Speaker 1: Course Love Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio. This classic
Speaker 1: episode was produced by the team at Pandora.
Speaker 2: What up, y'all, It's Laiyah from Team Supreme. Okay, So
Speaker 2: it's June, and you know it is Black Music Month. Now,
Speaker 2: This month and its cause was started by my godmother,
Speaker 2: Dianna Williams, the legendary Kenny Gamble, and the great and
Speaker 2: right back in nineteen seventy nine after being invited to
Speaker 2: the White House along with the Black Music Association. Now,
Speaker 2: the Black Music Association was a group of black folks
Speaker 2: that were the best of the best of the music industry.
Speaker 2: I'm talking record execs, I'm talking radio people, I'm talking artists.
Speaker 2: I'm talking to everybody from Clarence Avon and Frankie Crocker
Speaker 2: to Percy Sutton, everybody in the middle right. So they
Speaker 2: all get invited to this big party on the White
Speaker 2: House lawn June seventh, nineteen seventy nine. And before the
Speaker 2: performances started, President Carter said many things addressing and reminding
Speaker 2: people of the importance of black music. Monk, and one
Speaker 2: of the things he said was end quote in may
Speaker 2: ways the feelings of our own black citizens throughout the
Speaker 2: history of our country has been accurately expressed in the music,
Speaker 2: and it presents a kind of history of our nation
Speaker 2: when you go back and see the evolution of black
Speaker 2: music word. So we've spoken a lot about Black Music
Speaker 2: Month on Questloud Supreme and this June we are running
Speaker 2: a different episode from the QLs archives every single day
Speaker 2: in the name Spirit and Cause of Black Music mom.
Speaker 2: Yesterday we reran an interviewed with James M.
Speaker 3: Tuma.
Speaker 2: Today it is only right that we celebrate the amazing
Speaker 2: vocalist to Watha Agi.
Speaker 4: Su suprema Son subpremo roll call suprima soun subprimo, roll call,
Speaker 4: subprima Sun Sun subprimo, roll call subprima Sun South, subprema.
Speaker 5: You want your music to shine to Wathas who you call?
Speaker 5: Yeah for so many credits, Yeah, let's name them all
Speaker 5: right now. Uh, There's Norman Connors, Alphons, Maszoon, Phyllis Hymon, Nortim,
Speaker 5: Michael Walden, Stephanie Mills, Gary Barts, Scritty Polity Chocolate, Patrice Chocolate,
Speaker 5: Banks of Graham, Central Station, The Spinners, Luther vandros Irene Karra,
Speaker 5: The BBQ Band, Michael Franks, Melbol Moore, Aretha Franklin, Linda Clifford,
Speaker 5: Kenny Burke, Dinah Ross, lou Rass, Scritty, Polity, Phronsie Thornton,
Speaker 5: kashif Lelo, Thomas, Marcus Miller, Michael Wykoff, Frankie Valley, Lenny Kravitz,
Speaker 5: Teddy Pendergrass, Roy Aires, Algibo, James Ingram, Tyrone Brunson, Chromeo, Kiera,
Speaker 5: Gregory Hines, Eric Clapton, Scritty Polity, Rindy Houston, ROBERTA Flat,
Speaker 5: Jennifer Holiday, Talking Heads, she Jackie McGee, Joe Cocker, Deon Warrick,
Speaker 5: You'll announced, Scratch, Bob James, David Lee, Roth, David Lee, Roth, Celin,
Speaker 5: Dion r Kelly Sting, Sondra st Victor, David Bowie, Roxy Music, Beyonce, Ray,
Speaker 5: Charles m to May and Yes, Ladies and gentlemen, Screaty.
Speaker 6: Supremo, Supremo, Roll, Suprema, Suprema Roll.
Speaker 5: My name is Fante, Yeah, quest Love Supreme Yeah, where
Speaker 5: we sit with legends.
Speaker 7: Yeah, welcome to my dream.
Speaker 6: Sumo Supremo, Roll, Suprima, Suprema Roll Call.
Speaker 8: My name is Sugar. Yeah, I'm so glad you came. Yeah,
Speaker 8: but did you really?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 8: Sing on free Frame.
Speaker 9: Premo roll Call Suprema SI Supremo roll.
Speaker 10: Call, Hey Bill, Yeah, no doom and gloom. Yeah, shout
Speaker 10: out to Fante. Yeah, renovated the bathroom.
Speaker 6: Sun Supremo roll Call Suprema S Suprema roll.
Speaker 11: Bill is back Yeah with another rhyme crime. Yeah, Quest
Speaker 11: Love Supreme. Yeah, it's prime time.
Speaker 6: Rome Suprema Sun Supremo roll call Suprema su su Supremo.
Speaker 12: Roll Here's yeah and mister Yeah we're about to start.
Speaker 12: Yeah that's too hot.
Speaker 9: Upremo rhyme Supremo roll call.
Speaker 13: My name is to Waa. Yeah, I'm here to pleasure.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 13: One thing you left out?
Speaker 14: Yeah, I work with.
Speaker 9: Lo Supreme Supremo Supremeo.
Speaker 6: Roll Supremo Supremo roll call Supremo Supremeo.
Speaker 14: Brought you.
Speaker 7: Yes, Bill, Okay, I said.
Speaker 5: I wasn't wait I actually I have to say that
Speaker 5: I missed the strong and robust the Quest Love Supreme
Speaker 5: because there was one point where it's just me and Steve.
Speaker 5: Wait why Okay. Yeah, it was one roll call where
Speaker 5: was just like the three of us Supreme and it
Speaker 5: was over ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker 14: Yeah.
Speaker 5: Another exciting episode of Quest Love Supreme. Awaits us. We
Speaker 5: have Team Supreme. Uh yeah, how's the bathroom, man? The
Speaker 5: bathroom is good. My wisdom teeth are even better. That's
Speaker 5: what set me down. I had to get them taken
Speaker 5: out too, and it sat me down. It went terribly bad. Really,
Speaker 5: I developed a dry socket.
Speaker 7: What is that for? A socket?
Speaker 5: Is when like they pull your tooth and normally clotforms
Speaker 5: to like as it heals. But if the clock comes
Speaker 5: out or it gets loose or whatever, then you just
Speaker 5: have raw nerves and bone exposed. You have to like
Speaker 5: you all your food on the other side of your
Speaker 5: It was just in sure apple sauce, oatmeal, and I
Speaker 5: lost nine pounds. You look great, Thank you man. My
Speaker 5: summer body getting in Yeah.
Speaker 7: Everyone else okay house the Sugar networks. Do you see
Speaker 7: they got stickers? Yeah, sugar Sugar Network.
Speaker 14: We're not We are not messing around anymore.
Speaker 3: Because you know we don't have swag there.
Speaker 10: Sugar Network is global. Yeah, global, it's amazing cosmic. Well,
Speaker 10: ladies and gentlemen. I pretty much said it all in
Speaker 10: my role call, but it's yeah.
Speaker 5: Our guest today is probably one of the most connected
Speaker 5: artists to the world of music. There's literally any is
Speaker 5: there anyone you have not worked with?
Speaker 7: What was the Close? But no cigar?
Speaker 5: Because this is your studio work, this is live. You
Speaker 5: sang with everybody.
Speaker 15: True, I wanted to work with Bonnie Rape, but she
Speaker 15: doesn't use female.
Speaker 7: Welcome to one and only.
Speaker 5: Really, my my dream is to just name an artist and.
Speaker 7: You give me a story. But I actually want to
Speaker 7: know where were you? First?
Speaker 15: First things, first born in Pittsburgh, raised in Newark, New Jersey.
Speaker 7: You were born in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh.
Speaker 13: Don't ask me about it. I don't know.
Speaker 7: We left you. I was like one, No, oh damn,
Speaker 7: I was over to a connection.
Speaker 2: No.
Speaker 5: I I did a hard time at uh the Carlton
Speaker 5: House back when that was your chruggy.
Speaker 7: Your shoulders station square doesn't mean anything to.
Speaker 13: Newark, Newark, I know Newark Citywark.
Speaker 7: So your family was from Pittsburgh and they migrated to Newark.
Speaker 15: Yes, Pittsburgh by way of Alabama, Talladega, Birmingham.
Speaker 7: Day and night. Okay, yeah, I love that.
Speaker 14: That's what people know about.
Speaker 7: Okay, what how many siblings do you have?
Speaker 2: Like?
Speaker 13: What was your I have two older sisters. I'm the baby.
Speaker 7: Did they sing as well?
Speaker 15: No one sings in the family. Wow, No, my father hums.
Speaker 7: So wow. Okay, we never had this as an area before.
Speaker 14: Yeah, everyone comes to a musical family in the show.
Speaker 5: Except so, how did music enter your life if your
Speaker 5: parents and your siblings.
Speaker 15: Weren't well church of course, and I always listened to
Speaker 15: the radio, you know, listening to the music on the radio,
Speaker 15: listening to pop radio, R and B radio in Newark
Speaker 15: and you know, constantly radio and books.
Speaker 13: That was it for me.
Speaker 5: Was it tolerated in the household because normally the common
Speaker 5: thing with our guess is like, you know, secular music.
Speaker 13: Oh no, no, no, it wasn't like that.
Speaker 15: We had the ink spots and Ruth Brown and you know,
Speaker 15: twist and shouted Isley Brothers, you know, things like that.
Speaker 7: So they were music fans, but they were fans.
Speaker 15: But no no singers in no talent, well, no singers.
Speaker 7: Musical with a with an F.
Speaker 16: I was saying that that that's uh, the the the.
Speaker 5: The magnit magnitude of her presence. When she walked in
Speaker 5: and Fante said his name, She's like, oh, with an F.
Speaker 5: And he just confirmed, He's like, yes, anything, I'm not
Speaker 5: gonna correct ms. Twatha, So uh, with with your like
Speaker 5: how did music enter your life?
Speaker 14: Then?
Speaker 5: With I meant outside of church as far as you
Speaker 5: wanted to take it seriously.
Speaker 15: And church foremost, foremost. And I played for my church
Speaker 15: choir when I was a little girl. And I went
Speaker 15: to a music and arts high school, and then I
Speaker 15: went to Howard and uh graduated from Howard and that's
Speaker 15: how I met uh uh in to May and uh
Speaker 15: and the rest, as they say, is uh musical history.
Speaker 5: What period of what year? What period did you go through?
Speaker 5: Uh Howard at Howard?
Speaker 7: Yeah, oh I was.
Speaker 15: I went to Howard from seventy one to seventy five.
Speaker 15: I graduated in seventy five with a bachelor's degree in
Speaker 15: music education.
Speaker 5: Okay, everyone that I know that is going to Howard
Speaker 5: in the seventies has the best stories ever. Like Greg
Speaker 5: Tate tells me about seeing uh uh Hathaway.
Speaker 7: No, what's her name? ROBERTA.
Speaker 5: Miles Davis is uh Betty Davis, Betty Davis a homecoming
Speaker 5: one Yeah at.
Speaker 15: Hampton at Hampton Auditorium, uh Crampton, cram Crampton Auditorium. Let
Speaker 15: me see when I was there, it was Pharaoh Sandra's
Speaker 15: for homecoming. Pharaoh Sanders Miles Davis and what for for homecoming?
Speaker 7: What was the holiday like for real? Doing to shoot
Speaker 7: it dance?
Speaker 5: So it was was that choice for you guys? It
Speaker 5: was like, all right, we get Parris Anders.
Speaker 15: Well, no, no, no, I was into gospel music. It
Speaker 15: didn't I knew who those people were, but I didn't.
Speaker 13: I didn't go to see him.
Speaker 15: I never went to a party at Howard I knew. No,
Speaker 15: never never know church girl, did you chill on?
Speaker 3: And so never just stopped in the yard just to
Speaker 3: chill and talking.
Speaker 7: Yeah.
Speaker 13: What what I would do was in my dormitory. We
Speaker 13: had a piano.
Speaker 15: I would be in there playing gospel music and people
Speaker 15: would come around and listen to me play.
Speaker 13: What dorm was the Meridian Hill, Meridian Hill off campus.
Speaker 5: Any I know uptown any pre and to me, uh,
Speaker 5: Donnie Hathaway interactions whatsoever?
Speaker 15: Donnie was Donnie was had graduated by the time I
Speaker 15: was there for Berta and Donnie had graduated. But when
Speaker 15: I was there, when like I said, gospel was my roots.
Speaker 15: Richard Smallwood was there. Richard Smallwood sang in a group.
Speaker 15: I sang in a group with Richard Smallwood and and
Speaker 15: Angela Winbush was also in my class.
Speaker 13: Yeah, it's hot tea good good.
Speaker 7: Oh yeah, can you explain hot too?
Speaker 15: Oh well, look, we had no imagination. It was Tawatha
Speaker 15: Elet and Angela elect Rix who was t e a well,
Speaker 15: a phenomenal, phenomenal pianist, you know, on par with Richard
Speaker 15: small Wood or any classical pianist you would ever want
Speaker 15: to to hear. She's she lived in Sacramento now. So
Speaker 15: it was Tawatha Elet, Angela Shelton Beckton, who is.
Speaker 13: Now he's on Broadway.
Speaker 15: He does Uh, he's music director for Audra McDonald and uh,
Speaker 15: let me see who else. Tawatha let, Angela and Richard
Speaker 15: that was it, and Shelton Beckton. We were hot tea
Speaker 15: and two May was looking for a group to produce.
Speaker 15: A friend of ours by the name of Louise West,
Speaker 15: who was an attorney, knew m two Mays. She said,
Speaker 15: come on down, listen to these kids sing. We sang
Speaker 15: for him. We did some demos. Uh that really didn't
Speaker 15: go anywhere, but I stayed in touch.
Speaker 5: Okay, what was the gospel circuit? Light like, were you
Speaker 5: doing any gospel circuit? Whatsoever?
Speaker 8: We were?
Speaker 13: We were We were pretty pretty popular.
Speaker 15: Our gospel name was Genesis, but there was already a
Speaker 15: group called Genesis, but we didn't know that there was,
Speaker 15: you know, because we didn't listen to that kind of music.
Speaker 15: So back then, no, it wasn't like that. You know,
Speaker 15: we didn't take those kind of liberties. But you know,
Speaker 15: we did pretty well. The church people knew us in
Speaker 15: the DC, Maryland, Virginia area.
Speaker 5: Any notable churches or notable acts that we were knowing
Speaker 5: today that you guys would run.
