Alex Briley
Alex Briley | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Briley in 2008, when the Village People were granted with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Alexander Briley |
| Occupation |
|
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Formerly of | Village People |
Alexander Briley is an American singer who was the original "G.I." in the disco recording act Village People.[1]
Early life
[edit]Briley is the son of a Christian minister.[2]
Village People
[edit]Briley was working in off-broadway productions when he was asked to join Village People by Victor Willis, whom he met in a New York nightclub.[3] He joined the group and wore military uniforms as his stage attire. Each member of the band dresses as a stereotype, and Briley's was that of a military man. He dressed in Army, Navy, and Marine uniforms.[3]
After a brief hiatus in 1985, Briley and some of the original Village People reformed the group in 1987, and with it formed Sixuvus Ltd, a group that managed and licensed the Village People name.[4] By 2017, Briley was still touring with original Native American Felipe Rose, when Willis obtained full rights of the Village People name, and fired all the members and formed a new lineup led by him, with Sixuvus' rights to the name terminated.[5][6]
Following the change in Village People's lineup and management, Briley and most of the other members of the recently fired lineup formed a new group, a disco tribute act, originally called "Kings of Disco featuring former members of The Village People",[7] before its name changed to "When Disco Was King".[8]
Personal life
[edit]Briley's younger brother, Jonathan (1958–2001), worked as an audio engineer at Windows on the World on the 106th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center and died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Jonathan was identified by his brother Timothy to be The Falling Man – the figure depicted in an iconic photo of a man falling to his death from the North Tower.[9]
References
[edit]- ↑ Sutherland, Donnie (November 11, 1979). "Village People – great disco fun". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 118. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2010.
- ↑ "Canoe -- Jam! Music – Artists – Village People: No need to feel down". Archived from the original on March 9, 2016.
- 1 2 Echeverria, Steve Jr. (February 23, 2006). "Time can't stop the Village People". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- ↑ Laing, Dave (March 30, 2001). "Glenn Hughes". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
- ↑ Varga, George (May 31, 2017). "Fresh from out-of-court settlement, Victor Willis set to rejoin Village People". The San Diego Union-Tribune.
- ↑ "Can't Stop Productions, Inc. v . Sixuvus, Ltd. et al Court Docket Sheet". Docketbird.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2019. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
- ↑ Nichols, Larry (April 12, 2018). "It takes a (new) Village". Philadelphia Gay News. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
- ↑ "WHEN DISCO WAS KING: FEATURING FORMER MEMBERS OF THE VILLAGE PEOPLE". San Diego Magazine. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
- ↑ Junod, Tom (2003). Esquire Magazine (ed.). "The Falling Man". Archived from the original on September 12, 2013. Retrieved September 9, 2013.
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