Willie Ray Busby was born on December 21, 1953 in Dallas, Texas. He was the third youngest of eight brothers and sisters, born to the late Earl and Bertha (Mitchell) Busby. He attended public schools in the Dallas area and attended T.C. Marsh Junior High School in 1971-72.

Willie started working at a very young age, around 12, his first job was that of a dishwasher, though brief because of his age. (This is another interesting story of how he started this job) With his first and last pay from this job, he bought a dozen hamburgers for himself telling his brothers who were walking with him that he wasn't going to share the burgers with them. They left him alone at the advice of their eldest brother Early, for he knew there was no way Willie would be able to eat them all. Willie was going into his third burger, well..he'd given in due to being too full to get started on it and so his four brothers were all too happy to assist him.

Another time around the same age of 12, he was walking around by himself in the Oak Cliff neighborhood and areas where he and his family lived at the time. He'd walked onto a golf course and discovered a hard little white ball, picked it up, kept walking and found another one,picked it up and kept finding these balls on the grass and was pocketing them thinking that he'd hang on to them. Then a man called out to him asking him what he was doing out there and what he was doing. `` I tell you what, how 'bout you pick up my golf balls for me and make some money at the same time.' So he was hired by the man to pick up golf balls for him and carry his bag. Willie was so excited about this new adventure and hire that he went home and told his brothers all about it and of course the oldest brother, Early, was interested in getting in on this easy money too. So they were picking up golf balls and caddies for the golfers. However, they were also taking an interest in learning about the game of golf and eventually learned to play. Willie took on golf as a hobby into his adult life.

Willie was also very talented in the music field. He wrote songs and music and played the guitar professionally. He was a self-taught guitarist at age 17. He played in a couple of bands in Dallas and different parts of Texas with his oldest brother acting as his manager. He taught one of his nephews how to play the bass who later joined the band. He also taught his eldest grandson, Marcus how to play the guitar and second oldest, Isaiah to play the electric bass and encouraged their younger brother, D,Aubrey to play the drums. He started with the basics, the 12 bars blues and other old school classics.

Willie worked at the DFW Airport for 13 years and did landscaping until 2010. He started out working the third shift as a custodian. In 2009 he met the love of his life, Daphne Sims, at her place of employment at Target, on Marsh Ln and Northwest Hwy. He changed his night shift over to day time hours shortly after they met in 2009 and became a window washer so that she wouldn't be alone at night. He also embraced her daughters and six grandchildren as his own but the grandsons were the apple of his eye. He went to all of the oldest grandson's basketball games and cheered him to victory, Marcus (M.P. according to Willie) made the winning shot. He always talked to people about the boys, to doctors, mechanics, anyone he'd meet.

Willie is preceded in death by Doris Fay (Evans) Busby, His mother Bertha Busby and father, Earl Busby, and eldest brother Early Ray Busby. He leaves to mourn his loss, his wife, Daphne N. (Sims) Busby, his stepdaughters, Ashley Wheatley, and Audrey Jenkins, five grandsons (Marcus Perry Tate, Isaiah James Tate, Ashton Wheatley, D'Aubrey Luis Jenkins, and Fisher Parks, and two granddaughters (Deja Levan Tate and Erielle Wheatley), his brothers Isaac Busby, Charles (Ben) Busby, Jerry Busby and Earl Busby, and sisters Mary Rogers, and Parthenia Okoye-Morris and a host of relatives and friends.