Kinston celebrates Maceo Parker with street dedication and family tributes
Kinston honored native son Maceo Parker on Thursday, Oct. 1, dedicating a street in his name and celebrating the family and hometown roots behind a musical career that helped shape the sound of funk.
Mayor Kareem S. Moore proclaimed Oct. 1, 2026, Maceo Parker Day during the celebration, where relatives shared stories of the saxophonist’s childhood, rise to international recognition and enduring connection to Kinston.
The dedication marked the renaming of Springhill Street as Maceo Parker Way. The City Council approved the change in September, with an Oct. 1 effective date. City officials previously cited the street’s proximity to Kinston Music Park and its visibility to visitors entering downtown on Queen Street.
“This dedication to the Parker family is well overdue,” Moore said.
Moore recalled growing up near the site and spending time around Parker and his children in a school band room. Back then, he said, he knew Parker as a parent. He did not grasp the musician’s international stature until later, while serving in the Army, when he saw Prince introduce Parker.
“He was an ordinary parent and they were ordinary kids,” Moore said.
The mayor said the recognition also honored the family whose support helped make Parker’s career possible.
For Corey Parker, the connection between his father’s worldwide travels and his hometown could be summed up in an unexpected keepsake: a clothes hanger.
Corey said he joined his father’s band in 1995 and performed with him for about 20 years, traveling across multiple continents and playing about 200 shows annually.
After one overseas performance, the group was preparing to leave when his father could not find a particular hanger. Corey offered a replacement, but his father wanted the one from Brody’s, the former Kinston store where his mother, Novella Parker, had worked.
“So all those shows, all those years, Maceo had a piece of Kinston literally with him everywhere that he went,” Corey said.
The family eventually found the hanger.
Parker’s brother, Delond Parker Sr., traced the family’s musical beginnings to their childhood in Kinston. Maceo and his brothers, Kellis and Melvin, performed as the Junior Blue Notes, playing during breaks in their uncle’s band’s performances.
Delond recalled how music later carried his brothers to Greensboro, where they attended North Carolina A&T State University and performed locally.
It was Melvin’s drumming that caught James Brown’s attention, Delond said. When Brown offered Melvin a place in his band, Melvin insisted that Maceo come along.
Brown needed a baritone saxophone player, and the family helped Maceo obtain an instrument, Delond recalled. The opportunity launched the brothers into a career far beyond Kinston.
Photo: Kinston Police Department Facebook Page.
Maceo and Melvin joined Brown’s band in 1964. Maceo’s distinctive saxophone playing became part of Brown’s signature sound, and his later career included collaborations with George Clinton, Prince and other prominent artists.
His achievements also brought recognition at home, including a 2016 North Carolina Heritage Award. In honoring Parker, the North Carolina Arts Council highlighted both his influence on funk and his connection to young musicians in Kinston.
At Thursday’s celebration, Corey thanked city leaders and recognized the siblings and extended family members gathered for the occasion.
“We’re happy that the city was able to honor our family and honor our father in this way,” he said. “And this way being the Maceo Parker Way.”
