Rob Base, the hip-hop artist best known for “It Takes Two,” died on May 22 while surrounded by family after a private battle with cancer. He was 59, and had celebrated his birthday four days earlier.

His family said his music, energy and legacy helped shape a generation and brought joy to millions around the world. They remembered him as a loving father, family man, friend and creative force, and thanked listeners for the songs, memories and moments that became the soundtrack to their lives.

Born Robert Ginyard on May 18, 1967, Base grew up in Harlem and met E-Z Rock in fifth grade. The two formed a duo as teenagers after seeing the local group the Crash Crew release a record. Base bought a microphone, E-Z Rock got a mixer and turntables, and the pair started building a sound that helped bring hip-hop and house music together in the 1980s.

Their demo of “It Takes Two” was made in about two nights and led to a deal with Profile Records. The song reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Songs chart in 1988 and later became a cultural touchstone, sampled by artists including Snoop Dogg and Black Eyed Peas and used in films such as “The Proposal” in 2009 and “Iron Man 2” in 2010. The duo’s “Get on the Dance Floor” topped the same Billboard chart, while “Joy and Pain” also followed from the success of the record.

Base and DJ E-Z Rock’s debut album, “It Takes Two,” peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Base later released his only studio album to date, “The Incredible Base,” in November 1989, then reunited with E-Z Rock for “Break of Dawn” in 1994. That release failed to make an impact, but Base stayed active as a performer on the “I Love the 90’s Tour,” ran a production company called Funky Base, Inc., and served as executive producer on the horror film “Urban Flesh Eaters,” released last year.

DJ E-Z Rock died in 2014 from complications of diabetes, leaving Base as the public face of a duo whose biggest song never really left the room. That is why his death lands now with unusual force: the track that made him famous kept finding new ears long after the charts moved on, and the man behind it was still working, still visible, and still tied to a song that helped define an era. The measure of his life is not only that “It Takes Two” lasted, but that Rob Base did too, in memory and in music.