Speaker 15: Oh, no, you know you're talking. This is nineteen seventy one,
Speaker 15: seventy two.
Speaker 13: So no, I can tell you people that I liked,
Speaker 13: but I didn't work with them.
Speaker 7: We'll not work with them. But I'm just saying, like.
Speaker 13: Well, who were popular at the time.
Speaker 7: Did you like?
Speaker 14: Oh?
Speaker 13: Who I liked?
Speaker 15: I liked well, of course the Hawkens, Walter Hawkens, not
Speaker 15: particularly Edwin what Walter. This was Oh my god, this
Speaker 15: was before Kirk Franklin. This was this was like James Cleveland,
Speaker 15: the Hawkins, Murna Summers, people like that. I like the
Speaker 15: Mighty Clouds of Joy. Yeah, yeah, so you know, things
Speaker 15: like that.
Speaker 7: So those church services were Oh, but we had a band.
Speaker 15: I went to the Star Bethlehem Church of God in
Speaker 15: Christ than v Yes, And so the church had a
Speaker 15: band and the band was really really good.
Speaker 13: And if you've done your research you would know.
Speaker 15: I did a song called By the Time I Get
Speaker 15: to Heaven, which had a big band. But I was
Speaker 15: like nineteen years old and I sound like Minnie Mouse?
Speaker 15: Was that your first was that was my first recording?
Speaker 7: Really?
Speaker 16: Yes?
Speaker 14: I was so excited we can find this.
Speaker 13: Oh, I don't know if you would find.
Speaker 7: Oh, trust me. We were digging it.
Speaker 13: Up Star Bethlehem Church of got in Christ, real youth choir. Yes,
Speaker 13: from DC.
Speaker 5: When I always wanted to know when churches visit other churches,
Speaker 5: is it almost like a battle?
Speaker 7: Atmosphere is intimidating? Are they sitting there?
Speaker 13: You know you had to go and do your thing.
Speaker 15: You know it was competition, but healthy competition, healthy competent.
Speaker 13: Did you find it?
Speaker 7: Come on?
Speaker 16: Now?
Speaker 7: What's her name?
Speaker 10: Oh?
Speaker 7: My god?
Speaker 15: As long as you don't have a picture, because everybody
Speaker 15: had afros? All you said it was like lollipops, beautiful afro. No,
Speaker 15: But I mean, is it it was a battle?
Speaker 7: Is it intimidating at all?
Speaker 11: Oh?
Speaker 15: No, You accept a challenge because that was healthy. That
Speaker 15: helped you grow. That helped you become better on what
Speaker 15: you were doing.
Speaker 5: Okay, so we found uh that's Atophone last Supreme Exclusive.
Speaker 7: Yes, nineteen year old star him you youth choir. Yes,
Speaker 7: and this is seventy one.
Speaker 13: Early seventies.
Speaker 7: And this was recorded in the in the church.
Speaker 12: You know, it was live.
Speaker 13: Everything was live. We couldn't go to a studio.
Speaker 11: M hm.
Speaker 5: Hm everybody, Yeah, I shot that sh.
Speaker 7: That's a looke. Look tell yourself, no news is good news. Wow.
Speaker 13: Yeah you can hear the remix.
Speaker 14: The base is so loud.
Speaker 13: Oh yeah, absolutely, of course.
Speaker 14: I wish I went to.
Speaker 13: Wait it was it was a it was a set
Speaker 13: every Sunday.
Speaker 7: Do you guys have to see? All right?
Speaker 5: So we're sitting here at this table. It's like three
Speaker 5: four beats that can be made. It's why here and
Speaker 5: it just from the styles the standpoint. I'm listening to it.
Speaker 5: We listen to it for productions. My day's trying to
Speaker 5: figure out the time listen.
Speaker 10: But I also was thinking, wow, I really missed out
Speaker 10: on church experience. You just don't go to church missing out.
Speaker 10: I think my left me budget friend. If every Sunday
Speaker 10: I went to that as supposed.
Speaker 7: What was the size of the ensemble, Like.
Speaker 15: Let me see, it was maybe four piece uh band
Speaker 15: and it was maybe like thirty or forty singers.
Speaker 7: So how do you.
Speaker 5: Uh managed to to finagle your way into uh a
Speaker 5: lead spot?
Speaker 7: And is that a coveted spot? Well?
Speaker 13: I was selected by the choir director, right.
Speaker 5: But how's the choir director? Now the forty of you,
Speaker 5: who's my most dependable?
Speaker 15: Well, you know, I guess I was a new girl
Speaker 15: and he liked how I sounded. I mean, you know,
Speaker 15: it was very shy. So that was me like coming out.
Speaker 13: You know what I'm.
Speaker 5: Trying to actually get at is I know that a
Speaker 5: lot of uh mavericks in our business have to put
Speaker 5: in a lot of hours as far as practicing and
Speaker 5: rehearsing and that sort of thing.
Speaker 13: So I just want to what was the choir rehearsal
Speaker 13: one night a week?
Speaker 7: Did you know?
Speaker 13: Service on Sunday? We would visit other churches.
Speaker 7: I mean that was it wasn't rigorous rehearsal.
Speaker 15: Oh no, no, no, no, no, not like that.
Speaker 11: Okay, sorry, I just see another one of my favorite
Speaker 11: gospel singings is on that Star of Bethlehemy's choir album.
Speaker 7: Crystal Merton oh, yes she was.
Speaker 13: Yeah, she went there to.
Speaker 7: Love that.
Speaker 13: Yes, she's great. Sorry, no, we have in a moment.
Speaker 3: I know you had a favorite gospel artist, Crystal.
Speaker 13: Crystal Cool.
Speaker 7: I grew up on Crystal. Yeah.
Speaker 5: So once, uh, you were done with Howard, what were
Speaker 5: your your your plans and your goals did you have?
Speaker 7: What was your major at Howard?
Speaker 13: Music Education?
Speaker 7: Okay, so you wanted to do something in music.
Speaker 15: I wanted to be a music teacher, and I thought
Speaker 15: that that's what I was going to do. Got out
Speaker 15: there were no music positions available, so I was I
Speaker 15: started to sub and you know, you know how subing is.
Speaker 15: You get up and get dressed and then they don't call.
Speaker 15: So then I called him to May who said, give
Speaker 15: me a call when you come home, you know, from school.
Speaker 15: And I called him and says, well, you know, I
Speaker 15: have a few sessions coming up.
Speaker 13: Would you like to sing?
Speaker 15: It's like sure, And it got to the point where
Speaker 15: I would be making more doing a session a week
Speaker 15: with him than I would working all week as.
Speaker 13: A substitute teacher.
Speaker 15: So it's like, I think I'll try this singing thing.
Speaker 15: And I've done it ever since. And that's been like
Speaker 15: since nineteen seventy six.
Speaker 7: What were sessions paying at that time? Oh, oh my god, was.
Speaker 15: In nineteen seventy six, Yes, yes, it was sessions. Then
Speaker 15: you would get maybe three hundred dollars for a song.
Speaker 7: Okay, and that would be just for singing background.
Speaker 13: That's just for background. Oh yeah, oh Lee, just more,
Speaker 13: even I knew more. What be for a solo?
Speaker 8: You know?
Speaker 2: Is that multiple times in a studio for one song?
Speaker 2: Or is that just no one session like a day,
Speaker 2: like every day you get three hundred dollars.
Speaker 15: No, no, no, no, it wasn't a session a day.
Speaker 15: Maybe we'd do two or three songs a day until
Speaker 15: it would be that.
Speaker 13: Per song, you know.
Speaker 7: Was it like a community of of you know?
Speaker 15: Well, when I when I hooked up to May, No,
Speaker 15: it wasn't because he was They were trying to do
Speaker 15: like a self contained thing.
Speaker 13: But I did get an opportunity.
Speaker 15: To call uh Luther for a session because he had
Speaker 15: a big jingle out for Juicy Fruit gum and I
Speaker 15: liked his voice. I called him for a session and
Speaker 15: uh for a m session by the way, and I
Speaker 15: called him and Gwen Guthrie, who notable back then. Gwen
Speaker 15: Guthrie Brenda White, Luther Vangolslani Groves. I called all of
Speaker 15: that because and they all had a connection with ROBERTA
Speaker 15: Flat who am two May and Reggie worked for for minutes,
Speaker 15: so you know, so I did have an introduction to them.
Speaker 15: But I called Luther for a job and we hit
Speaker 15: it off famously, and so you know, I would try
Speaker 15: to call him as much as I possibly could, and
Speaker 15: then he called me for work. And then after while
Speaker 15: I was, you know, one of his core singers, and
Speaker 15: I went out on.
Speaker 13: His first few tours as a solo artist.
Speaker 2: He seemed like he was one of those go to
Speaker 2: people back and then who had who knew where all
Speaker 2: the gigs were?
Speaker 15: He only knew and he did them, and he did
Speaker 15: them and he was kind enough to you know, to
Speaker 15: to pull me in. And then that's how I met
Speaker 15: Phonsie and and that's been a lifelong friendship.
Speaker 5: Side note, Bill, since you're connected to Sesame Street, did
Speaker 5: you know that Luther was on Sesame Street?
Speaker 7: I did the first two years.
Speaker 3: What was he doing? Just singing?
Speaker 7: Singing? What was it?
Speaker 14: It was a group of him and Nile.
Speaker 15: Him, Nile, Robin Clark, Fonzie Thornton, Nat adele yea all
Speaker 15: of them. Oh yeah, because there are a lot of
Speaker 15: photographs with them, and I did years later, I did
Speaker 15: Sesame Street also as a singer. As a singer, I
Speaker 15: did like I am Chicken, hear me roar you know,
Speaker 15: you know.
Speaker 13: And I'm still getting royalty. I'm still getting royalties from that.
Speaker 14: Yeah, good for you.
Speaker 12: Can your mail stack must be fat every day like
Speaker 12: it used to be like that.
Speaker 15: Oh when I was rolling, Oh girl, you know, I
Speaker 15: wouldn't go to the bank unless I had X amount of.
Speaker 13: The checks to deposit, right, you know, it's like, oh,
Speaker 13: that's beneath me.
Speaker 15: I only have eight Yeah, and now I get checks
Speaker 15: for twenty three cents, So I mean, you know.
Speaker 5: So when you're when you're grinding the pavement for these
Speaker 5: background sessions especially, was it mostly in and uh recorded
Speaker 5: work or was it jingle work.
Speaker 15: Or Oh, in the beginning, it was recorded work record, yeah,
Speaker 15: jingle records. And then after a while the jingle people wanted, uh,
Speaker 15: the the the singers who sang on the popular records.
Speaker 15: And that's why I got into jingle singings, because they
Speaker 15: didn't want it to sound so generic anymore. They wanted
Speaker 15: it to be a little more soulful and we'll have
Speaker 15: a little more personality.
Speaker 5: So with with with that, uh being your hustle and
Speaker 5: that tight circle, because those are the names I always see, Sponte, Thornton,
Speaker 5: Lannie and all.
Speaker 7: Yes, So was it a first of all?
Speaker 5: I mean, it's like six, six or seven of you
Speaker 5: heavy hitters, but I know mostly background vocal background work
Speaker 5: is requires three or four singers. Was it so much
Speaker 5: work to go around that you didn't feel a certain
Speaker 5: way if you lost the gig or like who determines, Like, okay,
Speaker 5: for this phil Simon project, I'll see you you and
Speaker 5: and you well.
Speaker 15: For Phyllis and two May was the producer, and I
Speaker 15: was a contractor, so I could call anyone I wanted, So.
Speaker 7: Of course I got first.
Speaker 15: I got first dips, I could call whoever I wanted
Speaker 15: and whoever I got along with whoever I thought would
Speaker 15: work musically for whatever song we were doing.
Speaker 5: How much yeah, how much prep time does one have
Speaker 5: as a background singing? Because I almost feeling like the
Speaker 5: prep pressure, no pressure is you're at half court and
Speaker 5: you better sink this ball in or right. So have
Speaker 5: you had situations where you might take a chance on
Speaker 5: a newbie I'd like to sing, and you.
Speaker 15: Know that No, no, no, and for sure no, because
Speaker 15: when whoever singing with me also represents me.
Speaker 13: And I had a reputation of reputation to withhold.
Speaker 15: And so if there was somebody new, I would work
Speaker 15: with them on something else, but nothing. You know, I
Speaker 15: couldn't bring them in on a on an a teen thing.
Speaker 15: I couldn't do that.
Speaker 7: But there are some how does the new jack sort
Speaker 7: of get ushered in? Well? Did you usher in the
Speaker 7: new jack?
Speaker 15: I did, and I tried to do that, but of
Speaker 15: course during that time, people had other ideas about how
Speaker 15: they thought they should be in the business, and after
Speaker 15: a while they thought they.
Speaker 13: Knew more than the person that was bringing them in.
Speaker 15: And it's like, oh, I have to cut you off
Speaker 15: because you're not willing to learn.
Speaker 13: You're not willing to learn.
Speaker 15: You think you can come in with like everything out,
Speaker 15: ass out, you know, chest out, And it's like that
Speaker 15: doesn't doesn't work like that, because at the end of
Speaker 15: the day, you have to be professional, you have to sing,
Speaker 15: you have to get along with people. And then and
Speaker 15: for my work is I got a lot of referrals.
Speaker 15: I never had a business card or a manager I
Speaker 15: just got by on. You know, people wrote him out,
Speaker 15: so that meant a lot to me. And you know,
Speaker 15: you have to t MA always told me you have
Speaker 15: to remember what you represent when you go out, and
Speaker 15: so I tried to instill that in the singers that
Speaker 15: I tried to bring up.
Speaker 5: Who of the clientele that I mentioned, who is the
Speaker 5: fondest memory of your of everyone that you work with,
Speaker 5: who is your like?
Speaker 7: Ah? That was I always have great sessions with no doubt.
Speaker 15: Fontie Thornton, Fonzie Thornton. That's that's my That's that's my
Speaker 15: ride to die.
Speaker 5: Why is he so unlike he? He is everyone's go
Speaker 5: to guy for singing. I know he had solo records, yes,
Speaker 5: Why why was he such a close banown cigar? Like
Speaker 5: he should have been a contender?
Speaker 13: He do you always have to have the cigar?
Speaker 14: No?
Speaker 7: Well, okay.
