Award-winning soul singer Isaac Hayes, who rose to the top of the charts in the 1970's on the soul-record label Stax, died August 10. He was 65.
He released his first solo album, Presenting Isaac Hayes, in 1968. His next album, Hot Buttered Soul, went gold in the 1970s, and is credited with helping pave the way for the rise of disco; his 1972 soundtrack to the movie Shaft went platinum, and the single "Theme From Shaft" won both an Oscar and a Grammy Award.
Hayes also worked as an actor, with roles in movies as diverse as the Mel Brooks comedy Robin Hood: Men in Tights and the acclaimed hip-hop drama Hustle & Flow. He found a cult following — and some controversy — playing Chef on the Comedy Central series South Park.
Fresh Air remembers Hayes with an interview that originally aired July 28, 1994.
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