Keith Nunnally was one half of JM Silk alongside Steve “Silk” Hurley. The two released a number of iconic house music singles.
Another artist near and dear to the humble origins of Chicago house music has breathed his last as vocalist Keith Nunnally has passed away.
Nunnally’s sister, Melanie, shared the news that he passed on Saturday, September 6 at 2:19pm CT via Facebook Live later that day. While she did not mention his specific cause of death, she noted that he had “been sick since 2019.” She shared that he had struggled with diabetes, congestive heart failure, high blood pressure, and gout, suffering from strokes in November 2024 and April 2025.
Steve “Silk” Hurley, who worked alongside Nunnally under the stage name JM Silk, shared in an Instagram post that the two had been able to perform together at S&S Chicago Experience in July of last year. “Since that performance, he faced several health challenges, but I was able to visit him at the hospital, and play him video of our last performance,” he wrote. “I’ll never forget seeing that smile on his face. It was a moment I’ll treasure forever.”
Nunnally and Hurley started releasing as JM Silk — which stands for Jackmaster Silk — in 1985. Singles like “Music Is The Key” and “Shadows Of Your Love” ushered in the iconic D.J. International Records, while “I Can’t Turn Around” and “Let The Music Take Control” landed on RCA Victor.
But it was “Jack Your Body” that put JM Silk on the map and remains the duo’s most enduring contribution to Chicago house music. Despite Hurley having cut the single almost as a joke in 1986, it caught fire in the UK, where its simplicity gave it mass appeal uncommon to the soul records popular there at the time.
As a solo artist, Keith Nunnally went on to release singles like “Freedom” and “Seasons Of Love” during the ’90s. As recently as 2018, he also cut “So Satisfied,” which got the remix treatment from Joe Smooth, Gifted Souls, Lenny Fontana, and DJ Pope.
We here at EDM Identity express our sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Keith Nunnally during what can only be a difficult time.
