Pour les fans de R&B, Funk & Soul, Hip-hop, et Pop.
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Jodeci is the combination of two performing gospel families, the Haileys and the DeGrates. Brothers Cedric and Joel Hailey, aka K-Ci and JoJo respectively, had previously performed as Little Cedric & the Hailey Singers and released three albums “Jesus Saves”, “I’m Alright Now”, and “God’s Blessings”. The DeGrate family also performed and toured as a family band, with members Donald DeGrate (DeVante Swing) and Dalvin DeGrate (Mr. Dalvin) combining to form Jodeci in 1988.
With only a modest amount of money the group travelled to New York City to accost Uptown Records CEO Andre Harrell. Following a live audition in which Jodeci performed “Come and Talk to Me” and “I’m Still Waiting”, Andre Harrell, taken back by the performance, signed the band that day. Placed in the capable hands of then-intern Sean “Puffy” Combs the group augmented their bad boy image, later making their debut on the Father MC song “Treat Them Like They Want to Be Treated”.
Jodeci made their live performance debut In June 1991 on an episode of Soul Train, after which the group issued their debut album “Forever My Lady” in August 1991. The record was marked by its bold approach, featuring distinctive soul and new jack swing production, and seductive songwriting. The album won over fans and critics alike, peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard 200, and remarkably spawned the five singles: “Gotta Love”, “Forever My Lady”, “Stay”, “Come and Talk to Me”, and “I’m Still Waiting”. Despite a distinct lack of promotion due to Jodeci threatening to leave Uptown, the band’s sophomore album “Diary of a Mad Band”, peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Aided by the singles “Feenin’”, the R&B No. 1 “Cry for You”, and “What About Us”, the record features contributions from Timabland, Missy Elliot, and Redman.
Surpassing the success of its predecessors, Jodeci’s third full-length album “The Show, the After Party, the Hotel” was issued in July 1995. Selling over a million copies and supported by the singles “Freek’n You”, “Love U 4 Life”, and “Get on Up”, the record peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Following the a 20 year hiatus in which members pursued their own interests, Jodeci returned to the spotlight, with Timbaland at the production reigns, to release their fourth studio album “The Past, The Present, The Future” in 2015. Led by the single “Nobody Wins”, the album debuted at No. 23 on the Billboard 200, and earned a host of positive reviews from the critical press.
Growing up around gang violence and crime, Bobby managed to eschew this lifestyle in his early teens, instead pursuing his love of music through performing in the church choir and at school. Along with friends Michael Bivins and Ricky Bell, they established the group, New Edition, who gained the attention of producer Maurice Starr, who produced their debut hit, “Candy Girl.” A record contract with MCA followed, bringing Brown significant stardom in his teen years, releasing four albums before deciding to pursue a solo career.
Brown’s debut solo release came in 1989, with “King of Stage,” spawning the hit R&B ballad, “Girlfriend.” Despite limited success, Brown persevered, with his second, “Don’t Be Cruel,” establishing the new sound of new jack swing and bringing Brown chat success. The title track gained him his first top ten hit, before peaking at the top spot with “My Prerogative.” The album was full of hits, selling a massive seven million copies, establishing Brown as a star.
However, despite the success of “Don’t Be Cruel,” Brown was unable to maintain the momentum, although his third record, “Bobby,” in 1992 still featured a top five hit in “Humpin’ Around,” amongst others.” Still, the album only sold two million copies. That same year, Brown married Whitney Houston, with their relationship becoming heavily publicised and the focus of many stories in the tabloid press. Growing substance-abuse issues and run-ins with the law took its toll on Brown’s musical output, although the reformation of New Edition in 1996 did gain a number one album with “Home Again.”
Continued problems with Brown’s personal life marred his music career towards the end of the decade, with 1997’s “Forever” failing to live up to any expectations. In 2005, Brown briefly rejoined New Edition again, before soon after separating to form Heads of State, along with fellow New Edition members Johnny Gill and Ralph Tresvant. Brown then ventured into the realm of reality TV with “Being Bobby Brown,” with his marriage to Whitney Houston breaking down subsequently. He released his fifth album, “The Masterpiece,” in 2012, only a few moths after Houston’s death. His personal troubles continued, struggling with addiction and arrest, resulting in a 55-day jail sentence for driving under the influence in 2013.
There’s a seriously exclusive list of tracks, in terms of nineties hip hop and R&B, that are really on their own level of unrivaled smoothness; I’d say that Ginuwine’s ‘Pony’ is one such classic, and you’d have to say that the entirety of D’Angelo’s Brown Sugar LP deserves a place on there too, but perhaps the pick of a genuinely sensational bunch would have to be ‘Freek’N You’ by Jodeci. It’s an iconic track that brings together all the classic touchpoints of nineties R&B in four and a half perfect minutes; it’s so good, in fact, that you might well argue that the four-piece from Charlotte, North Carolina never quite matched its success over the course of a career that’s now spanned almost a quarter of a century. Despite the fact that they’ve not released an album since 1995’s platinum-selling The Show, The After-Party, The Hotel, they’ve continued to enjoy the trappings of the touring lifestyle that were described by that album’s title. Retaining their original lineup - remarkably, they’ve had no reshuffles over the past twenty-five years - their most recent UK show saw them play Wembley Arena with the likes of SWU and Dru Hill, although their muddled set was met with a decidedly mixed reception on Twitter; their shows in their home country of late have been far better received.
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So ferociously has controversy swirled around Bobby Brown in recent years - particularly in terms of his relationship with his late ex-wife, Whitney Houston - that it’s easy to forget what he achieved in his own right, musically; after an early exit from New Edition in the mid-eighties on account of some personal indiscretions, he went on to enjoy a successful solo career in the early nineties, with his second album, Don’t Be Cruel, going seven times platinum, hitting number one in the U.S., and packing singles like ‘Roni’ and the global smash ‘My Prerogative’. In the years since, his career has been marked by constant strife in his personal life; substance abuse problems, legal troubles and even a drive-by shooting all part of an increasingly sad story. He has continued working, though, reuniting with New Edition on numerous occasions over the years and releasing a new solo record, the humbly-titled The Masterpiece, as recently as 2012. As of 2014, the classic six-piece lineup of New Edition, which includes Brown, continues to tour the U.S., with a sharp-suited, full band performance on The View launching their most recent jaunt; they’re well overdue a visit to the UK, too, so keep your eyes peeled for dates.
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