1.
Aretha Franklin
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Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter and musician. Franklin began her career singing gospel at her father, minister C. L. Franklins church as a child, in 1960, at the age of 18, Franklin embarked on a secular career, recording for Columbia Records but only achieving modest success. Following her signing to Atlantic Records in 1967, Franklin achieved commercial acclaim and success with such as Respect, A Natural Woman. These hits and more helped her to gain the title The Queen of Soul by the end of the 1960s decade, in 1998, Franklin won international acclaim for singing the opera aria Nessun dorma, at the Grammys of that year replacing Luciano Pavarotti. Later that same year, she scored her final Top 40 recording with A Rose Is Still a Rose, Franklin has won a total of 18 Grammy Awards and is one of the best-selling artists of all time, having sold over 75 million records worldwide. Franklin has been honored throughout her career including a 1987 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and she was inducted to the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. In August 2012, Franklin was inducted into the GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame, Aretha Louise Franklin was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the daughter of Barbara and Clarence LaVaughn Franklin. Her father, who went by the nickname, C. L. was an itinerant preacher originally from Shelby, Mississippi, while her mother was a piano player. Alongside Franklin, her parents had three children while both C. L. and Barbara had children from outside their marriage. The family relocated to Buffalo, New York when Franklin was two, before her fifth birthday, C. L. Franklin permanently relocated the family to Detroit, Michigan where he took over the pastorship of New Bethel Baptist Church. Franklins mother died on March 7,1952, before Franklins tenth birthday, several women, including Franklins grandmother Rachel, and Mahalia Jackson took turns helping with the children at the Franklin home. During this time, Franklin learned how to play piano by ear, Franklins fathers emotionally driven sermons resulted in him being known as the man with the million-dollar voice and earning thousands of dollars for sermons in various churches across the country. Just after her mothers death, Franklin began singing solos at New Bethel, debuting with the hymn, Jesus, Be a Fence Around Me. Four years later, when Franklin was 14, her father began managing her and he helped his daughter get signed to her first recording deal with J. V. B. Records, where her first album, Songs of Faith, was issued in 1956, two singles were released to gospel radio stations including Never Grow Old and Precious Lord, Take My Hand. Franklin sometimes traveled with The Caravans and The Soul Stirrers during this time and developed a crush on Sam Cooke, after turning 18, Franklin confided to her father that she aspired to follow Sam Cooke to record pop music. Serving as her manager, C. L. agreed to the move and helped to produce a demo that soon was brought to the attention of Columbia Records. Franklin was signed as a five-percent artist, during this period, Franklin would be coached by choreographer Cholly Atkins to prepare for her pop performances
2.
Contemporary R&B
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Contemporary R&B, also known as simply R&B, is a music genre that combines elements of rhythm and blues, soul, funk, pop, hip hop and dance. The genre features a record production style, drum machine-backed rhythms, an occasional saxophone-laced beat to give a jazz feel. Electronic influences are becoming a trend and the use of hip hop or dance-inspired beats are typical, although the roughness. Contemporary R&B vocalists are often known for their use of melisma, popularized by such as Michael Jackson, R. Kelly, Craig David, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston. That same year, Teddy Riley began producing R&B recordings that included hip hop influences and this combination of R&B style and hip hop rhythms was termed new jack swing and was applied to artists such as Bobby Brown, Keith Sweat, Al B. Guy, Jodeci and Bell Biv DeVoe, the style became less popular by the end of the 1990s, but later experienced a resurgence. In 1990 Mariah Carey released Vision of Love as her debut single and it was immensely popular peaking at number 1 in many worldwide charts including