", full of life and energy and love.

I didn't listen to much Guru after Jazzmatazz, Volume 1, but in listening to it again now, it still feels fresh, full of life and energy and love.  That's a beautiful testament, and a powerful legacy.