Grammy-winning R&B singer James Ingram dies at 66

U.S. singer James Ingram performs during the three-day Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta on March 7, 2008. [File Photo:vcg.com]

James Ingram, a double Grammy winner and two-time Oscar nominee, has died at age 66.

His longtime friend Debbie Allen confirmed the news on Twitter. "I have lost my dearest friend and creative partner James Ingram to the Celestial Choir," she wrote. "He will always be cherished, loved and remembered for his genius, his love of family and his humanity. I am blessed to have been so close. We will forever speak his name."

His first No. 1 pop hit was 1982's "Baby, Come to Me," a duet with Patti Austin. He again topped the chart in 1990 with "I Don't Have the Heart."

Ingram was nominated for 14 Grammy awards from 1982 through 1996, winning male vocal R&B performance for "One Hundred Ways" and for R&B performance by a duo or group for his collaboration with Michael McDonald, "Yah Mo B There."