the Billboard Hot 100, and it propelled Mariahs carrier. The song is said to have popularized the use of melisma. During the mid-1990s, Whitney Houstons The Bodyguard, Original Soundtrack Album sold over 40 million copies becoming the best-selling soundtrack of all time. Janet Jacksons self-titled fifth studio album janet. which came after her historic multimillion-dollar contract with Virgin Records, sold over twenty million copies worldwide. Boyz II Men and Mariah Carey recorded several Billboard Hot 100 No.1 hits, including One Sweet Day, Carey also released a remix of her 1995 single Fantasy, with Ol Dirty Bastard as a feature, a collaboration format that was unheard of at this point. Carey, Boyz II Men and TLC released albums in 1994 and 1995—Daydream, II and CrazySexyCool. In the late 1990s, neo soul, which added 1970s soul influences to the hip hop soul blend, arose, led by such as DAngelo, Erykah Badu. Hill and Missy Elliott further blurred the line between R&B and hip hop by recording both styles, beginning in 1995, the Grammy Awards enacted the Grammy Award for Best R&B Album, with II by Boyz II Men becoming the first recipient. The award was received by TLC for CrazySexyCool in 1996, Tony Rich for Words in 1997, Erykah Badu for Baduizm in 1998. At the end of 1999, Billboard magazine ranked Mariah Carey and Janet Jackson as the first, simultaneously, in the second half of the 1990s, The Neptunes and Timbaland set influential precedence on contemporary R&B and hip hop music. R&B acts such as Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Usher, in 2001, Alicia Keys released Fallin as her debut single. It peaking at one on the Billboard Hot 100, Mainstream Top 40
3.
Soul music
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Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It combines elements of African-American gospel music, rhythm and blues, Soul music became popular for dancing and listening in the United States, where record labels such as Motown, Atlantic and Stax were influential during the Civil Rights Movement. Soul also became popular around the world, directly influencing rock music, catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps and extemporaneous body moves, are an important feature of soul music. Other characteristics are a call and response between the lead vocalist and the chorus and a tense vocal sound. The style also occasionally uses improvisational additions, twirls and auxiliary sounds, Soul music reflected the African-American identity and it stressed the importance of an African-American culture. The new-found African-American consciousness led to new styles of music, which boasted pride in being black, Soul music dominated the U. S. R&B chart in the 1960s, and many recordings crossed over into the pop charts in the U. S. By 1968, the music genre had begun to splinter. Some soul artists developed funk music, while other singers and groups developed slicker, more sophisticated, by the early 1970s, soul music had been influenced by psychedelic rock and other genres, leading to psychedelic soul. The United States saw the development of neo soul around 1994, there are also several other subgenres and offshoots of soul music. The term soul had been used among African-American musicians to emphasize the feeling of being an African-American in the United States, according to another source, Soul music was the result of the urbanization and commercialization of rhythm and blues in the 60s. The phrase soul music itself, referring to music with secular lyrics, is first attested in 1961. The term soul in African-American parlance has connotations of African-American pride, gospel groups in the 1940s and 1950s occasionally used the term as part of their name. The jazz style that derived from gospel came to be called soul jazz, important innovators whose recordings in the 1950s contributed to the emergence of soul music included Clyde McPhatter, Hank Ballard, and Etta James. Ray Charles is often cited as popularizing the genre with his string of hits starting with 1954s I Got a Woman. Singer Bobby Womack said, Ray was the genius and he turned the world onto soul music. Charles was open in acknowledging the influence of Pilgrim Travelers vocalist Jesse Whitaker on his singing style, little Richard and James Brown were equally influential. Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson are also acknowledged as soul forefathers. Cooke became popular as the singer of gospel group The Soul Stirrers
4.
