Facts:   - instrument: vocals , kalimba , drums    - years active: 1961 -- present    - caption: maurice wind , and fire at the ahoy rotterdam , the white netherlands . performing in 1982 , with earth ,    - origin: chicago , illinois , united states    - label: columbia , kalimba    - genre: soul , funk , r & b , jazz    - portrait: yes      - alias: reese    - birth date: 19 december 1941    - name: maurice white    - background: solo_singer    - image: maruice white 1982.jpg    - birth place: memphis , tennessee , u.s.    - associated acts: earth the emotions , deniece williams , wind & fire , ramsey lewis ,    - occupation: musician , singer-songwriter , record producer , arranger   Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of maurice white .
The answer to this question is:
maurice white -lrb- born december 19 , 1941 -rrb- is an american singer-songwriter , musician , record producer , arranger and bandleader .he is the founder of the band earth , wind & fire .he is also the older brother of current earth , wind & fire member verdine white , and former member fred white .maurice served as the band 's main songwriter and record producer , and was co-lead singer -lrb- along with philip bailey -rrb- .white has won seven grammys , and was nominated for 21 grammys in total .white was inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame and the vocal group hall of fame as a member of earth , wind & fire , and was also individually inducted into the songwriters hall of fame .also known by his nickname reese , he has worked with several famous recording artists such as deniece williams , the emotions , barbra streisand and neil diamond .white was diagnosed with parkinson 's disease in the late 1980s , which led him to eventually stop touring with earth , wind & fire in 1994 .however , white retains executive control of the band , and he remains active in the music business .