Cynthia Robinson

Cynthia Robinson, born January 12, 1944, in Sacramento, California, was a powerhouse in the world of funk and soul music. If you haven’t heard her name, you’ve definitely heard her trumpet. She was the fire behind Sly and the Family Stone, blasting out those iconic horn lines that gave the band its unmistakable edge. Cynthia wasn’t just part of the background—she was front and center, often calling out to the crowd and hyping up the band with her raw, booming energy. Before she became a legend, she fought through a mountain of doubters, especially being a Black woman in a mostly male, mostly white world of rock and funk. She didn’t just survive; she owned it. Her time with Sly and the Family Stone kicked off in the late ’60s, and she played on all the biggest tracks—think “Dance to the Music,” “Everyday People,” “I Want to Take You Higher.” You can almost hear her trumpet cutting right through the chaos, making the crowd jump. She kept performing for decades, popping up with other legends like George Clinton and Prince, because when you’ve got that much talent, people come calling. Cynthia kept at it, never letting up, right up to her final years in Carmichael, California, where she passed away on November 23, 2015. She left a mark—seriously, there’s no way to talk about funk without her. That fearless spirit, that sound? It’s still echoing through every badass horn section on the radio today.