Comeback Trail Don’t' call it a comeback. They've been here for years.
Although that’s how the classic
L.L. Cool J anthem "Mama Said Knock You Out' starts off, today's generation of music lovers aren't aware of the contributions that some former R&B chart-toppers such as
Cheryl Pepsii Riley, Glenn Jones and
Miki Howard made to the hit parade.
In 1988, East New York, Brooklyn native Riley hit the top of Billboard's R&B charts with the ballad 'Thanks for My Child.' Crafted by hit-making production outfit
Full Force, the song became an inspirational anthem for single mothers everywhere.
Since then, the hits have been far and few for Riley. But the work has been steady.
"For a long, long time, I said if I didn't do another recording it would be too soon," she told Black Voices. The former nurse said her frustration with record company politics came to a head in the early 1990's when a white label executive told her: "[What you've done] is fine, but I think your people want to hear more of a
Mary J. Blige kind of thing."
After leaving the deal (which celebrity manager
Benny Medina signed her to), Riley pursued other interests, primarily in chitlin circuit musicals (now known as urban theater musicals).
"The thing," she confided, "is that I was making more money doing that than working with these record companies … so after dealing with all of that stuff, it was kind of like I was feeling kind of postal because people were making decisions about what you eat, sleep and breathe, who weren’t necessarily musical. These people get sick days and holidays. They weren't passionate about what I was doing."
Along the way Riley collaborated with platinum-selling superstars
Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliott, Blige and
Kirk Franklin. While touring in the early days she met mogul-in-the-making
Tyler Perry, who subsequently cast her in his successful stage productions -- and in his first film, 'Diary of a Mad Black Woman.'
Partly due to Perry's magic touch, Riley is experiencing a career renaissance, of sorts.
Last month, Lionsgate released the hit stage play 'Why Did I Get Married?' – in which she stars – on home video. The chanteuse also independently released a comeback album, 'Let Me Be Me' -- her first recording in 14 years. And every Tuesday night, Riley fronts the kick-ass band
DisFUNKtion, which plays old -school R&B and funk at New York City’s Café Wha.
"I am really okay with me," she added. "So doing it now, it's not about making money. It's about spreading the word and being who I am. This is another road in my purpose, another part of the journey. I feel great about this because it is on my terms."
Glenn Jones, another 1980s hit-maker hoping to return to his chart-topping glory, will release a new album, 'Forever: Timeless R&B Classics,' July 25 via Shanachie Entertainment.
In 1987, the Jacksonville, FL native delivered his biggest hit, 'We've Only Just Begun (The Romance Is Not Over).’ During a hot streak in the early 1980s, the former gospel crooner collaborated with
Leon Sylvers, Norman Connors and
Dionne Warwick (on the theme song for the television series 'Finders of Lost Love').
For the new disc, he takes on hits made popular by
Stevie Wonder, Bobby Womack, Babyface, Donnie Hathaway, Toni Braxton and neo-soul pioneer
Raphael Saadiq."The industry likes to divide everyone into categories like new school and old school but when the music is good it is just good," Jones said. "It is not about demographics but more about whether or not the music sounds and feels good and whether or not it moves you."
Shanachie Entertainment General Manager
Randall Glass told Black Voices: "There are some tremendous R&B singers who emerged during the 1980s and 1990s who haven't had new records because of the record industry's over-emphasis on youth."
The Newton, NJ-based record company recently announced new projects from R&B group
Silk, and Grammy nominated songstress
Miki Howard.Howard, who released a string of successful R&B songs in the 1980s before hitting the top of the charts with the
Gerald Levert-produced power ballad "Love Under New Management" in 1990, plans to release her own covers album, 'Pillow Talk- Miki Howard Sings The R&B Classics,' this fall.
Recently, the Chicago native showcased a few of the tracks from the new album at New York City watering hole The Harlem Grill -- a hotspot that has been frequented by the likes of
Alicia Keys, Mos Def, Earvin "Magic" Johnson and members of the
New Jersey Jets.Howard, whose lineage is gospel musical royalty (her mother
Josephine Howard was a founding member of
The Caravans, her father
Clay Graham was a member of
Pilgrim's Jubilee), had the audience, which included radio veteran
Vaughn Harper, on its feet during her live set.
"There is a definite audience for artists of her caliber," club-owner
Allen West said, emphasizing that the venue showcases acts that may not necessarily be known to younger audiences. "The 35 to 55 year old demographic of black music lovers desire to hear these great voices backed by live musicians. And our doors are always open to artists like that."
Building on that, West booked Howard to perform every Thursday night throughout the month of July. "We embrace their efforts and the contributions that they made to the music industry -- whether it was five for fifteen years ago," he added.
Of Biblical Proportions Samuel L. Jackson, Forest Whitaker and
Bishop T.D. Jakes are among the latest all-star voices to join the cast of 'Inspired By ... The Bible Experience,' a dramatized audio recording of the Bible featuring more than 100 celebrities, renowned and ordained clergy, and celebrities.
The project's dynamic roster includes
Ruby Dee, Eartha Kitt, Denzel Washington, Gary Dourdan, Kim Fields, Dr. Juanita Bynum, Bishop Charles Blake, Pastor Billy C. Ingram, Bishop Noel Jones, Hill Harper, Sanaa Lathan, Nia Long,
Star Jones Reynolds, Angela Bassett, Blair Underwood, LeVar Burton, Alfre Woodard, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Jeffrey Wright, Yolanda Adams and
Donnie McClurkin, to name a few.
With over 1,500 recording hours logged over more than 100 days, the project was recorded at Technicolor Studios in Burbank, California.
Based on Today's New International Version (TNIV), a translation distributed by leading Bible publisher Zondervan, the dramatized recording of the entire text of the New Testament is scheduled for release October 2006.