Speaker 15: On the other side, well, you know the thing is
Speaker 15: everybody doesn't want to be in the front. I mean
Speaker 15: I was happy just singing background, and I was happy
Speaker 15: to sing a background.
Speaker 13: It just so happened we had a song out that became.
Speaker 15: Number one, and then I had to be out there.
Speaker 15: But it's not that I couldn't handle it. I mean,
Speaker 15: because that's from my church background. I can handle a crowd,
Speaker 15: I can't handle audience. But you know that wasn't my
Speaker 15: goal was not to be in the front.
Speaker 5: Well okay, but in the case of Luther who started
Speaker 5: out deep in the background and naturally became a star,
Speaker 5: were there expectations for Phonzie Thornton to also following in
Speaker 5: the footsteps to Well.
Speaker 15: You know what, We all did sessions and then we
Speaker 15: all had opportunities to do solo records, and then if
Speaker 15: that's where it took us, then that's where we would go.
Speaker 13: But if not, we could always.
Speaker 3: Still do that.
Speaker 7: I was like, oh, well, okay, for.
Speaker 13: Me, it was another project.
Speaker 15: It was another project, and the thing was to get
Speaker 15: the projects, get the union time in, get the you
Speaker 15: know you know, yes, yeah.
Speaker 2: So can you talk about what you love about background
Speaker 2: versus being out in the front.
Speaker 13: I love the support of it all.
Speaker 15: I love seeing the band playing and everybody's participating, everybody's
Speaker 15: making a contribution to make something whole. You know, whether
Speaker 15: it's Lenny Kravitz out there, whether it's the Dave Matthews band,
Speaker 15: who I absolutely adore.
Speaker 13: It's like it's always a learning experience. I didn't have
Speaker 13: to be in the front.
Speaker 15: I enjoyed participating and making something and creating something that
Speaker 15: the audience was gonna love, so we didn't have I
Speaker 15: didn't have to be in the front. I'd be so
Speaker 15: happy singing behind the curtain as long as I getting
Speaker 15: the same money.
Speaker 5: Talk about it, do you prefer as far as when
Speaker 5: you're doing session work in studio?
Speaker 7: Is it is it mostly separate sessions? Are you in
Speaker 7: front of the artists?
Speaker 5: Like sometimes I'll call background session or whatever and nobody's around.
Speaker 7: Just meet the producer and the.
Speaker 13: Artist doesn't have to be there. The artists doesn't have
Speaker 13: to be there.
Speaker 15: Because when I was coming up, the producers knew what
Speaker 15: it was supposed to be. You know, there weren't ten
Speaker 15: different people doing the sign doing ten different things. The
Speaker 15: producer knew what the parts, or the producer and the
Speaker 15: contractor because usually the contractor was also the vocal arranger.
Speaker 13: So so in my case, I would hook up.
Speaker 15: With him two Man and Reggie to see what they wanted,
Speaker 15: and you know, they get the song and you know,
Speaker 15: we create some background parts and then I'd go in
Speaker 15: and teach the parts to the singers and then we
Speaker 15: you know, go on, Okay.
Speaker 5: Who was the hardest What was your hardest challenge as
Speaker 5: a background singer as far as someone that you know
Speaker 5: is a hard task masker or songs that you had
Speaker 5: to go over and over and over, take after take
Speaker 5: after James Brown.
Speaker 13: Well, that for me, that didn't.
Speaker 15: The only time time that happened was when I was
Speaker 15: doing the Songwriters Hall of Fame and we had, you know,
Speaker 15: there might be ten people on the show, you know,
Speaker 15: so we're we're in the house band, so we have
Speaker 15: to learn all these background parts for everybody, right, and
Speaker 15: then it's almost over and Barry Manilow comes in.
Speaker 7: Someone has expectations and he.
Speaker 13: Has a seventeen page intro.
Speaker 15: You know, he's got we got seventeen pages of music
Speaker 15: for his his his opening, and it's like, oh man,
Speaker 15: it's and it's tomorrow.
Speaker 13: The performance is tomorrow.
Speaker 7: You read on site, no, okay, what that mean?
Speaker 14: Say music?
Speaker 15: People put I don't read, but I could spell because
Speaker 15: because I used to do jingles, a lot of jingles,
Speaker 15: and people would always tell me, you know, you have
Speaker 15: to know how to read to do these jingles. And
Speaker 15: then it's like what and the thing is if the
Speaker 15: thing is only sixty seconds long. If I can't remember
Speaker 15: something that's sixty seconds long, then I shouldn't even be here.
Speaker 7: So you know, my parent, I'm sorry, mom My dad
Speaker 7: lies to me.
Speaker 5: No, he was like, you know, real musicians and you know,
Speaker 5: you got to learn to read and d d and
Speaker 5: I'm in the case of Quincy Jones, he would also say, like,
Speaker 5: it helps to read and put something in front of you,
Speaker 5: But I always felt that those who read didn't something.
Speaker 15: Something was missing and it was and it was never
Speaker 15: whatever they wrote was it was they We never ended
Speaker 15: up singing what was on the paper you put your
Speaker 15: never never because it's like it's too sterile. And you know,
Speaker 15: some people's like, well you you can't change any of
Speaker 15: my music. It's like, well, okay, we'll sing it, but
Speaker 15: it's not gonna sound right.
Speaker 2: So the option is to demo or to read it, right?
Speaker 2: Is that what you're saying, Like, either you can hear
Speaker 2: a demo or you have to read it.
Speaker 13: You should be able to do both.
Speaker 15: But the thing is some people who just read, you know,
Speaker 15: some people read fly Doo doo.
Speaker 13: You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 5: But it's like, yeah, I almost feel like I was
Speaker 5: as a youngster, I was told like, you won't make
Speaker 5: it unless you read, Like.
Speaker 13: At least it's good to know. But I haven't had to.
Speaker 10: Use it rummers for no reason at all. Yeah, but
Speaker 10: if you're if you're reading, you're listening. I feel like
Speaker 10: that's the big thing. It's like if you're too focused
Speaker 10: on reading the piece of music. Because I can read
Speaker 10: music and I.
Speaker 7: And I suck as a musician.
Speaker 10: Was terrible hears because I didn't. I didn't grow up
Speaker 10: as a person who listened to things. I grew up
Speaker 10: like it was visual with me, Like I saw the
Speaker 10: notes on the page and that's what. So now when
Speaker 10: people are like, what quarters that, I'm like, nope, nope, he.
Speaker 5: Has a non reader. I'm programmed to absorb like long phrases.
Speaker 7: Yes, that's what you're great at.
Speaker 14: Yeah, I'm not, thank you, just not.
Speaker 13: This is my confession.
Speaker 5: I admitted, so of your what what were some notable
Speaker 5: jingles that you've done that we might know, Oh.
Speaker 15: Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken, when the airlines had individual songs?
Speaker 2: No, no way, that's too early, right No, no, no
Speaker 2: to that was you No, no, no, that was.
Speaker 15: Was mostly group stuff, you know, but Burger King. I
Speaker 15: did have a like a solo, okay. And then but
Speaker 15: my first foray intol like loving jingles, was hearing Philisheim
Speaker 15: and singing.
Speaker 13: A Burger King commercially, she said, and she was singing.
Speaker 15: It was like ooh that hot and sizzling bacon. It
Speaker 15: was a bacon cheeseburger. It was she did a jazz
Speaker 15: you know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 7: It was for mc d l T.
Speaker 13: I think it was Burger King. I remember it was
Speaker 13: a fast food.
Speaker 5: I remember, okay, okay, I remember thinking about the invested.
Speaker 7: McDonald was.
Speaker 11: My favorite favorite commercial, straight up all facts.
Speaker 13: I got moonlight in my head.
Speaker 2: That was.
Speaker 7: By day.
Speaker 5: So I would take it that you're one of those
Speaker 5: singers that you know that you can dissect within four
Speaker 5: seconds even someone's speaking voice, if if they could sing
Speaker 5: or not sing, like just based on or that.
Speaker 7: Who are your who are your idols?
Speaker 5: As far as not favorites, like oh I love this record,
Speaker 5: but as far as singing, like who is your You're
Speaker 5: Michael Jordan.
Speaker 15: You're you know Michael Jordan's singing would be any of
Speaker 15: the Clark sisters.
Speaker 13: Oh wow, okay, any of the Clark sisters.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I just saw my first Clark Sisters show like
Speaker 7: two weeks ago.
Speaker 13: Man, did you enjoy it?
Speaker 5: Snoop brought them out, Yeah, gospel in essence and it
Speaker 5: was amazing.
Speaker 3: You gotta played a dance record in you'll mix sometimes.
Speaker 7: So yeah, all right.
Speaker 15: Besides the Clark Sisters, I like the Clark Sisters. I
Speaker 15: like DJ Rogers, Yeah, remember yeah, DJ Rogers I like
Speaker 15: And these are like not not like the famous famous people, uh,
Speaker 15: but they're famous anyway.
Speaker 13: Let's say DJ Rogers Karen Clark.
Speaker 15: I like all younger woman mis letusy, miss lettus.
Speaker 13: She's a she's a real she's she's good, She's really
Speaker 13: really good.
Speaker 15: It is easy for her. That's that's the talent.
Speaker 13: But I also like.
Speaker 15: Richard Smallwood even though I you know, I went to school,
Speaker 15: I went to school with him. But he's just such
Speaker 15: a talented singer. But he doesn't sing as much as
Speaker 15: you know. You hear his songs, but you don't hear
Speaker 15: him singing that much. But he's a great singer. I
Speaker 15: also love I love Marvin Marvin Gaye nineteen seventy five.
Speaker 15: I want you any cut on that album. It's just amazing.
Speaker 15: I like Leon Ware, which is like almost the same,
Speaker 15: the same thing. Yeah, and who else love Little Jimmy Scott,
Speaker 15: A Sarabon, Doug, Jene Krn, Jeane Karn. But the jazzy stuff,
Speaker 15: the jazz stuff with Doug and Doug and Jean Doug and.
Speaker 17: Jane Karn and uh oh yeah, so how how how
Speaker 17: influential is I know that you were committed to gospel
Speaker 17: and yeah, but uh, as far as jazz is.
Speaker 7: Concerned, how how influential is that?
Speaker 15: And oh no, no, no, no, no, no, it's it
Speaker 15: all depends on if it's somebody that I like, It
Speaker 15: doesn't matter what they're singing. Uh. It could be jazz,
Speaker 15: it could be it could be country, it could be anything.
Speaker 15: So I listened to a lot of music all the time.
Speaker 15: That's all I did.
Speaker 13: Read books and listen listen to the radio.
Speaker 15: So whether it was W A B C or W
Speaker 15: in New York or cousin Russie, or whether it was
Speaker 15: a W any W which played like Frank Sinatra and
Speaker 15: you know it was the guy uh.
Speaker 13: I left my Tony Bennett. You know, I listened to
Speaker 13: all of that.
Speaker 15: So I would incorporate all of that into what I
Speaker 15: was trying to do. So I took a little bit
Speaker 15: from everybody and you didn't try to and just made
Speaker 15: my own gumbo.
Speaker 5: So what was the proposition to join, uh the into
Speaker 5: may Bind When you guys first started, I think my
Speaker 5: I don't know if it wasn't In Search of Rainbow.
Speaker 5: It was the eighty album that came out in nineteen eighty.
Speaker 5: You guys were on Soul Train.
Speaker 7: Yeah, so.
Speaker 13: I wasn't doing anything else.
Speaker 15: I needed something to do and if I could make
Speaker 15: a few coins, you know, and if I could support
Speaker 15: myself and doing this something that I realized that I loved.
Speaker 15: You know, It's like, well, then this is what I
Speaker 15: should be doing, you know, and just luckily. I mean,
Speaker 15: but I you know, you know, your parents always tell
Speaker 15: you you have to have something to fall back on.
Speaker 13: That's why you went to school.
Speaker 15: But you know, by the time I needed to fall
Speaker 15: back on something, it was way too late for me
Speaker 15: to be teaching. So I mean then I just went
Speaker 15: to the next adventure I call adventure in my life.
Speaker 15: So either it was singing background, it was doing jingles,
Speaker 15: It was going on tour with Brian Ferry and Roxy Music,
Speaker 15: which was the first time I went out of the country.
Speaker 13: It's like I'm a girl from New York. You know.
Speaker 15: When I checked into my room in England, it's like
Speaker 15: I thought I had Brian's room.
Speaker 13: The room was so big. I mean, I didn't know.
Speaker 13: I didn't know.
Speaker 15: I'm just the lowly background singer. So it's like, you know,
Speaker 15: it's an adventure. My life has been an adventure, and
Speaker 15: every group that I've worked with it it's taken me
Speaker 15: to bigger and better places.
Speaker 5: So we've had James and to me on the on
Speaker 5: the show. Yeah, previously, yeah, I always. I know that
Speaker 5: you also work with Reggie Lucas, his writing partner. Can
Speaker 5: you describe, you know, because I don't know what was
Speaker 5: Reggie like to work with.
Speaker 15: As far as Reggie, we called Reggie Lucas. We gave
Speaker 15: everybody a name. We called Reggie Edgy Edgie Lucas. He
Speaker 15: was constantly like twirling his hair trying to get get
Speaker 15: stuff done, you know, twirling his his frog, trying to
Speaker 15: get stuff done.
Speaker 13: He played the guitar and was like, why is it
Speaker 13: so loud, Reggie, why are you playing it so loud?
Speaker 13: You know, it's like the guitar.
Speaker 15: But you know, but then I realized he was definitely
Speaker 15: one ear. I didn't know, so why didn't know, didn't know,
Speaker 15: didn't know. But Reggie was cool and he and them
Speaker 15: too may they worked well together. So and I was
Speaker 15: just there. I was there for every single session. It
Speaker 15: was so new to me. I would sit on the
Speaker 15: sofa at Sigma Sound while they were tracking every song
Speaker 15: that they had written, and it's like, oh my god,
Speaker 15: I can't believe I'm sitting here watching this stuff being created,
Speaker 15: and then for years later for it to still stand.
Speaker 13: You know, that's that's you know, that's.
Speaker 7: You were there for, like the beginnings of Closer. Yeah,
Speaker 7: you know, you describe it.
Speaker 15: You know, how to love me because I used to
Speaker 15: sing the reference I sing the reference vocals for each
Speaker 15: artist that they produced, so you know, I was pretending like, Okay,
Speaker 15: you know I'm not gonna be in the front, but
Speaker 15: this is going to be my chance to pretend I'm
Speaker 15: at the front.