Pop music
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Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the United States and United Kingdom during the mid 1950s. The terms popular music and pop music are used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular. Pop and rock were synonymous terms until the late 1960s, when they were used in opposition from each other. Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music. Pop music is eclectic, and often borrows elements from other such as urban, dance, rock, Latin. Identifying factors include generally short to medium-length songs written in a format, as well as the common use of repeated choruses, melodic tunes. David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz, according to Pete Seeger, pop music is professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music. Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music, the music charts contain songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs. Pop music, as a genre, is seen as existing and developing separately, pop music continuously evolves along with the terms definition. The term pop song was first recorded as being used in 1926, Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music. The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pops earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience. Since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the meaning of non-classical mus, usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles. Grove Music Online also states that, in the early 1960s pop music competed terminologically with beat music, while in the USA its coverage overlapped with that of rock and roll. From about 1967, the term was used in opposition to the term rock music. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral. It is not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward, and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative. It is, provided from on high rather than being made from below, pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment, the lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes – often love and romantic relationships – although there are notable exceptions
5.
Arista Records
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/ˈɛ. rɪ. stə/ was a major American record label. It was a wholly owned unit of Sony Music Entertainment and was handled by Bertelsmann Music Group. The company operated under the RCA Music Group until 2011, the label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records. Until its demise in 2011, it was a distributor and promoter of albums throughout the United States. Today, the labels reissues and catalogue releases are handled by RCA Records, after being fired from CBS Records, Clive Davis was hired by Columbia Pictures in June 1974 to be a consultant for the companys record and music operations. The label was named Arista after New York Citys secondary school honor society, in early 1975, most of the artists who had been signed to Bell were let go, except David Cassidy, Tony Orlando and Dawn, and the 5th Dimension. Others, such as Suzi Quatro and Hot Chocolate, were farmed out to the Bell/Arista-distributed label, several Bell acts, such as Barry Manilow, the Bay City Rollers, and Melissa Manchester moved to Arista. The British Bell label kept that name for a couple of years before changing its name to Arista, the label was immortalized in the 1978 Rockpile song They Called It Rock, in the lyric, Arista says they love you/But the kids cant dance to this. In addition to Manilow, the Kinks, and Dionne Warwick, Arista signed Aretha Franklin in 1980, the labels most significant acquisition came in 1983 when Davis signed Warwicks cousin, Whitney Houston. Houston would eventually become Aristas biggest-selling recording artist, with sales of 200 million records worldwide, Arista had an imprint label in the 1970s called Arista Novus, which focused on contemporary jazz artists. A country music division, Career Records, was merged into the Arista Nashville division in 1997, Arista Austin was used in the late 1990s as a country label. Additionally, Arista was the North American distributor of Jive Records from 1981 until 1987, during the 1990s, Arista also distributed Logic, Rowdy and Heavenly Recordings. Looking to stave off bankruptcy, Columbia Pictures sold Arista to German-based Ariola Records in 1979, after Ariola purchased General Electrics RCA Records in 1986, the combined company was renamed Bertelsmann Music Group, though Aristas U. S. releases would not note BMG until 1987. Into the 1980s, Arista continued its success, including major UK act Secret Affair, over the years it acquired Northwestside Records, deConstruction Records, First Avenue Records, and Dedicated Records in the UK. In 1989, Arista entered into a joint venture with Antonio L. A. Reid and Babyface in the creation of LaFace Records record company of TLC, in 1993, Arista also entered into a joint-venture with Sean P. Diddy Combs to form Bad Boy Records. In 1997 Arista acquired Profile Records, the home of Run-D. M. C. in 1989, Arista signed Milli Vanilli, a duo consisting of Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan that was based in Germany. The label released its album, Girl You Know Its True, which was a remixed and re-edited version of All or Nothing. The album was certified platinum in the U. S. and charted five top-ten singles
6.
So Damn Happy (Aretha Franklin album)
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So Damn Happy is the thirty-eighth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. Her first studio album since her Gold-certified A Rose Is Still a Rose in 1998, it included the Grammy-winning track, the album peaked at #33 on Billboards album chart and #11 on the R&B Albums chart. As of 2012, the album had sold 304,000 copies in the US, shortly after its release, Franklin left Arista after a stay of 23 years. She later announced plans to start her own Detroit-based record label, Aretha Records
7.
