John Cavadus Whitehead (July 10, 1948 – May 11, 2004) was an American singer and songwriter. He was best known as one of the key members of the Philadelphia International record label, and was one-half of the successful team of McFadden & Whitehead with Gene McFadden. McFadden and Whitehead wrote many hits for Philadelphia International artists such as The O'Jays and Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, and had their own hit with "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" in 1979. He was the father of both members of mid 1990s duo the Whitehead Brothers, and received an LL.D. from Bates College. Death On May 11, 2004, John Cavadus Whitehead was fatally shot, possibly in a case of mistaken identity, while fixing a car outside his home in Philadelphia. Another man with him at the time suffered light injuries from the multiple shots fired by two gunmen, who fled the scene. As of 2013, the murder remains unsolved. Whitehead was 55 years old and had converted to Islam in 1996 and is buried in Mount Moriah Cemetery in Philadelphia. See also List of unsolved murders References External links Grave Obituary 1948 births 2004 deaths 2004 murders in the United States 20th-century American composers 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people African-American songwriters African-American Muslims American soul musicians Burials at Mount Moriah Cemetery (Philadelphia) Converts to Islam Deaths by firearm in Pennsylvania Male murder victims Murdered African-American people American murder victims Musicians from Philadelphia People murdered in Pennsylvania Record producers from Pennsylvania Songwriters from Pennsylvania Unsolved murders in the United States