Speaker 13: So I sing my little song, sing for Stephanie, sing
Speaker 13: for Phyllis. You know, it was it was great.
Speaker 5: He told us that one of his artists followed her
Speaker 5: to the t uh, that that she demoed the song,
Speaker 5: and that uh they were they were so impressed with
Speaker 5: your performance.
Speaker 7: I was. It wasn't Phyllis, it wasn't forget the song.
Speaker 13: Oh it's too hard.
Speaker 15: Stephanie and Stephanie and I sang two Hearts because we
Speaker 15: had to, you know, put the song down for Teddy
Speaker 15: to hear, and so Stephanie and I went in and
Speaker 15: sang two hearts.
Speaker 13: And it was like you were, yeah, well I wrote
Speaker 13: that song.
Speaker 14: Yeah.
Speaker 13: So it's like, you know, I'm singing.
Speaker 15: At first, I sang the whole thing, and then they
Speaker 15: decided to make it a duet, you know. And then
Speaker 15: because Teddy was like a you're gonna do this duet
Speaker 15: with Teddy and and Stephanie. So it's like, okay, now
Speaker 15: let's do the reference vocals. So Stephanie and I went
Speaker 15: in and sang, and it was the battle Royale.
Speaker 13: I loved it.
Speaker 15: I loved it, and I have so much respect for
Speaker 15: her because it was like, okay, two little girls, two
Speaker 15: short girls, two munchkins at the mic, and it's like dump,
Speaker 15: it's getting higher and higher and high, and it's getting
Speaker 15: more intense and more intense.
Speaker 13: It's like, oh, it was.
Speaker 15: A heavyweight beout, and it's like yes, but but we
Speaker 15: both wanted it was like much respect because people don't
Speaker 15: do that anymore. It was, it was great, and nobody
Speaker 15: can find the tape.
Speaker 13: Nobody can find the tape. It's like, where is the tape?
Speaker 11: Was?
Speaker 7: Casey might just need to have you to re recorded.
Speaker 13: I'm down for that because Stephanie's my girl. Oh Stephane,
Speaker 13: my girl.
Speaker 12: Supreme compilations.
Speaker 15: Look, Stephanie Mills and Philip Hymon, the big ups to
Speaker 15: them because they were the most amazing people on stage.
Speaker 15: They gave great performances and it's Stephanie still doing it.
Speaker 5: So with Well, now now you got confused. No no, no, no, well,
Speaker 5: because the thing is is that only in movies I
Speaker 5: see people recording tandem, like at the same time. Oh yeah,
Speaker 5: And I always say to myself, oh, I'd never do that.
Speaker 7: I have them do it separate. But then I'm like,
Speaker 7: wait a minute.
Speaker 15: You get the vibe from the other person, you get
Speaker 15: the vibe from the other person, You gotta you gotta
Speaker 15: have somebody standing there.
Speaker 13: They gotta be singing.
Speaker 5: So y'all always like I do stuff alone.
Speaker 7: Imagine it sounds like in my head.
Speaker 15: Because we'd be tracking the songs and I'd be singing
Speaker 15: and singing. The reference while the band is playing, and
Speaker 15: I do always come up with here comes the bridge,
Speaker 15: so they know when the bridge was coming in, you know,
Speaker 15: like yeah, So I mean I love singing with singing
Speaker 15: off of somebody. I mean, you know, you gotta, you know,
Speaker 15: you gotta have something to bounce off of.
Speaker 2: Who's your other favorite bouncer outside of Stephanie most Worthy?
Speaker 13: She's most most Worthy? I love her. Let's say Luther
Speaker 13: Luthor Luther.
Speaker 7: What's it like working with Luther?
Speaker 5: Because I there's there's there's only one clip on YouTube
Speaker 5: of which he's teaching his background singers different parts, Like
Speaker 5: I think that Adeley had a camera running and this
Speaker 5: during the maybe the night I felt loved people, it
Speaker 5: was like yeah, I felt like two hands were on
Speaker 5: the on the camera.
Speaker 7: Like the thing front. But it was it was amazing
Speaker 7: to watch.
Speaker 5: But then I don't know with I mean, musicians are
Speaker 5: intimidating enough.
Speaker 7: How Luther was a he was for real, like even
Speaker 7: we have Michael was Michael Brown.
Speaker 15: Yeah, he was saying like the engineer yeah on the show.
Speaker 7: So yeah, like.
Speaker 5: Was he is level of perfection, which is something that
Speaker 5: I don't think even exists today.
Speaker 7: It's almost like you're one and done. But it was supreme.
Speaker 15: It was supreme, and everybody came in knowing that it
Speaker 15: was going to be you know, it's going to be
Speaker 15: some next level stuff, you know, But.
Speaker 7: Is it hard?
Speaker 5: Is it hard when someone graduates to that next level
Speaker 5: and then they have to because I'm certain that no
Speaker 5: one starts off with demands and I want it done
Speaker 5: the right way. And but is it different relating to
Speaker 5: someone when they're on a certain level and then they
Speaker 5: graduate to a next level and then.
Speaker 13: Well, well you know what.
Speaker 15: We were there to see that, and it was like
Speaker 15: we were all growing.
Speaker 13: I'm just part.
Speaker 15: I'm just happy to be happy to have been a
Speaker 15: part of that family because we are all still close
Speaker 15: to this day of those who are left. But Luther
Speaker 15: had high expectations, but then so did I Cause it's like,
Speaker 15: I'm coming in, I'm going to give you like two
Speaker 15: hundred percent because you know, I know I can bring it,
Speaker 15: So challenge me to do what you want and to
Speaker 15: give you the sound that you want. And Luther knew
Speaker 15: exactly what each person could do and could not do,
Speaker 15: and so it's like, okay, ta Watha, do you want
Speaker 15: to sing first? You want to sing second? I like
Speaker 15: to sing second, because I like to push push the soprano,
Speaker 15: so so Cissy, Miss Cissy Houston would be singing the top,
Speaker 15: I'm singing under her. Then we'd have Oh my god,
Speaker 15: who Cindy. Cindy came in later, Cindy and then Lisa
Speaker 15: came in later. As a matter as a matter of fact,
Speaker 15: Lisa replaced me because Juicy Food did come out and
Speaker 15: I had to go, So Lisa and then oh my god.
Speaker 15: It's like it the level of expertstation was high. But
Speaker 15: we all came in there knowing that, you know, we
Speaker 15: were special to be there because he selected us to sing.
Speaker 7: Did you ever tour with him as well? Or just
Speaker 7: I did?
Speaker 15: I did the first couple of tours with with Luther.
Speaker 15: As a matter of fact, there's a clip of us
Speaker 15: on Saturday Night Live. We have on friends jumpsuits.
Speaker 13: Okay, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 7: So was his?
Speaker 5: Was his stage presentation? Like I I think by the
Speaker 5: time after Busybody, No, No, No, the NFL.
Speaker 7: In Love always for oh, after the album, After.
Speaker 5: The NFL in Love was next, you know, after that's
Speaker 5: when I first seen him. Then his presentation on the
Speaker 5: next level the ball and everything. Did you guys have
Speaker 5: to go through that rigorous like.
Speaker 13: Well by then, also, let me tell you this about Luther. Luther.
Speaker 15: Uh, I wanted to audition to be in Luther's group.
Speaker 15: So this is when I had met him where I'd
Speaker 15: called him for some sessions and he said, you know,
Speaker 15: you know, looking for some people. I called his manager
Speaker 15: and he says, no, it wasn't say his name is
Speaker 15: David Cravat, And he said, well, how tall are you?
Speaker 15: And it's like, what difference does that make? He said, well,
Speaker 15: Luther has a height requirement. So I couldn't sing on
Speaker 15: stage with Luther by the at that time, because he
Speaker 15: would have four people on stage, but you know, they
Speaker 15: would all they would all.
Speaker 13: Be tall, and they'd have to look a certain.
Speaker 15: Way because you know he's going to have like the
Speaker 15: ball downs and stuff, you know.
Speaker 13: But then he also had a set of singers in.
Speaker 15: The pit, right, so I'd be in the pit, sitting
Speaker 15: on the stool, still looking fabulous. But you know, in
Speaker 15: the pit, are you still dressed to the nines like
Speaker 15: the ones that are on the stage. Well, we didn't
Speaker 15: have ballgowns on, but we had fabulous suits on. You know,
Speaker 15: just that was a requirement and you know, and every
Speaker 15: night after each show, you know, because he'd had those
Speaker 15: like the crystals on the stone on the ball gowns,
Speaker 15: they'd come up and sweep the stage to get the.
Speaker 13: Crystals that falling off.
Speaker 15: Too much much, It's just much so glitters you got
Speaker 15: to sweet and put back on.
Speaker 5: So speaking of juicy fruit, yes, now, I mean no,
Speaker 5: one can never plan on lightning strike and.
Speaker 13: And told me unprepared.
Speaker 5: So at the time when you were recording it, it
Speaker 5: was just like, all right, another song for as you
Speaker 5: just did it as an after thought.
Speaker 7: Not really.
Speaker 15: I was out on tour where Brian Ferry Roxy Music
Speaker 15: in Europe once again, and then you May called and said,
Speaker 15: I got one more song for the album.
Speaker 13: You got to come back do this song. Came back.
Speaker 13: Did the song. It's like and did he tell you
Speaker 13: about the candy kisses?
Speaker 14: Oh?
Speaker 13: No, not the lyrics.
Speaker 15: So this is about the recording. Oh he didn't tell
Speaker 15: you about it? Tellas is my confession. Okay, So uh,
Speaker 15: and two May wanted to try something different. He said,
Speaker 15: I got this brilliant idea of we're going to sing
Speaker 15: this dry. It's like two May sing it dry, you know. Okay,
Speaker 15: let's try it. It's like that.
Speaker 7: It was terrible and to him singing it dry meaning
Speaker 7: no nothing.
Speaker 15: Just like you're singing into it like an empty pit,
Speaker 15: and it's like I can't feel anything because there's no reverb.
Speaker 15: It's no, the sound is not bouncing off of anything.
Speaker 15: But just try it if that had come out.
Speaker 7: So there's an initial version take where well we we.
Speaker 15: I finally came up with a compromise. I said, let's
Speaker 15: put the reverb on it while I'm singing, and then
Speaker 15: you can take it off when you do it the
Speaker 15: mix right, And that's what he did. Oh, because it
Speaker 15: was like this is not gonna work. The dryness, it
Speaker 15: doesn't work with the voice, so that I need to
Speaker 15: have it.
Speaker 13: Yes.
Speaker 5: I always wanted to know, Like I meant, you know,
Speaker 5: mostly work with rappers, so you know the monitor man
Speaker 5: isn't no no, no, I mean you would think that
Speaker 5: rappers are hard on my they're hard on manageorment with
Speaker 5: having their volume up.
Speaker 7: Yeah, my heads right.
Speaker 5: But you know it's only when I work with singers,
Speaker 5: you know, they'll use like I wet my voice.
Speaker 13: A little bit, could I have a little reverb? Please?
Speaker 7: And I never knew.
Speaker 5: I was like, oh, okay, because I don't want effects
Speaker 5: on but that helps you get into a.
Speaker 7: Mind frame up.
Speaker 13: Yes, exactly, I see.
Speaker 5: So when it came out, at what point did you
Speaker 5: realize like, holy crap, this is this is something.
Speaker 13: Well, when Juicy came out, I was still on tour.
Speaker 15: I was on tour with Roxy Music for like six
Speaker 15: months and the record, the record came out here in
Speaker 15: the state, and so I would call home to see
Speaker 15: how it was doing. You said, oh, well, it's like
Speaker 15: number like eighty, you know, and then it was like sixty,
Speaker 15: and then you know, twenty, then ten.
Speaker 13: Then he said, you know, gonna believe this, think it's
Speaker 13: number one.
Speaker 15: And the record became number one the week we Roxy
Speaker 15: Music came to New York City and performed it at
Speaker 15: uh Radio City Music Hall, and they played it during
Speaker 15: the you know, during the intermission they and they played it.
Speaker 15: They played it so many times and too they said,
Speaker 15: woll you please have them stop?
Speaker 13: Yeah.
Speaker 15: So, I mean, you know, I was working while that
Speaker 15: was happening, so I didn't have to sit home and
Speaker 15: worry about it, because if I was at home, I'd
Speaker 15: be worried about the record, how the record was doing.
Speaker 5: Since you guys weren't not a traditional band, But how
Speaker 5: is it able to even rise? I mean, besides the
Speaker 5: word and mouth of it all on the video, you'll
Speaker 5: weren't touring, Yeah, if you weren't actively like well.
Speaker 15: This was when the when the record first came out,
Speaker 15: and then after it was like number one for like
Speaker 15: eight weeks, it's like, well, we got to we got
Speaker 15: to get together and go out and play for the people,
Speaker 15: and that's what we did.
Speaker 13: That's what we did. But that that was the people's record.
Speaker 15: Juicy was the people's record because the record company was
Speaker 15: not behind that at all.
Speaker 7: Yeah, he said the same thing at all. I believe that.
Speaker 13: Yeah, well I believe.
Speaker 7: That it that he was writing you were singing the
Speaker 7: first verse.
Speaker 13: Yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah. He likes that. He likes that.
Speaker 15: He likes that pressure because it's like, look, I'm here
Speaker 15: for two days, okay, so let's let's do this, you know,
Speaker 15: I mean for.
Speaker 7: Two days, let's have a whole album completed.
Speaker 15: Well, no, no, it was just it was the last song.
Speaker 15: It was the last song, and then we had you know,
Speaker 15: Freddie Jackson sang on Juicy Fruit. It was one of
Speaker 15: his first sessions. Yeah, he was on the best discover
Speaker 15: discovery must have because it's like, I don't know why
Speaker 15: else he would be.
Speaker 7: Yeah, he was, yeah before after the Mystic Marlin records.
Speaker 13: Oh, I think this was before. This was before.
Speaker 7: Wow, I did not know that.
Speaker 2: I have a really this is a frivolous question, but
Speaker 2: I just have to know. It's like old eighties gossip.
Speaker 2: Do you know if Freddy Jackson and Luther Van Draws
Speaker 2: really got along?
Speaker 15: Well, you know what I saw them at astron Assumption
Speaker 15: had an a picnic every year at the fourth of July,
Speaker 15: White white picnic.