This Christmas, Aretha
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This Christmas is the thirty-ninth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. Initially a Borders Bookstore exclusive, it was reissued in 2009 on DMI Records and it is her first ever Christmas album. Having failed to launch her own Detroit-based label, Arethas Records, the album peaked at #102 on the Billboard album chart. As of January 2013, it has reportedly sold 142,864 copies in the United States, the Herald Angels Sing –5,24 Twas the Night Before Christmas –1,52
8.
AllMusic
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AllMusic is an online music guide service website. It was launched in 1991 by All Media Guide which later became All Media Network, AllMusic was launched in 1991 by Michael Erlewine of All Media Guide. The aim was to discographic information on every artist whos made a record since Enrico Caruso gave the industry its first big boost and its first reference book was published the following year. When first released onto the Internet, AMG predated the World Wide Web and was first available as a Gopher site, the AMG consumer web properties AllMusic. com, AllMovie. com and AllGame. com were sold by Rovi in July 2013 to All Media Network, LLC. All Media Network, LLC. was formed by the founders of SideReel. com. The following are contributors to AllMusic, as of this date, All Media Network also produced the AllMusic guide series that includes the AllMusic Guide to Rock, the All Music Guide to Jazz and the All Music Guide to the Blues. Vladimir Bogdanov is the president of the series, in August 2007, PC Magazine included AllMusic in its Top 100 Classic Websites list. All Media Network AllGame AllMovie SideReel All Music Guide to the Blues All Music Guide to Jazz Stephen Thomas Erlewine Official website
9.
Rolling Stone
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Rolling Stone is an American biweekly magazine that focuses on popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner, who is still the publisher. It was first known for its coverage and for political reporting by Hunter S. Thompson. In the 1990s, the magazine shifted focus to a readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors. In recent years, it has resumed its traditional mix of content, Rolling Stone magazine was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and Ralph Gleason. To get it off the ground, Wenner borrowed $7,500 from his own family and from the parents of his soon-to-be wife, Jane Schindelheim. The first issue carried a date of November 9,1967. Some authors have attributed the name solely to Dylans hit single, At Gleasons suggestion, Rolling Stone initially identified with and reported the hippie counterculture of the era. In the very first edition, Wenner wrote that Rolling Stone is not just about the music, in the 1970s, Rolling Stone began to make a mark with its political coverage, with the likes of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson writing for the magazines political section. Thompson first published his most famous work Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas within the pages of Rolling Stone, where he remained a contributing editor until his death in 2005. In the 1970s, the magazine also helped launch the careers of prominent authors, including Cameron Crowe, Lester Bangs, Joe Klein, Joe Eszterhas, Patti Smith. It was at point that the magazine ran some of its most famous stories. One interviewer, speaking for a number of his peers, said that he bought his first copy of the magazine upon initial arrival on his college campus. In 1977, the magazine moved its headquarters from San Francisco to New York City, editor Jann Wenner said San Francisco had become a cultural backwater. During the 1980s, the magazine began to shift towards being an entertainment magazine. Music was still a dominant topic, but there was increasing coverage of celebrities in television, films, the magazine also initiated its annual Hot Issue during this time. Rolling Stone was initially known for its coverage and for Thompsons political reporting. In the 1990s, the changed its format to appeal to a younger readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors
10.
