Born on February 20th, 1938, in Jackson, Mississippi, Cicero moved to Chicago with his family in the early 1950s and settled on the west side. Blake singing career began in a church choir, then the Golden Tones while still in high school, and he performed in military shows in the Air Force. Cicero Blake's was the original lead singer of the group, who evolved into the Kool Gents, the group that sprung Dee Clark After leaving the group Blake made many solo recordings for small Chicago labels (Brainstorm, Renee, Success, etc.).