Speaker 13: And they were there and they were just talking.
Speaker 15: I mean it was I didn't see any animosity, but
Speaker 15: you know that's that's I don't know what, but you
Speaker 15: know what, that was two different lanes. That was two
Speaker 15: different lanes. That was you know, that wasn't the same.
Speaker 12: They're very big presence, both of them.
Speaker 7: Yes, yes, I see.
Speaker 5: Okay, Now due to your strong gospel convictions.
Speaker 7: Look, I was putting punishment for Juicy Food.
Speaker 5: If I was putting punishment for owning that record, how how.
Speaker 13: Must have must into I progressed.
Speaker 15: My thinking was more progressive changed, I mean.
Speaker 7: He was, but that was the album. Later they I took.
Speaker 13: My thinking. You know, I read a little more and
Speaker 13: it became a little more knowledgeable.
Speaker 7: Progress mister Wata was out there in the world.
Speaker 13: I'll say that I wasn't as sheltered. Let me put
Speaker 13: it on that rock.
Speaker 15: Music for six months, but King it was King Music
Speaker 15: and Adrian Blue really and I didn't know who anybody was.
Speaker 7: Well. See that's that level background singing in the second.
Speaker 7: But the thing is is that with with Juicy Fruit.
Speaker 5: See, the thing is, Prince is a cult artist with
Speaker 5: his own cult following. So it's almost like Prince became
Speaker 5: famous kind of an alternative land, whereas Juicy Fruit was
Speaker 5: such a straight ahead mainstream song that really really pushed
Speaker 5: the envelope. I mean minus I mean the double one
Speaker 5: time dres is like super obvious.
Speaker 7: So were you.
Speaker 15: I had no problem singing that song, I I.
Speaker 7: I was.
Speaker 15: I was just happy to be singing. I was happy
Speaker 15: to be singing. That was happy. But that the group,
Speaker 15: that the band was doing something. So it's like I'm
Speaker 15: just I'm happy to be singing. I'm on the road
Speaker 15: back with my band. It's like I'm cool. It's like whatever, whatever.
Speaker 5: Now the question that I really have is since you're
Speaker 5: such a stickler for perfection, vocal perfection.
Speaker 7: Let's let's go ten years later in nineteen ninety four. Now,
Speaker 7: come on a man dream. You know you hate Total
Speaker 7: slan Yes, background on Juicy, that's Total? Oh yeah, okay?
Speaker 7: Is that who that was?
Speaker 13: Do you know?
Speaker 15: I tried to find out who was singing that, and
Speaker 15: I could never find out because I never I never
Speaker 15: saw the credit because see, I'm like, I'm one of
Speaker 15: those people. If I sing on it, I want to
Speaker 15: see my name on it. You know, I'm the credits.
Speaker 13: But I never saw that, and I inquired Basic based.
Speaker 5: Some of those background vocals Ground not Toyo's BIG's Juicy
Speaker 5: were saying by Total, I did you know that?
Speaker 3: I know it's a different I don't understand.
Speaker 13: Well, I think that's wonderful.
Speaker 14: Oh yes, but let me.
Speaker 11: No.
Speaker 7: But this is the thing. Though I analyzed it, and
Speaker 7: all right, me and Boss Bill's.
Speaker 5: Battle, it's probably second only to post nineteen eighty eight
Speaker 5: Prince material.
Speaker 3: As far as our war is a concern, who's on
Speaker 3: what side?
Speaker 9: Total?
Speaker 5: I like Total, but fur the Total album the second one.
Speaker 7: I didn't said I didn't like Total, but this.
Speaker 5: Is the thing I figured Steve fig total cereal.
Speaker 7: It was coming. I don't. But what I'm saying is that.
Speaker 5: And and analyzing that song years later, I think the
Speaker 5: regularness of their back they sounded like they sound like.
Speaker 7: Totally right, and I think that's what worked. I think
Speaker 7: that's what that was like.
Speaker 3: In my mind about to play it, but you're not right.
Speaker 5: No, I'm in no you.
Speaker 7: Play if you won't mean I'm just saying.
Speaker 5: Did you sound like did you feel a certain way
Speaker 5: about like kind of pitch?
Speaker 16: Well?
Speaker 15: You know what I thought. First of all, it's like,
Speaker 15: why didn't they ask us to do it? That was
Speaker 15: my first question. But then it's like, okay, it's it's
Speaker 15: a different time. It's like so many years later, it's
Speaker 15: the next generation.
Speaker 7: Just to jump in. A lot of times people think
Speaker 7: you're gonna say.
Speaker 13: No, yes, Well nobody asked, all right.
Speaker 7: This is this is how we connected.
Speaker 5: Because once I realized, I mean, I've seen you a
Speaker 5: billion times in the thirty Rock building sing on other people,
Speaker 5: and every time I didn't know that was you.
Speaker 7: And then once you came in with Lenny Kravitz, You're like,
Speaker 7: why are we working together? Even?
Speaker 5: And then in my mind I was just like she
Speaker 5: knows one of us, Like, wait, you've heard of me too.
Speaker 5: It was like, wait, you come down to my level
Speaker 5: to work for me, Like, yes, why would you ever
Speaker 5: want to work with I think, Yeah, in our minds,
Speaker 5: it's just like, I mean, you replaced Billy. Don't think no,
Speaker 5: now I know. And that's the thing, like I think
Speaker 5: most of the time, like in my mind, yes, of
Speaker 5: all the things that's iconic about Juicy Juicy is what
Speaker 5: finally dislidged Billy Jean from the number one slot on
Speaker 5: that black music. So my mind is just like, I
Speaker 5: think you're above that. So I don't think it occurred
Speaker 5: to anyone.
Speaker 13: I don't Oh, well, nobody asks.
Speaker 7: Get a DeLorean. I want to hear that sounds like.
Speaker 15: Oh nobody asked about that. And I said, I think
Speaker 15: I too. May said they wanted us to be in.
Speaker 13: The video, but it's like.
Speaker 15: Video on the boat and it's like no, it's like, no,
Speaker 15: two old people with all the.
Speaker 13: Young the youngsters out there.
Speaker 15: I'd rather I'd rather sing, you know, but I'd rather
Speaker 15: I did not know who was singing on that, And
Speaker 15: I just know it was just so different from I
Speaker 15: think what we would have done.
Speaker 7: So different yeah, I think. Uh so, did you guys
Speaker 7: tour much with with the with that album?
Speaker 2: Is?
Speaker 6: Oh?
Speaker 7: We did? We did.
Speaker 13: I think we toured a lot.
Speaker 5: But usually with accidental hits or at least unplanned hits
Speaker 5: from the label.
Speaker 7: It's like did they finally see the lights?
Speaker 15: Like okay, well, you know we toured with we opened
Speaker 15: it was a juicy fruit in between the sheets and
Speaker 15: Sexual Healing.
Speaker 13: It was Marmon, Gay Brothers and two Wow.
Speaker 7: That was the tour.
Speaker 13: That was the tour. Wow, that was the tour.
Speaker 15: And this is when when Marmon came out.
Speaker 13: And he had the roll.
Speaker 7: That yeah, that was he was stripping.
Speaker 13: He was stripping.
Speaker 7: But what was that like hindsight?
Speaker 5: You know, that's something that legendary, could never happen again.
Speaker 5: So it's like, did you appreciate that moment or was
Speaker 5: it like the show's over, I'm going on.
Speaker 13: When it when it?
Speaker 15: When it was for m too May no always always
Speaker 15: appreciated because it was like people will hear us. We
Speaker 15: were We were a really really good band and and
Speaker 15: the performances were amazing and and I just want to
Speaker 15: say that when I from working with them two May
Speaker 15: and then going to work with Luther was was interesting
Speaker 15: because with him two May, everything was improvisational everything because
Speaker 15: they're all like jazz guys up there. So we'd start
Speaker 15: out with an intro and the intro would turn into
Speaker 15: something else, and you know, and everybody's singing and whatever,
Speaker 15: so we'd have the core of the song and then
Speaker 15: it would just go someplace else. But working with other people,
Speaker 15: it was the same thing every night, and which I
Speaker 15: had to get used to. It's like, you sing the
Speaker 15: same the song the same way every night. Nobody branches
Speaker 15: out and you know, does like an interest in solo
Speaker 15: or the same solo every night. It was the same.
Speaker 15: Everything was the same. Even the dialogue was the same
Speaker 15: every night. So you know, I I prefer.
Speaker 13: Him to May because we we would stretch out you know.
Speaker 7: Nice.
Speaker 5: Yeah, so with Theater of the Mind, Oh no, no,
Speaker 5: you mean he was nice.
Speaker 7: You know, that was pushing the boundaries.
Speaker 5: So were you at that point where you guys like, okay,
Speaker 5: we're the boundary pushing.
Speaker 15: But no, it wasn't even about pushing boundaries. That's just
Speaker 15: who we were. How did the concept of that song, mister.
Speaker 12: Because you said something that I want to say.
Speaker 7: The lyrics, the lyrics shut you down, I asked him.
Speaker 7: I was like, I was like, so were you and
Speaker 7: y'all live gate man.
Speaker 2: Did?
Speaker 7: He was cool, like he was like he did like.
Speaker 5: He got a side step and then I guess he
Speaker 5: walked and we were might take the picture, asked me about
Speaker 5: to watch man it.
Speaker 9: Was about.
Speaker 7: And then wept each other up and yeah, because it
Speaker 7: got real.
Speaker 10: Quiet when you when you're like, it was like, and
Speaker 10: then about that's right.
Speaker 5: I actually thought that you guys were a husband and
Speaker 5: wife at first, based on the chemistry of the video.
Speaker 7: I thought, yeah, say something.
Speaker 15: I'm sorry those who know, those.
Speaker 13: Who say don't know exactly what.
Speaker 5: She hit out with the push your t you know,
Speaker 5: you know.
Speaker 13: A lot of people love that song. It's wrong, but
Speaker 13: we got threats and everything that. Yeah.
Speaker 15: Yeah, one guy was his wife kept playing the song
Speaker 15: like it was in the bar. She kept playing the
Speaker 15: song like on the jukebox or something, and you know,
Speaker 15: he said, you're trying.
Speaker 13: To tell me something.
Speaker 15: And then and then did somebody called, like a radio station,
Speaker 15: said don't they better not come.
Speaker 13: To the venue?
Speaker 15: Oh wow, because of that song. So they were having
Speaker 15: personal problems had nothing to.
Speaker 13: Do with us.
Speaker 3: It was like they want you to trigger.
Speaker 13: I'm just singing a song. You want to hear it?
Speaker 7: Here you go? That video came on night tracks.
Speaker 13: Was like, I'm going to be listening to that.
Speaker 7: So how well?
Speaker 5: I mean when you when you did your solo record
Speaker 5: in eighty seven, did you do it officially leaving what?
Speaker 7: No?
Speaker 5: Because they worked on the record. Was it just like okay,
Speaker 5: we'll go back to the group. But the group included after.
Speaker 15: It was it was you know what we had, We
Speaker 15: had projects. It was a it was a The Towatha
Speaker 15: record was a project. If it happened, fine, if not,
Speaker 15: more projects and the group didn't break up.
Speaker 13: We sort of just faded away, you know.
Speaker 7: There was it.
Speaker 15: The music was changing, and it's like everybody was trying
Speaker 15: to do their own thing.
Speaker 7: It was like, you know, nobody wanted the new Jack swing.
Speaker 13: No, but you know, because we had that, we had
Speaker 13: the New Jack Swing.
Speaker 5: So I mean, you know, so, okay, what I want
Speaker 5: to ask about the the stage that you're at now
Speaker 5: with your uh with your background work as far as
Speaker 5: doing uh uh live stuff. And I always wanted to
Speaker 5: know what is it with because I always noticed that
Speaker 5: the rock guys will always pick women of color to
Speaker 5: be their their background vocalists from the Stones.
Speaker 7: Yeah.
Speaker 5: Yeah, so what well they needed for that silo?
Speaker 13: That's right, had the sweets the sweet inspirations.
Speaker 5: Yeah, so where it is right now? Wait, I'm sorry,
Speaker 5: time out. Yes, Steve go Ahead asked, I totally what
Speaker 5: j Giles band?
Speaker 15: Oh that was so much fun? And I ran into
Speaker 15: oh my god, this is a guy from the group Peter. Yeah,
Speaker 15: because he was on David Letterman and It's it and
Speaker 15: and he was there performing and I was, I was
Speaker 15: there and I said, you know, I sang on that record,
Speaker 15: so I remember you.
Speaker 13: And it was like twenty years so, I mean free
Speaker 13: His frame was great. They were good. They were they
Speaker 13: were funny guys.
Speaker 8: But just that one song or a bunch of songs.
Speaker 13: You know. I did that with Luther and I think
Speaker 13: Sissy wait what yeah, check the credits. I think I
Speaker 13: think it was because it's like, that's all we got
Speaker 13: to sing.
Speaker 14: Yeah, that part get into it.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it just says you are a search engine nightmare man.
Speaker 7: Your name is spelled every type of way. Oh.
Speaker 13: I don't know if I want you looking at that.
Speaker 13: I might have notes on there.
Speaker 7: Yeah, you know, I want I want.
Speaker 2: To tell the audience that Wata got so many credits
Speaker 2: that she had to bring in the cheese because because
Speaker 2: sometimes I don't remember, it.
Speaker 8: Wasn't Centerfold on that record on centerphone, you know what.
Speaker 13: I don't remember, but I do remember free Frame.
Speaker 15: And that is so crazy, screedy POLITI each night I
Speaker 15: go to Franklin, I just remember bits and pieces of
Speaker 15: the songs.
Speaker 18: I'm not I'm not singling out. I just saw a
Speaker 18: freeze Frame.
Speaker 7: I did sing Yeah, what what? What has been your
Speaker 7: most surprising request? Like they want me on?
Speaker 13: Oh you need to work? Yes, Oh oh, I'm never surprised.
Speaker 14: Good answer.
Speaker 15: I'm never surprised because because if they if they if
Speaker 15: they seek if they seek me out, then they know
Speaker 15: what I can do and maybe I can add something
Speaker 15: to add a little flavor to what they're doing.
Speaker 13: Never trying to outshadow whoever's in the front.
Speaker 15: It's I'm just there for support, which goes back to
Speaker 15: your question.
