R&B Legend Carl Carlton's Son Paid Tribute to Him After His Death — What Happened?

The legendary soul and R&B singer known as Carl Carlton has died. He was 72 years old. His son, Carlton Hudgens III, shared the news on Facebook on Dec. 14, 2025. Carl was known for soul music that topped charts in the '70s and '80s, but later in life, his career had simmered. He also suffered from a stroke years before he died, but what was Carl Carlton's actual cause of death?

During his career, Carl wrote and recorded music for Back Beat Records, Mercury Records, and 20th Century Records. Although his career didn't reach heights that some other top-earning R&B singers of his time saw in their respective careers, some of Carl's hits earned him superstar status with fans and even remained iconic in the genre.

Although Carl's son Carlton did not reveal his cause of death in the Facebook post, Carl did have some health problems in the years leading up to his death. According to SoulTracks, Carl suffered a stroke in 2019. At the time, he reportedly had to cancel a concert, but he was alert in the hospital following the incident.

Still, per some posts on Carl's personal Facebook page, he did have a GoFundMe at the time. It's possible that Carl's death in 2025 was caused by health problems relating to his 2019 stroke. Per the National Institutes of Health (NIH), strokes can cause lasting side effects both physically and neurologically. However, at this time, Carl's son did not share details about how the R&B and soul singer died.

"RIP Dad, legend Carl Carlton, singer of 'She's a Bad Mama Jama.' Long hard fight in life, and you will be missed," Hudgens wrote on Facebook on Dec. 14, 2025.

The following day, Hudgens shared photos of his dad Carl with grandchildren in another post and wrote, "Pray for my daughter, she's taking her grandfather's death hard. Hurts me more to see her in this pain."

Carl's biggest hit as a singer was arguably "She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)," which received a Grammy nomination in 1982. As a child, per SoulTracks, he performed under the name of Little Carl, in an effort to appeal to fans who followed Stevie Wonder, who first used the name Little Stevie as a singer. He also found notoriety for his take on the established hit "Everlasting Love."

Some of Carl's music was later featured or sampled in various rap songs, too, proving his reach as an artist well after his career had come down from its highs. Through the '70s and '80s, Carl wrote and performed soul and R&B music. However, later in life, he branched out into gospel music.

He released the song "God Is Good" in 2010. The following year, according to WBLS in New York, he was nominated for a Detroit Music Award for Outstanding Gospel/Christian Vocalist.