Victor Willis, lead singer of the disco group Village People whose hit ‘Y.M.C.A.’ became a fixture at rallies for US President Donald Trump, has died, his spouse said in a Facebook post on Wednesday. He was 74.
“It is with profound sadness that I must announce the death of my husband, Victor Willis. Victor passed away on Tuesday June 30, 2026 as a result of a short, but aggressive illness,” the post on Willis’s official page said.
The Texas-born musician was a co-founder of the Village People and co-wrote hits including ‘Y.M.C.A’, ‘In the Navy’ and ‘Macho Man’ that swept the world’s dancefloors in the late 1970s.
With their flamboyant costumes and choreography, the group became a pop culture phenomenon, targeting disco’s large gay audience with camp fantasy characters of butch builders, bikers, cowboys and soldiers.
Willis left the group in 1980 but rejoined in 2017.
