One of the founding fathers of Hip Hop, Afrika Bambaataa died from complications from cancer at the age of 68 on Thursday, April 9. Known as the founder of the Universal Zulu Nation, Bambaata was one of the first MCs and DJs to push Hip Hop in a global direction with the mantra peace, unity, love, and having fun.

The Bronx native played a key role in shaping early Hip Hop with his street parties, and most notably with tracks like ‘Planet Rock’ and ‘Looking for the Perfect Beat.’ In 1985, he was part of the Sun City album, which was against apartheid in South Africa with other artists like Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and Run-DMC.

Bambaataa was dogged by molestation charges for the final decade of his life when numerous boys that he abused when they were teens went public. While we can acknowledge that Bambaataa changed music in positive ways forever, he has also been shunned by the Hip Hop community because of these nefarious acts.

Check out Afrika Bambaataa’s ‘Planet Rock’ below.