Tone Capone, a pivotal force behind “I Got 5 on It” and other memorable Bay Area tracks, is dead.
Born Anthony Douglas Gilmour, and raised in the North Oakland area, Capone produced the Luniz duo’s Michael Marshall-featuring 1995 single, which landed on their debut album and peaked at No. 8 on the Hot 100. Versions of the song went on to be featured prominently in Jordan Peele’s Us, as well as Joe Talbot’s The Last Black Man in San Francisco.
This long-ubiquitous hit, however, is far from the only gem in Capone’s catalog. He also worked with other familiar Bay Area names like E-40, Messy Marv, Dru Down, the late Mac Dre, and more.
His production prowess also proved powerful elsewhere, resulting in sessions with Devin the Dude and Scarface, both titans of the Houston scene. His work can be heard all over Scarface’s 1997 album The Untouchable, which also boasts production from Mike Dean. That album opened atop the Billboard 200 albums chart and was quickly certified Platinum by the RIAA.
KQED, citing comments made by Capone’s family, reports that he died on Saturday (Sept. 12). He was 59. As of this writing, a cause of death remains unknown.
Capone’s artistry was quickly celebrated on social media in the wake of his death, with fans highlighting the Bay Area-originating timelessness of his production and the impact he made across decades of noteworthy work.
RIP.
