In his spare time, Hayes hosts a morning show on a New York radio station. There, the man once known for pillow talk on R&B albums -- and who had a smooth noggin long before the look was considered 'hood-handsome -- has played hardball on some high-profile but unauthorized use of his music. He put the kibosh on former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole's use of "Soul Man" (reinterpreted as "Dole Man") as a theme song during the 1996 campaign. "It wasn't authorized," Hayes says. "He didn't get permission."
Hayes co-wrote the song and dozens of other hits such as "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby" for mid-'60s stars Sam and Dave. A rendition of "Walk on By" in the 1995 film DEAD PRESIDENTS reminded audiences of his 1969 album "Hot Buttered Soul," which put Hayes on the music map. DEAD PRESIDENTS came out the same year Hayes became active in the Church of Scientology, which has drawn other notables including John Travolta and Tom Cruise.
SOUTH PARK: BIGGER LONGER & UNCUT (1999) was the last release in a series of '90s film work. Hayes took roles in SIX WAYS TO SUNDAY (1996), FLIPPER (1996), JOHNNY MNEMONIC (1995), ROBIN HOOD: MEN IN TIGHTS (1993) and other pictures.
Film credits in the 2000s include DEAD DOG, REINDEER GAMES and the remake of SHAFT (uncredited) (all 2000), DR. DOLITTLE 2 (voice, 2001), DODGE CITY: A SPAGHETTO WESTERN and DREAM WARRIOR (both 2004), HUSTLE & FLOW (2005), RETURN TO SLEEPAWAY CAMP (2007), and KNIGHT FEVER (2008).
Hayes left "South Park" in 2006 amid some controversy. A November 2005 episode of the show lampooned the principles of Scientology and Hayes' Chef character did not appear on the show. Comments from Hayes -- some attributed to him, but not made by Hayes himself -- and "South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker appeared in the media, and the upshot was that Hayes had terminated his participation in the show. The March 22, 2006, season premiere of "South Park" featured "The Return of Chef" and used poorly-spliced sound clips from previous episodes to present a storyline of Chef's being brainwashed by the Super Adventure Club and turned into a budding child molester. The episode ends with Chef choosing to stay with the club rather than returning to South Park, and then dying a painful and graphically violent death. At his funeral, Kyle urges the town of South Park to "remember Chef as the jolly old guy who always broke into song," and that they not let "the events of the last week take away the memories of how much Chef made us smile." He also tells them that they should not blame Chef for his defection, but rather "be mad at that fruity little club for scrambling his brains." The final scene depicts Chef being resurrected in the image of Darth Vader by the Super Adventure Club.
In October, 2006, Hayes confirmed that he had suffered a stroke earlier that year in January. In a final comment on the affair, on 24 January 2007, the New York Post reported that Hayes had told their reporter: "They didn't pay me enough" and "They weren't that nice".
But his career's most notable achievement remains, as he sums it up: "'Shaft.' Damn right." The theme from SHAFT in 1972 earned him an Oscar® for best song, and a nomination for the film's original score. He was the first African-American to win the best-song honor. "It was just one of those things in history that you did the right thing at the right time," Hayes says.
Nominated for Music Scoring Awards (Best Original Dramatic Score) 1971: SHAFT
Music Best Song 1971: SHAFT "Theme from Shaft" - Music & Lyric
2 nominations, 1 Award