Music group with Youngstown roots is first to get star in downtown Walk of Fame

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – The City of Youngstown celebrated the Fourth with food trucks and fireworks but before that, the first star for the Walk of Fame was unveiled.

The star at Wean Park downtown is dedicated to music group Kool & the Gang. Two of the band’s founding members, Robert and Ronnie Bell, were from Youngstown. They started the band after they moved to New Jersey.

“They always never forgot about home and I tell the kids all the time, ‘When you go away, never forget about home.’ And they never have,” Mayor Tito Brown said.

Next to the star is a QR code that you can scan to take you to a website that plays Kool & the Gang’s music.

“Right now, it’s just a start for us in downtown. The Walk of Fame, as people come, they’ll get a chance to find out our heritage but also the great talent that comes in the City of Youngstown,” Brown said.

After the star was unveiled, Brown announced the 2024 Walk of Fame honorees — Youngstown’s five world champion boxers.

“When you’ve got five world championship boxers here, that’s hard not to say, ‘Let’s honor them,'” Brown said.

Boom Boom Mancini, Kelly Pavlik, Harry Arroyo, Greg Richardson and Jeff Lampkin will be the next to have their stars put in Wean Park.

“We’re a boxing town. We started with music and we wanted to immediately move on to sports but next year, it will be open for public vote,” said Melanie Clarke-Penella, City of Youngstown special events coordinator.

For the 2025 Walk of Fame honorees, the city is letting the public help decide. A voting form will be out within the next few weeks.

“Mostly, we’re looking for people that have come back and not forgot where they came from,” Clarke-Penella said.

Brown says he wants people visiting Wean Park to be able to learn about the history and heritage of Youngstown. He says there’s a lot of talent from the city and they have a big park to fill with stars.

“It’s going to be a big fight about who’s next. It’s not necessarily about who’s not going to be here, it’s about who’s next.”

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