HARRY Belafonte had shared an inspiring final social media post months before his tragic death.
The Caribbean-American pop star died at the age of 96 on Tuesday with his wife, Pamela Frank, by his side.
The star died from congestive heart failure at his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, his longtime spokesman Ken Sunshine told The New York Times.
Belafonte was more than an iconic singer. He was also a trailblazer in the civil rights movement.
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day this year, Belafonte posted an old photo of him and his friend King.
The pair was all smiles in the black and white photo as they held hands and laughed together.
The picture and message, which he posted on Facebook, was the singer's last social media post.
Belafonte wrote: “Well, If Dr. King had lived, there would be no today as we know it.
"His impact on universal order, his impact on the globe, his impact on the world has taken on such a humongous power, that he was shaping human history.”
According to King's autobiography, Belafonte raised money to bail out King and countless other supporters when they were locked up during the 1963 Birmingham campaigns.
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Belafonte supported voter registration drives and even helped organize the 1963 March on Washington.
Other causes that Belafonte was involved with include the 1985 multi-artist effort to raise funds in Africa, with the Grammy Award-winning song We Are the World.
Born in New York City on March 1, 1927, Belafonte began his career in music as a Midtown nightclub singer before gathering huge crowds in downtown jazz clubs like the Village Vanguard.
Belafonte is best known for his folk song Day-O (The Banana Boat Song), which was inspired by Belafonte's time in Kingston, Jamaica.
This song, along with others on his breakthrough record Calypso, made a name for the singer when it became the first LP in history to sell more than 1million copies in a year.
Alongside his illustrious music career, Belafonte was also an award-winning actor featuring in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Carmen Jones.
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