Undercover Black Man dies of brain aneurysm

I just got word that David Mills, who blogged under the sobriquet Undercover Black Man, has passed. Mills was in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he had been at work on HBO’s upcoming ‘Treme which chronicles life in New Orleans after Hurricaine Katrina. He served as both a staff writer and co-executive producer on the series which was to debut in just twelve days. His last blog post expresses the anticipation and excitement with which he looked forward to the premiere.

Before I ever began blogging, there were two blogs I followed on the regular—Mills’ blog Under Cover Black Man and Field Negro. Those two blogs inspired me to begin my own, and after I was up and going, Mills’ praise of my efforts and on-going support gave me the encouragement I needed to continue and find my voice as a blogger. In addition, several times he featured my blog as the “Blog in the Spotlight” which helped me grow my readership tremendously.

Cetainly, UBM’s voice is an important and long-lasting voice in the blogosphere, and will be missed tremendously. I’m not really good with dealing with death; I never know just exactly what to say, so I’ll just close thusly: Brother, the news of your passing certainly took me by surprise. I guess it all goes toward proving the very uncertainty of life; tomorrow is never promised us. However, I loved and appreciated your work while you were here, and I appreciated the assistance you gave me. Rest in peace, brother. And may the funk be with you!