Speaker 10: Answer your question, because the question is interesting about women
Speaker 10: of color, why fans?
Speaker 7: I forgot to ask that, Yeah, this is your show question.
Speaker 5: Body language vibe was more like, are you you'll never
Speaker 5: get to answer my question?
Speaker 14: Are you really reading Steve's body language?
Speaker 10: Seriously, just the sugar energy went down diabetic energy skip.
Speaker 18: To eighty seven and I knew freeze frame was probably
Speaker 18: eighty seven.
Speaker 7: Well yeah, freet frame was eighty one.
Speaker 13: Oh so that was before juicy.
Speaker 7: Yes, oh okay, I see that.
Speaker 12: But back to the question, yes.
Speaker 7: But so why do you think that is?
Speaker 13: And I just think we just add so much more flavor?
Speaker 5: But are there church? Are there the are there the
Speaker 5: white counterparts that.
Speaker 7: Have roads, charmers and roads? Who Al Green's background singers?
Speaker 7: They're white? Yeah? Oh that's right, let's say together.
Speaker 5: I totally forgot about How did you know that?
Speaker 13: I don't know why.
Speaker 7: I don't know.
Speaker 11: You just got the one who knows about things.
Speaker 2: You know.
Speaker 7: They're just in a documentary about them, and I was like,
Speaker 7: oh wow, they're why on Netflix?
Speaker 5: I've seen something, you know on YouTube? They these three
Speaker 5: women saying for everybody there.
Speaker 7: No roads, charmers and roads. I think that we just
Speaker 7: have a.
Speaker 15: Feeling because you know what, you didn't see these people,
Speaker 15: so I mean, and if I would read the credits,
Speaker 15: you know, I wouldn't know where they were from.
Speaker 2: Do you remember any dope white background singers or you
Speaker 2: know what?
Speaker 15: No, I know the people from Philly International, because that's you.
Speaker 13: And I used to read the line.
Speaker 15: I know it's like I want to be like these
Speaker 15: ladies right here, and and that's all I ever wanted
Speaker 15: to do was be like those ladies from Philly International.
Speaker 15: So because they sang on everything that Philly International did.
Speaker 3: What are the ladies from Philly National? Who's that?
Speaker 2: Uh?
Speaker 15: Barbara Benson? Barbara Benson because her brother went to Howard
Speaker 15: he was a drummer.
Speaker 7: Barbara Benson.
Speaker 5: She okay, I know she's on sit down and talk
Speaker 5: to me from like she's on lou Rawls and stuff.
Speaker 5: And yes, I mentioned that.
Speaker 13: Oh wait, wait a minute, did you know you watch Power?
Speaker 15: Yes, now you know the theme song is its dead
Speaker 15: in Street.
Speaker 12: And that's your your voice on the background.
Speaker 3: I was no, no, no, no, no, no.
Speaker 13: That's just some trivia trivia, Okay, Okay.
Speaker 15: So I don't I don't know the ladies that sang
Speaker 15: with al Green, but I mean I know that I
Speaker 15: like the fact that the rock stars and rock artists
Speaker 15: would would call for people women of color because you know, because.
Speaker 7: It's so white.
Speaker 15: Well back in the day, like with Joe Cocker, because
Speaker 15: you know, I loved Joe Cocker with him, I did,
Speaker 15: and he was he was great up at what's the
Speaker 15: place in the Western studio?
Speaker 13: I want to say house of Music.
Speaker 15: No, house of Music. It was a studio in West Orange.
Speaker 15: Did I sing with the Joe Cocker. He was such
Speaker 15: a great guy. Loved Heineken, he loves but you know,
Speaker 15: a little help from my friends because he had he
Speaker 15: always had a mixed group. So but and I just
Speaker 15: assume that's because they were in Europe. But you know,
Speaker 15: I don't know.
Speaker 3: I'm sorry, Joe, he wasn't from here.
Speaker 7: No hes u K I did not know.
Speaker 13: Okay, Okay, you gotta be UK for that. Yeah, because
Speaker 13: because they.
Speaker 7: Level approximation is on average. White Bean is one of
Speaker 7: my favorites.
Speaker 15: Amy Stewart, Yes, yes, yes, and yeah. So I can't answer.
Speaker 15: I can't answer that. I just know that I like
Speaker 15: to see the women of color, well people of color
Speaker 15: singing background.
Speaker 12: You know that's everybody's got a lot of dudes too.
Speaker 13: Right, Yeah, because if I went out, I would want
Speaker 13: to have dudes with me.
Speaker 15: Yeah, like, let us think in the pipst.
Speaker 5: I worked with the first time last month, I was like, okay,
Speaker 5: I see yeah, Joe, oh yeah, so for.
Speaker 7: Damn, I literally just took my question.
Speaker 13: Street.
Speaker 7: That's always a good start about no, no, no, I got it.
Speaker 5: So right now with an what's your what's your current
Speaker 5: in twenty eighteen?
Speaker 7: Who are your current clientele that you that.
Speaker 13: I'm working with?
Speaker 15: Yes, oh oh no, right now, I'm just working with Tawafa.
Speaker 15: I've been doing like like I'm doing the funk Fest,
Speaker 15: coming up with Marstaying, the time Confunction, Mary Jane Girls,
Speaker 15: Evan Champagne, you.
Speaker 13: Know, like the you know, the fun thing.
Speaker 15: I'm doing that, and and I've been doing that like
Speaker 15: those those kinds of concerts.
Speaker 13: You know, what do you call it, like old school?
Speaker 15: Yeah, yeah, yeah, so you know, ten fifteen minutes and
Speaker 15: you know, sing uh you me and he juicy fruit
Speaker 15: and then another dance piece.
Speaker 3: Oh crap wait saying that she did she didn't see
Speaker 3: you me and.
Speaker 5: He, well no, no no. But in my mind I
Speaker 5: was like, damn, we got it. I wouldn't please you.
Speaker 5: And then it just hit me that she did. She did,
Speaker 5: and it was amazing.
Speaker 7: I did.
Speaker 13: It was so much fun.
Speaker 3: You mean here, I want to fell out child.
Speaker 13: That was it and I really appreciate that. That was like,
Speaker 13: that was that was good. That was really good for me.
Speaker 5: I loved it, and and and James and was their
Speaker 5: backstage like okay, you got everything, got everything?
Speaker 7: You know where the.
Speaker 12: Bridge comes in, he takes care of his friend, stopped like.
Speaker 9: I'm sorry.
Speaker 7: Right now, not shut it down the water And I
Speaker 7: don't know why I think it was that.
Speaker 13: Look, okay, yes, the dust.
Speaker 5: Not that I'm trying to not lie he of this
Speaker 5: and ask for a scandalous story. But is there one
Speaker 5: act in the arsenal of of of work that you've
Speaker 5: done that you would never work with again? You don't
Speaker 5: have to name anything.
Speaker 13: Oh absolutely, you don't have to name a name. I'm
Speaker 13: not going to name a name.
Speaker 5: But how bad is the treatment? Because I know that
Speaker 5: sometimes background singers get.
Speaker 7: Treated like absolutely, I tell you, did you ever walk
Speaker 7: off stage? And just like I'm never.
Speaker 13: Again, No, no, because I'll you know, if I agreed
Speaker 13: to do the job, I'll do the job. But you
Speaker 13: know you always have that option.
Speaker 7: Again.
Speaker 15: There was one artist, very famous singer who was at
Speaker 15: Radio City.
Speaker 7: I already know who this is. This No, and she
Speaker 7: might be royalty.
Speaker 13: No, not that No, not not that one. There's another one.
Speaker 13: There's another one like right around in here.
Speaker 15: Who's recently recently retired, recently retired, had us come on
Speaker 15: stage the clothes we're not fitting, we had pinned in
Speaker 15: the back of our dresses. I had never in all
Speaker 15: my life had to go out on stage like that,
Speaker 15: and it was just such disrespect for the band and
Speaker 15: and everybody.
Speaker 13: It's like, no thanks, thanks, but no thanks for if
Speaker 13: you call me again.
Speaker 7: Really, I was playing to gold her show. Her show
Speaker 7: is crazy, that's all she came.
Speaker 15: But I'm not talking about the music part. Andreated the
Speaker 15: way people are treated.
Speaker 7: It's like no and not.
Speaker 5: I know, I know exactly you're talking about because I
Speaker 5: worked with this person too, and they walked out.
Speaker 15: On okay, you want to rearrange the whole stage and
Speaker 15: and just like put this here and put this there,
Speaker 15: and and it's like, oh no, I think.
Speaker 13: It takes the joy out of it for me.
Speaker 5: I think sometimes when a person is nervous, they might micromanage,
Speaker 5: and that's the way it comes out. When someone really
Speaker 5: micromanages things, like in this Chinese details on it's like,
Speaker 5: I like perfection, but really you're scared of shit fear
Speaker 5: right line, which is weird because this person is.
Speaker 7: Such a Maverick, phenomenal singer.
Speaker 2: But this person just admitted that they were scared to
Speaker 2: do certain things and now they're starting to do certain thing.
Speaker 14: I love avoid talking code.
Speaker 6: Well I.
Speaker 7: Could, I got it, but I don't know neither.
Speaker 3: I was just in make some shit up.
Speaker 13: I'm just making stuff up.
Speaker 7: Questions. Oh man, God, I'm trying to think how many questions?
Speaker 7: So much?
Speaker 5: Yeah with the ps, how did you come aboard with
Speaker 5: Dave Matthews Band? And how long has it been since
Speaker 5: you've been with those guys?
Speaker 15: Okay, I met them in like nineteen ninety nine or
Speaker 15: something like that, and they were in New York City
Speaker 15: and they were about to do They were in the
Speaker 15: studio doing a song and they wanted that. I got
Speaker 15: called from someone from the record company to come and
Speaker 15: do a session.
Speaker 7: You know what you're on?
Speaker 14: Stay?
Speaker 15: That was a song that was the song Stay, and
Speaker 15: we I was I had just been a secession with Luther.
Speaker 15: So I had my girls, Brenda White King and Cindy Myzell,
Speaker 15: said come on, let's go down to Electric Lady and
Speaker 15: did a session with Dave Matthews Band and it's this
Speaker 15: one song and so we did the one song they
Speaker 15: loved it so much. They said, we're going to be
Speaker 15: at the Meadowlands or whatever they call it now, the Meadowlands,
Speaker 15: and could you come out and sing this one song.
Speaker 13: We had a bus, okay, a bus to ourselves. It's like,
Speaker 13: where's everybody else? Oh no, this is for you.
Speaker 15: I said, we're singing one song. And then we did
Speaker 15: it like that weekend and I said, you know, we
Speaker 15: can sing more than one song, you know. And that
Speaker 15: turned into two years. Two years but wait a minute.
Speaker 7: And then.
Speaker 15: Three years ago they called me back to Watha. We
Speaker 15: still saying we want to can you get some girls
Speaker 15: and come back and do the tour. And we did
Speaker 15: two more tours with Dave Matthew's bands, and that's like
Speaker 15: the that's the the supreme, ultimate Supreme and treatment Dave
Speaker 15: Matthews band.
Speaker 13: Oh I loved them forever.
Speaker 5: I think I saw you were you on because you
Speaker 5: toured that album with the Before These Crowded Streets album.
Speaker 7: It was ninety nine. Yeah, you toured with them. I
Speaker 7: want to say I saw you guys.
Speaker 5: Y'all came to Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, and I saw
Speaker 5: remember the.
Speaker 13: Lovely ladies, that's what he called us the Lovely Ladies.
Speaker 7: Yeah, that was a great show.
Speaker 14: All this I like it, quotes Dave Matthews Concerts. I
Speaker 14: didn't see that.
Speaker 7: Yeah, man, I was there. I was there, and I
Speaker 7: was trying to explain because I took my little brother
Speaker 7: at the time. They loved it. He loved it.
Speaker 3: I've never been I've heard stories like.
Speaker 14: Show improvising and jamming, like that's the ship and on.
Speaker 13: But you know, to me, it was like like the
Speaker 13: further extension of him too may because that's what we
Speaker 13: would do. And they they played forever.
Speaker 15: But they also they sounded amazing and everyone was nice
Speaker 15: and and everyone is That's the happiest tour I've ever
Speaker 15: been on tours because even even the crew was happy.
Speaker 13: You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 15: Everybody was just, oh, this is just wonderful just to
Speaker 15: be here because it was everybody was cool.
Speaker 10: They all stay in the nicest hotels and take everybody.
Speaker 10: Everybody's on the A team in that.
Speaker 7: This is true.
Speaker 14: There's no bees, no bees.
Speaker 5: What is the How how long you've been just touring?
Speaker 5: I guess how do you protect your voice? To take
Speaker 5: care of yourself?
Speaker 15: Oh?
Speaker 13: You know what, you have to protect your instrument.
Speaker 15: You know, you got to warm up, just like the
Speaker 15: guitar players, you know, you know they're constantly fiddling and
Speaker 15: warm you know, just playing to keep their fingers flexible.
Speaker 15: You have to do the same thing with your voice.
Speaker 15: You gotta protect it because you know what, I can't
Speaker 15: take it and put it in the case and plug
Speaker 15: it in. This is all I got, so I have
Speaker 15: to take care of it. So you'll see me in
Speaker 15: the summertime with a scarf on, and you know, even
Speaker 15: in the summer, I gotta protect my throat.
Speaker 3: Do you're like non dairy type?
Speaker 7: You go that far?
Speaker 15: Like, oh, no, ice cream is was was my first
Speaker 15: love and I used to be able to eat that
Speaker 15: and then go sing. I can't do it anymore, you know.
Speaker 7: So what's like your pre show? So like if you
Speaker 7: if they're saying, I showtime is it nine? We do
Speaker 7: on stage at nine? When do you start? Like, what's
Speaker 7: your pre show regimen? Oh?
Speaker 15: Well, you know we've been rehearsing up to I rehearse
Speaker 15: the singers, you know, we rehearse constantly, so we're always singing,
Speaker 15: so we're warmed up by the time by the by
Speaker 15: the time it's showtime. So you know, you just have
Speaker 15: to even if it's just talking, humming, but not excessive,
Speaker 15: not not anything loud. You know, you got to keep
Speaker 15: it like at a minimum and then you're ready for
Speaker 15: the show.
Speaker 7: You gotta.
Speaker 15: But you gotta practice every day, you know. You just
Speaker 15: like a horn player, you gotta you gotta constantly practice.
