Bell was born in Youngstown, Ohio, to Aminah Bayyan (1932–2014) and Robert "Bobby" Bell (1929–1985). Bell grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey. Growing up, Bell was nicknamed "Kool", due to being "laid back":[4]
That's a nickname from the neighborhood I grew up in here in Jersey City. It's a faddish thing and I just happened to take the name Kool 'cause I'm kind of a laid back person.
Along with his brother, Ronald Bell, he began playing jazz, and in 1964 they formed a group named The Jazziacs. They began playing at clubs in New York City under a series of different band names before settling on the name Kool & the Gang in 1968. Their debut album, Kool and the Gang, was released the following year. The band's first major hit came in 1973, with "Jungle Boogie", which charted at number four on the Billboard Hot 100. Their first number one hit single was "Spirit of the Boogie", which was released in 1975.
Bell, along with Kool & the Gang members James "J.T." Taylor and Dennis Thomas, were a part of the 1984 charity supergroup Band Aid.
Kool & the Gang have won numerous awards, including two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, and, in 2006, a Music Business Association Chairman's Award for artistic achievement. The band recorded nine No. 1 R&B singles in the 1970s and 1980s, including its No. 1 pop single "Celebration". They have seven American Music Awards, 25 Top Ten R&B hits, nine Top Ten Pop hits, and 31 gold and platinum albums.[5] The group is honored on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[6] As of 2024, Bell still tours with Kool & the Gang.
Bell's younger brother, Ronald Bell, was also a musician, and co-formed the band with Robert in 1964. Both brothers converted to Islam in 1972.[8] Ronald died of undisclosed causes on September 9, 2020.
In 1971, Robert married Deborah Jones. Bell and Jones met when they were teenagers.[5] Deborah died on November 4, 2018, aged 67.[9] Her death was later revealed to have been the result of a long-standing illness.[10] Together, they had a son, who has worked with Kool & the Gang in the past.
