My Boy Lollipop singer Millie Small dies aged 73

Tributes are being paid to Jamaican singer Millie Small, most famous for her 1960s hit My Boy Lollipop, who has died at the age of 73.

She died in the UK after a suffering a stroke, according to reports.

Chris Blackwell, producer and founder of Island Records, described the singer as “the person who took ska international” in a tribute given to the Jamaica Observer.

The song reached number two in the charts in both the UK and US in 1964, and became Jamaica’s first million-selling single, according to the National Library of Jamaica.

“It became a hit pretty much everywhere in the world,” Mr Blackwell said.

“I went with her around the world because each of the territories wanted her to turn up and do TV shows and such, and it was just incredible how she handled it.

“She was such a sweet person, really a sweet person. Very funny, great sense of humour. She was really special.”

Born Millicent Dolly May Small in Clarendon, Jamaica, Small was raised on a sugar plantation and the youngest of a family of 12.

At the age of 12 she won a singing contest in Montego Bay, leading her to team up with reggae singer Roy Panton to form the duo Roy & Millie.

Blackwell heard one of Small’s local hits and started to work with her, taking her to the UK in 1963 after founding Island Records.

He decided she should cover the American rhythm and blues song, My Boy Lollipop, originally performed by Barbie Gaye in 1957, and it went on to become a huge hit.

Tributes are being paid to the singer on social media, with everyone from ska orchestras to football clubs remembering Small and her music.

(c) Sky News 2020: My Boy Lollipop singer Millie Small dies aged 73