Speaker 2: Do you do those like classic warm up exercises that
Speaker 2: are like a lot of singers do oh yeah for
Speaker 2: the ladies, ladies that are listening.
Speaker 13: Yes, oh, I have to have to do that.
Speaker 7: You gotta warm up.
Speaker 15: Even if you just get a basic book with basic
Speaker 15: vocal exercises, you gotta do something every day just to
Speaker 15: keep keep it open.
Speaker 13: Because your voice a lockdown, it a lockdown.
Speaker 10: What's your what's your process when it comes to the
Speaker 10: arranging vocals, Like when you're in the studio with three
Speaker 10: different people, because I always find.
Speaker 14: That all of the vocalists I work with, they all
Speaker 14: it's either there's.
Speaker 10: A common language, which is like I got the bottom,
Speaker 10: you got the middle together the top right, and we
Speaker 10: all just know what that is. The top could be,
Speaker 10: but that being said, the top middle could be three
Speaker 10: different notes depending on kind of where we are the
Speaker 10: thing and also feel like people also, they'll be like
Speaker 10: they're like church at when you church it you like
Speaker 10: flat to third, you do all these there's this is
Speaker 10: common like everybody, all background singers. I know that that's
Speaker 10: how they speak. And it's awesome is that it sibol.
Speaker 13: It's the same thing.
Speaker 15: It's like if I bring if I if I'm saying
Speaker 15: I'm coming in with my girls, with Brenda and Sandy,
Speaker 15: I'm the top, Sandy's the.
Speaker 13: Middle, BRender is the bottom.
Speaker 15: Always that's always, unless unless we want and we will
Speaker 15: switch it up every now and then, you know, just
Speaker 15: for texture for texture. But uh, you know, usually if
Speaker 15: I'm at the session, I'm usually the contractor, which means
Speaker 15: I call them for the session, and which means I
Speaker 15: know what the parts are going to be.
Speaker 13: So I just teach them the parts and we just
Speaker 13: going from.
Speaker 14: It's all hard of time.
Speaker 7: You just go like piece by piece, just going yeah,
Speaker 7: oh yeah, and it's feel easy.
Speaker 13: Just go in and now there's nothing that you have
Speaker 13: to learn the night before.
Speaker 15: It's like coming, Look, we got two hours to get
Speaker 15: these three songs, so you know, let's just focus in one, two, three,
Speaker 15: that's it.
Speaker 5: Well, one of the things I always admire and just
Speaker 5: I mean, I just as a kid. How I got
Speaker 5: to know you was through reading credits and I just knew,
Speaker 5: I mean, I knew you were from M to May.
Speaker 7: But like I just remember reading like credits and I.
Speaker 5: Was like, this lady is on every album that my
Speaker 5: mom has everything And one of the things I always like,
Speaker 5: particularly once I started making music myself and singing and
Speaker 5: arranging vocals, I always admire and I came to appreciate
Speaker 5: much more later. How well, all y'all singing unison because
Speaker 5: it's harder to sing unison that it is in and
Speaker 5: like y'all like and we all sang together.
Speaker 15: They didn't do one track at a time and then
Speaker 15: just you know, put it together. No, you got to
Speaker 15: learn how to sing with somebody. You can't just you
Speaker 15: know who used to cut shef used to We used.
Speaker 13: To go in one at a time and sing.
Speaker 15: It's like, you got four people here, why can't we
Speaker 15: just all sing together and knock it out instead of
Speaker 15: being here for six hours?
Speaker 13: We can be here for two hours.
Speaker 10: So what's your take on tuning and stuff like that
Speaker 10: these days? Because you know, people just like they create
Speaker 10: backgrounds by just tuning people.
Speaker 13: Oh, you know, I'm not. I'm just not accustomed to that.
Speaker 7: It's like, what do you need that for?
Speaker 13: You got a singer, she should they should already be
Speaker 13: able to sing in tune.
Speaker 14: I mean you say that, but I hear what you're saying.
Speaker 14: I hear you.
Speaker 13: But where I come from, that's that. That's just the
Speaker 13: way it is.
Speaker 15: Anything different, it's like, oh, we'll change it with the
Speaker 15: auto tuning. It's a little album with It's like, what
Speaker 15: are you talking about? Let's just sing it, you know,
Speaker 15: it's it's a new world. I'm not you know, I
Speaker 15: feel like a dinosaur when it comes to that.
Speaker 11: You know, yeah, I actually had a question in doing
Speaker 11: vocal arrangements when you're you know, have you ever run
Speaker 11: into a situation where you weren't credited for work that
Speaker 11: you did?
Speaker 7: And how did you handle that?
Speaker 13: Yeah? Well, you know what, I just I look at
Speaker 13: that as tuition for for something better to come?
Speaker 7: Is that something that would happen a lot, especially to women,
Speaker 7: not to me?
Speaker 13: No, you know, you gotta go in you look, I'm
Speaker 13: the person that you called.
Speaker 7: I was.
Speaker 15: I'm the person that you call. When that the singers
Speaker 15: were called to make sure they got that money. You know,
Speaker 15: I would make sure that the union that secessions were correct,
Speaker 15: the money was right, and I send the report into
Speaker 15: the union. So I took care of business. I did
Speaker 15: the paperwork. So and not only did I do the paperwork,
Speaker 15: I sang and did the arrangement. So it's like, if
Speaker 15: you're doing a job for me as a contractor, then
Speaker 15: you would you know you're gonna get your money. Yeah,
Speaker 15: but I always got credits for contracting because that was
Speaker 15: a union thing.
Speaker 7: That makes sense.
Speaker 5: What was it like for y'all when when hip hop
Speaker 5: kind of took over for lack of a better word,
Speaker 5: how did you guys adjust to that and what were
Speaker 5: your thoughts on hip hop at that time?
Speaker 15: Well, one thing that I started noticing is that they
Speaker 15: were playing like songs in two different keys, and like
Speaker 15: the music, the track would being one key and the
Speaker 15: singer would be singing in another key, and it's like
Speaker 15: why did they let that happened? But you know, that's
Speaker 15: I think that was called progress. I think that was
Speaker 15: called that was that was progressed. But you know, but
Speaker 15: then you you know, you hear it enough and you
Speaker 15: get accustomed to hearing that, But still I have to
Speaker 15: allow myself to have a certain level of you know,
Speaker 15: a certain standard of music.
Speaker 13: Music neess you know. So it's like, okay, that's what
Speaker 13: they're doing, but I can't do that.
Speaker 7: I understand.
Speaker 5: Have you ever had like a bad day in the studio,
Speaker 5: Because every time I've ever heard your music or your lead, like,
Speaker 5: it always sound fantastic.
Speaker 13: Yeah, but you're always hear the finished product.
Speaker 7: Everybody, like what is a bad to watch? The day
Speaker 7: would probably be like a great day for anyone else.
Speaker 15: So well, it's probably would be a day when I
Speaker 15: wasn't feeling well and couldn't hit the notes like I
Speaker 15: wanted to. I can still hit the notes, but it
Speaker 15: wouldn't be like the full power that I would want
Speaker 15: to have.
Speaker 5: So so like if you like, if you're sick or
Speaker 5: something and you're on tour, how do you I guess,
Speaker 5: like if you have a cold or something, like, how
Speaker 5: do you sing over cold?
Speaker 7: How do you fight through that?
Speaker 13: Sometimes you have to.
Speaker 15: What I can do is if if I know I
Speaker 15: can't my high note are gone, I'll switch the parts
Speaker 15: with the singer and let let the singer, you know,
Speaker 15: take the higher note, and then I'll just sing in
Speaker 15: the middle there's alwa, there's always ways around it because
Speaker 15: you got to be thinking on your feet because you're like,
Speaker 15: this is this is performance, it's it's showtime.
Speaker 13: You know, you can't say I don't feel good?
Speaker 14: No, do you do it on the spot, like right
Speaker 14: before the show would start, you just switch around the
Speaker 14: parts like.
Speaker 13: Oh we could do that.
Speaker 14: Yeah, I know, I've that my head up.
Speaker 7: I total.
Speaker 14: I just I've watched people do that and it's just.
Speaker 15: Like I'm feeling a little I'm feeling my throats a
Speaker 15: little scratchy today. Could you just sing the top for
Speaker 15: me and I'll sing the middle okay, and just going out.
Speaker 14: And say, yeah, that's great, that's that's true profession. Yes, sir,
Speaker 14: I know how to read music.
Speaker 7: Yes, Freeze Frame, that's a cool nickname.
Speaker 8: Keep that.
Speaker 18: We recently had Jeffrey Osbourne on our show, So what
Speaker 18: was your experience like working with him?
Speaker 13: I work with Jeffrey.
Speaker 8: I didn't with Jeffrey, but I like him, Okay.
Speaker 15: I love his voice, love ballid, love ballad.
Speaker 8: Your credits.
Speaker 13: Really it must have been a group thing. I don't
Speaker 13: remember that.
Speaker 18: I have a follow up question, but it's unrelated to Jeffrey.
Speaker 18: Osborne's really just another question. It's not really where is
Speaker 18: Irene Karra?
Speaker 7: Oh that.
Speaker 15: I have not seen Irene Karra in forever? Yeah, but
Speaker 15: fame right, I haven't seen her? What a oh yeah,
Speaker 15: well flash dance right right. I haven't seen her in years.
Speaker 17: I know.
Speaker 15: You know, sometimes when people go off the scene, they
Speaker 15: either they desaturates the family or something, or you know,
Speaker 15: some health concerns that they're not you know, available, or
Speaker 15: they're just not they just try to.
Speaker 13: Doing what they did.
Speaker 8: I mean, I haven't researched where she is.
Speaker 13: I'm just okay, no, no, I haven't seen Iron Car.
Speaker 2: Does that mean you weren't in the room Because I
Speaker 2: saw Gregory Hines on your on your credit list too,
Speaker 2: Does that.
Speaker 3: Mean you weren't the room during that time either?
Speaker 13: Okay, because I was up there for that one, because
Speaker 13: that one I loved that album.
Speaker 15: But so he had a whole solo, Yes he did,
Speaker 15: and then they had this duet that they said, oh
Speaker 15: my goodness, Jeffrey, I mean, I mean Jeffrey Gregory.
Speaker 13: Hines was like a great great Yeah. I was there
Speaker 13: for that one.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I saw recently, my buddy of mine, Static Selector,
Speaker 7: you were doing I haven't heard the song. Is it out?
Speaker 15: That's in b and uh yeah yeah static static in
Speaker 15: terminology yeah, m yeah.
Speaker 7: So are you still like, I mean writing, producing, like working,
Speaker 7: like writing new music.
Speaker 15: Now we're working on a project for me now, you know. So,
Speaker 15: so look for something probably by the end of the year,
Speaker 15: a single or something. But static static is cool.
Speaker 7: I like her.
Speaker 13: Yeah, go out to Brooklyn and just like, yo, what
Speaker 13: you want? You know, I got it?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 7: Is it still home for you?
Speaker 14: Newark?
Speaker 13: Are you still well, I'm in the No, I'm not
Speaker 13: in Newark, but I'm like two exits Jersey. Yeah, I'm
Speaker 13: in Jersey.
Speaker 7: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Are you like an active Newark? Well, I know you're
Speaker 2: not in Newark, but you're an active Newark like community person,
Speaker 2: because now they're like, who's the mayor nowco whatnot?
Speaker 13: Oh no, I'm in another city.
Speaker 3: I'm out.
Speaker 13: My mom lived there for like fifty some odd years
Speaker 13: and she she just moved recently.
Speaker 2: So, you know, always curious about Jersey people, and I
Speaker 2: like Newark and Corey Booker and the politics and everything
Speaker 2: that's going on.
Speaker 13: That's oh yeah, please Cory Booker. Yeah, Senator, yes.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I was actually to look on her face.
Speaker 13: Well, no, no, because I'm you know, I'm not familiar.
Speaker 13: I mean, I know what I read in what I
Speaker 13: see in the news.
Speaker 7: Yeah, you any children and kids.
Speaker 2: I know.
Speaker 13: I am married to the music. And that's it.
Speaker 3: Has it.
Speaker 13: There's no time for.
Speaker 3: No time, no time for that interesting I wanted to.
Speaker 12: I'm not thinking about Lisa Fisher and some of the
Speaker 12: other people that.
Speaker 3: She don't have. She's not married. I don't think she
Speaker 3: hasn't no time.
Speaker 13: We're working.
Speaker 3: So this is a background singer thing.
Speaker 15: Well for some, for some, and and and I applaud
Speaker 15: those who can do both because, you know, because I
Speaker 15: would have to like focus.
Speaker 13: All my time on my family. I couldn't. I couldn't
Speaker 13: not have you know, you know, thank you for the sacrifice,
Speaker 13: thank you for your service.
Speaker 11: All right, So I hit up to my friends that
Speaker 11: I know are big to out the fans. My friend
Speaker 11: Rachel actually says she's to send you fe mail in
Speaker 11: the back in the day. So one of the questions
Speaker 11: that they sent me Monica wanted to know about some
Speaker 11: of the work you did with some of the Japanese
Speaker 11: artists like.
Speaker 13: Oh Terra Masahino.
Speaker 7: She loves my friend Monica, she loves the work that
Speaker 7: you do on the HIPSI.
Speaker 13: Go out, yes, Terra Masino, oh yes, oh he was cool.
Speaker 13: I got a chance that.
Speaker 7: Oh my god.
Speaker 15: I went to Japan so many. I went there so
Speaker 15: often in one year. It was like maybe I should
Speaker 15: find a place here, you know. It was like that, No,
Speaker 15: Terre Massa was cool, great trumpet player.
Speaker 7: What was what was question? Well, Rachel's questions. She wanted
Speaker 7: to know about hot Tea and oh.
Speaker 13: Hot Tea.
Speaker 15: You know what I'm what I'm trying to do is
Speaker 15: what I wanted to do was to put something on
Speaker 15: YouTube or like a round table discussion with hot Tea.
Speaker 7: You know.
Speaker 15: But it's so hard to get everybody together and and
Speaker 15: and that's how I got my social media because I
Speaker 15: didn't have any I was trying to get everybody together.
Speaker 15: It's like, wait a minute, you don't even have social media,
Speaker 15: So get yourself together first, and then you know. But
Speaker 15: it's time because I think because we all went to Howard,
Speaker 15: I think that it it's such a testament to the
Speaker 15: to the university that you know.
