Alex Briley

Alex Briley at right with the Village People, Asbury Park, New Jersey, June 3, 2006

Alexander "Alex" Briley (born April 12, 1947) is an American singer, who performs the "G.I." role in the disco music group Village People.^[1] Briley was born and raised in Harlem, New York and later Mount Vernon, New York. A minister's son,^[2] he sang in church from an early age and studied voice at the University of Hartford.

Briley was introduced to producer/composer Jacques Morali by Village People member Victor Willis. . He originally performed in jeans and a T-shirt but he took the role of a soldier for the album Cruisin' in 1978 and when the group recorded "In the Navy" in 1979 he appeared as a sailor.

In 2005, Briley's brother Jonathan was identified by several people as The Falling Man — the figure depicted in the iconic photo of a man falling from the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks.^[3]

References

1. Sutherland, Donnie (11 November 1979). "Village People - great disco fun". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 118. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
2. http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/V/Village_People/2000/07/15/751551.html
3. Junod, Tom (2003). Esquire Magazine, ed. "The Falling Man".