Speaker 13: We achieved.
Speaker 15: We we all graduated, and we all went on to
Speaker 15: do something really good for our careers. And we didn't
Speaker 15: stay together. But we're still doing We're still in music,
Speaker 15: and everybody's doing very well.
Speaker 13: In in their particular areas recorded. No, we never, we
Speaker 13: never made a record.
Speaker 3: Sounds like something just happened to Crampton, like a conversation.
Speaker 13: Wouldn't that be nice?
Speaker 15: That would be great, That would be great because I
Speaker 15: just want people to know that it can be done.
Speaker 13: We can go to Crampton how it can be done.
Speaker 15: It can be done, and you know, and we're all
Speaker 15: successful in our own rights, so you know, I think
Speaker 15: it would be a really cool thing to do.
Speaker 5: Luther at the time when uh, what was the name
Speaker 5: Ivan Hampton was playing drums for him? It was he
Speaker 5: had a drummer Ivan. The reason why I asked, you.
Speaker 15: Mean when was playing and then and then Ivan Ivan
Speaker 15: came on after Yogi Ivan.
Speaker 13: Okay, he was at Madison Square Garden.
Speaker 7: Oh okay, yeah, his reason why? I asked his wife,
Speaker 7: who also went to Howard. I know she was out
Speaker 7: of class.
Speaker 5: Ivan's wife, Brenda, she was I think she was like
Speaker 5: a music student as well, but she ended up teaching.
Speaker 7: Law music law, and she was like our music professor.
Speaker 7: And if you guys were in.
Speaker 13: The same no, I don't I don't know her.
Speaker 15: I don't know her, okay, but what you were with,
Speaker 15: Oh no, Ivan was there when I was in Okay, gotcha?
Speaker 15: And then you know what I used to do was
Speaker 15: Luther would have me come back if somebody was it
Speaker 15: was ill or had to be away, or if somebody
Speaker 15: was working with somebody else or somebody's own maternity leave,
Speaker 15: I would go in and fill in, you know, for
Speaker 15: whoever was nothing because I knew all this. I was
Speaker 15: there from the beginning, so I knew all the material.
Speaker 5: Was he ever like because all the footage that I've
Speaker 5: ever seen in a film, he just always just seemed
Speaker 5: so straight, Like was he ever like funny or hilarious?
Speaker 13: Oh my god, he was so hilarious.
Speaker 15: He was so witty, and he was a great dancer,
Speaker 15: and he was just and we of course we're all foodies,
Speaker 15: so I mean we just we had a lot in common,
Speaker 15: and we all had a real love for the music.
Speaker 13: Yeah, and you know, I sang on every Luther album
Speaker 13: except for maybe two not Yeah.
Speaker 7: My mother was a huge Luther fan. Like every every
Speaker 7: album I saw, like your name and like.
Speaker 13: It was that was if I wasn't on stage, that
Speaker 13: was one record yeah.
Speaker 8: Oh, I'm good. I'm just wondering, uh, if you were
Speaker 8: tight with Alphonse moves on.
Speaker 13: No, no, I don't know, no, no, no no.
Speaker 15: I remember when I was at Howard Donald Bird Donald
Speaker 15: Bird and the Blackbirds and and and hot Tea, and
Speaker 15: we did a performance with uh Professor Bird and the Blackbirds,
Speaker 15: and I was supposed to get in touch with Alphonse
Speaker 15: was on and I never did.
Speaker 13: So it is our paths were I supposed to cross.
Speaker 18: But of course I know, I know I'm nothing.
Speaker 7: After him.
Speaker 14: In your on your credits, she got right there.
Speaker 3: Looking pack.
Speaker 14: A lot in big letters.
Speaker 3: We can edit edited.
Speaker 14: She didn't even hear glasses.
Speaker 15: Look, Lorie Anderson, Bonnie Tyler, Lori Anderson, Jim steinmon Richie
Speaker 15: sambora nice guy by the way, Stevie Ray Vaughan family style.
Speaker 15: I say that, Rick okay sic.
Speaker 7: God David Bowie.
Speaker 13: Black tied White.
Speaker 15: Noise with Albi and did the promotional tour with him
Speaker 15: and we did TV was great.
Speaker 13: But Jeffrey Osborne it was.
Speaker 7: I just think it was on the Only Human album.
Speaker 7: The song was called The Morning After I Made Love
Speaker 7: to You.
Speaker 13: You know what I'm not saying I did it. I
Speaker 13: just don't.
Speaker 7: I don't remember it a lot.
Speaker 13: Remember, I don't even have him on here on my list.
Speaker 13: I got the spinners.
Speaker 3: Your list looks a little small.
Speaker 7: Well, you know what this was.
Speaker 12: I might have left some people out, but it's still
Speaker 12: heavy as hell.
Speaker 13: Yeah, blues blues traveler John and we never mentioned the
Speaker 13: Queen for for real queen, Yeah for Rtha Franklin.
Speaker 7: Yes, that was all on jump to it, right, that's
Speaker 7: jumped to it.
Speaker 15: Yes, Yes, and I did several uh uh. I did
Speaker 15: quite a few shows with the Queen.
Speaker 13: Yeah.
Speaker 7: What was that like? The Queen?
Speaker 15: I mean, let me tell you. That voice, that instrument
Speaker 15: is like sometimes I would cry. I'm standing there, I'm
Speaker 15: one of the background sings and I'm listening to her singing.
Speaker 15: I'm like in tears, be intimidating, in tears. And then
Speaker 15: she still plays, Oh my god, she can still play. So,
Speaker 15: I mean, you know, she's been off the scene for
Speaker 15: a minute, but that she is, She is and always
Speaker 15: will be the Queen, the Queen.
Speaker 7: And how was she was she like accepting of like
Speaker 7: new young singers. It wasn't. I wasn't like that.
Speaker 2: Okay, that's I think somebody on your list who I
Speaker 2: want to have here, but I don't know anything about
Speaker 2: him personally.
Speaker 13: Michael Frank, Michael Franks, that was a long time ago.
Speaker 13: Oh my good well all of them were long time ago.
Speaker 3: All of them a long time ago, so long as
Speaker 3: you like, I don't even know, well.
Speaker 13: I don't remember Blue Man Group.
Speaker 2: Wow.
Speaker 13: What yeah, bun oh chromeo, you know.
Speaker 12: Yeah, I don't think they said Steely Dan though, well,
Speaker 12: you know what, that's not.
Speaker 13: Up there, so that might be with no but Stilley Dan.
Speaker 13: Stilley Dan. I did an album with with Walter Walter
Speaker 13: Becker and and yes, and I did.
Speaker 15: I did two or three tours with them, Yeah, yeah, yeah,
Speaker 15: And that was that was, you know, a quest that
Speaker 15: asked me about, you know, what I wanted to do.
Speaker 13: And I'd always liked Steely Dan. I would hear them
Speaker 13: on the radio and it's like, how did you get
Speaker 13: those hard?
Speaker 14: Yes? What's what is that?
Speaker 6: What is that?
Speaker 15: And then when they called me to sing with them,
Speaker 15: it's like, oh my goodness, it's like everything dropped. There
Speaker 15: was nothing but Steely Dan twenty four to seven in
Speaker 15: the house. That's all you heard twenty four seven?
Speaker 5: Were they super like perfectionists too? Because they were known
Speaker 5: for being like that in the studio.
Speaker 7: Was it the same?
Speaker 16: You know what?
Speaker 13: That was one of those like note for note things.
Speaker 15: It's like no group stuff because you know there was
Speaker 15: like they would like put everything together and like they
Speaker 15: wanted more of this and less of that. It was
Speaker 15: like whoa, okay, just just sing, just sing, that's all that.
Speaker 15: So you had to do you know what they what
Speaker 15: came out in the mix is like another another thing.
Speaker 15: But then the live performance, it's like impeccable.
Speaker 7: Dope, yeah, pope, the B fifty two s oh yeah, wow,
Speaker 7: oh yeah.
Speaker 15: I did that with with Nile Nah nol Rogers. And
Speaker 15: I also did when when I did Stevie ray Vaughan,
Speaker 15: that was with Na and Rick Okaseik.
Speaker 7: Was with Noale.
Speaker 8: I didn't realize No Nile did that.
Speaker 15: The family style Family style right before one of the
Speaker 15: brothers died in the helicopter accident. Yeah yeah, and then
Speaker 15: they made us do a video right after it.
Speaker 13: It's like, are you kidding me?
Speaker 15: I mean his brother was like so destroyed, but we
Speaker 15: know we did record company crap. You know, they made
Speaker 15: him made him do a video right after to capitalize
Speaker 15: off the you know, it's crazy after you did your
Speaker 15: solo for epic?
Speaker 7: Was that? Did you were you off the label?
Speaker 8: After that?
Speaker 7: Did you lead how to that situation?
Speaker 13: It faded away, It faded away, just all faded away.
Speaker 13: Just nothing.
Speaker 3: It's like, oh see they ain't come back asking for nothing.
Speaker 13: Oh no, no, nothing like that. But the business was
Speaker 13: straight though, you know, business was straight, you.
Speaker 7: Know, in too many you know, So can you can
Speaker 7: you describe?
Speaker 11: Because I'm not a singer, I always wanted to be
Speaker 11: a singer, But can you describe what it's like when
Speaker 11: you find.
Speaker 7: The people that your voice works with? Like what does
Speaker 7: that feel like? Yes?
Speaker 15: You can. You can just sort of relax and be
Speaker 15: free because the blend is so perfect and and the
Speaker 15: and the vibe is just so melo into. It's like
Speaker 15: whatever you do is just gonna be cool because you know,
Speaker 15: the voice is meshed so well. It's like it doesn't
Speaker 15: happen all the time, but when it does, it's like
Speaker 15: it's it's almost orgasmic.
Speaker 7: Who's your blend? Who's your my blend?
Speaker 13: My blend?
Speaker 7: Cindy Brenda, Like, what do you look for when you're
Speaker 7: when you're when you're hiring singers?
Speaker 13: Well, it's just can can our tonal qualities match.
Speaker 15: That's that's the most important thing, because it might be
Speaker 15: different genres of music, but you know, we still the
Speaker 15: tonal qualities have to match so we can blend to
Speaker 15: fit into whatever it is we're doing.
Speaker 7: And you still play correct.
Speaker 13: I play, I play in the house. I don't play
Speaker 13: out you know, you know lit some something.
Speaker 8: Yeah, well i'm over too, but I'm I'm willing to.
Speaker 18: All right, there's a Danish Uh, there's a Danish pianist
Speaker 18: named old Cock.
Speaker 8: Hanson ever worked with him?
Speaker 14: Look it up?
Speaker 7: Looking at I don't know.
Speaker 14: All right, Well, I don't know.
Speaker 8: I'm over three.
Speaker 12: Then that was another money.
Speaker 7: Just old Cock hanted holy ship.
Speaker 13: Yeah sorry, I had no comment.
Speaker 12: I didn't have to walk upbout her old Cock.
Speaker 3: It got really uncomfortable, right, what happened?
Speaker 7: That's what.
Speaker 8: Yeah, that's a real dude. I was kidding, but that's
Speaker 8: a real dude. It's spelled with a k.
Speaker 5: Okay, just make it better, Okay at the end, Okay, seriously,
Speaker 5: thank you so much for coming on the show.
Speaker 13: It's been a pleasure. I had a ball. I had
Speaker 13: a ball, and I said i'd have fun.
Speaker 7: Oh yeah, and thank you.
Speaker 11: Just correct he actually, yeah, one more thing I told
Speaker 11: mister and this, But Juicy Fruit was one of the
Speaker 11: first songs I ever remember hearing. Like, there's a a
Speaker 11: list about maybe ten songs that like are the first
Speaker 11: ones that I remember.
Speaker 14: You didn't get hit for it.
Speaker 7: No, I didn't get here for it. It was a
Speaker 7: neighbors record. She had it, and she was always playing it.
Speaker 7: It was like one of those songs that is stuck
Speaker 7: in my head.
Speaker 11: And like every time I hear Juicy Fruit, it always
Speaker 11: feels like I'm having a very special experience.
Speaker 7: So I just want to thank you for that. It's
Speaker 7: I carry that with me for years.
Speaker 13: I'm so happy that you received it. Thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 13: I appreciate that.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 8: I've been cheating juicy fruit for about forty years.
Speaker 7: Yeah, just bought it just to watch.
Speaker 8: This is weird. I bought this like weeks ago and
Speaker 8: it just ended.
Speaker 7: Up in my.
Speaker 11: I will tell you a really weird coincidence with this
Speaker 11: interview though, Like I had a flood my story June
Speaker 11: about two years ago, and a whole bunch of my
Speaker 11: records got damage, and about two weeks about a week before,
Speaker 11: you sent me an email saying that this interview was confirmed.
Speaker 11: I replaced my copy of Tawatha's debut album.
Speaker 3: Oh my, really how much that she got for.
Speaker 7: That much?
Speaker 13: If that much?
Speaker 7: So it's kind of weird.
Speaker 11: Oh yeah, I just you know, replaced my copy of
Speaker 11: the album We got to coming in now, coming in
Speaker 11: the show.
Speaker 5: Well, yes, we thank you so much and I appreciate
Speaker 5: all those weeks I was sent to my room. It
Speaker 5: was worth it for defying my parents and buying that
Speaker 5: forty five. I hope you enjoyed it or be half
Speaker 5: of Sugar Steve and this Sugar Steve Network.
Speaker 7: You're hilarious. You're hilarious girl. Is that what I'm saying? Now?
Speaker 7: You've got me wanting to do the end of you
Speaker 7: me and he.
Speaker 13: What what what I understood when you had another?
Speaker 7: Oh yeah, humans, I was human too.
Speaker 5: All right, listen, we want be half a fan Tickelot,
Speaker 5: Boss Bill, Sugar Steve, unpaid Bill.
Speaker 7: It's like EA and the the the amazing great mister
Speaker 7: Watha g thank you so much.
Speaker 13: For coming on the pleasure.
Speaker 7: Thanks you, pledge.
Speaker 13: I had a fall.
Speaker 5: This is Quest Love another episode Quest Love Supreme in
Speaker 5: the can only on Pandora.
Speaker 16: And We'll see you on the Next Go Round Sequest.
Speaker 1: Love Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio. This classic episode
Speaker 1: was produced by the team at Pandora. For more podcasts
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