Fantasia Barrino
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Fantasia Monique Taylor, known professionally by her mononym Fantasia, is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and actress. She rose to fame as the winner of the season of the reality television series American Idol in 2004. Following her victory, she released her single, I Believe. Subsequently, she released her album, Free Yourself, which went on to be certified Platinum by the RIAA. In 2006, she released her album, Fantasia, which featured the single When I See U which topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for eight weeks. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA and received three Grammy nominations in 2008 and she then played the part of Celie in the Broadway musical The Color Purple, for which she won a 2007 Theatre World Award. Her third studio album, Back to Me, was released worldwide on August 24,2010 and features the single Bittersweet, the single won her a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. As of February 2012, Taylor has sold 2,842,000 albums and 1,425,000 tracks in the United States, in 2012, VH1 ranked her number 32 out of the 100 Greatest Women in Music. On April 18,2013, Taylor returned to American Idol singing Lose to Win, the performance dubbed dynamic, passionate and powerful won her fervent expressions of approval from the shows current judges and a wild ovation from the live audience. Moreover, she has received reviews in the media for the performance. In November 2013, Taylor returned to Broadway in the musical After Midnight, on October 16,2014, she was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. Taylor has been nicknamed Baby Patti LaBelle by her idol Patti LaBelle, Fantasia Taylor was born Fantasia Barrino to Diane and Joseph Barrino and raised in High Point, North Carolina. She began singing at the age of five, Taylor cites Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle and Tina Turner as her biggest musical influences. R&B duo K-Ci & JoJo, formerly of Jodeci, are her first cousins and her uncles, The Barrino Brothers, were a 1970s R&B band. Despite the travels, she attended Andrews High School in High Point, feeling embarrassed and harassed after she was raped by a classmate, she dropped out of high school. She became pregnant at 16, and on August 8,2001, gave birth to her daughter, Zion Quari Barrino with her ex-boyfriend, Brandel Shouse. On the finale, over 65 million votes were cast in order to determine the winner on May 26,2004, Taylor defeated runner-up Diana DeGarmo by 1.3 million votes. At age 19, she was the youngest American Idol winner until May 23,2007, when then 17-year-old Jordin Sparks won the title
11.
John Legend
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John Roger Stephens, known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He has won ten Grammy Awards, one Golden Globe Award, in 2007, Legend received the Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Prior to the release of Legends debut album, his career gained momentum through a series of collaborations with already established artists. At various points in his career, Legend has sung in Magnetic Mans Getting Nowhere, Kanye Wests All of the Lights, on Slum Villages Selfish, Legend played piano on Lauryn Hills Everything Is Everything. For his solo work, he earned a Billboard Hot 100 number-one single with All of Me in 2013 and he won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2015 for writing the song Glory from the film Selma. Legend was born on December 28,1978, in Springfield and he is one of four children of Phyllis Elaine, a seamstress, and Ronald Lamar Stephens, a factory worker and former National Guardsman. Throughout his childhood, Legend was homeschooled on and off by his mother, at the age of four, he performed with his church choir. He began playing the piano at age seven, at the age of twelve, Legend attended North High School, from which he graduated salutatorian of his class four years later. According to Legend, he was offered admission to Harvard University and scholarships to Georgetown University and he attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied English with an emphasis on African-American literature. While in college, Legend served as president and musical director of a co-ed jazz and his lead vocals on the groups recording of Joan Osbornes One of Us received critical acclaim landing the song on the track list of the 1998 Best of Collegiate a Cappella compilation CD. Legend was also a member of the senior societies Sphinx Senior Society. While in college, Legend was introduced to Lauryn Hill by a friend, Hill hired him to play piano on Everything Is Everything, a song from her album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. During this period, he began to hold a number of shows around Philadelphia, eventually expanding his audience base to New York, Boston, Atlanta and he graduated college in 1999, and thereafter began producing, writing, and recording his own music. He released two albums independently, his self-titled demo and Live at Jimmys Uptown, which he sold at his shows, after graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, Legend began working as a management consultant for the Boston Consulting Group. He subsequently began working on his demo and began sending his work to record labels. In 2001, Devo Springsteen introduced Legend to then up-and-coming hip-hop artist Kanye West and this was after his rebranding, as the artist known as, Dorrough. After signing to Wests label, he chose his name from an idea that was given to him by poet J. Ivy. J. Ivy stated, I heard your music and it reminds me of that music from the old school and you sound like one of the legends
12.
Luciano Pavarotti
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Luciano Pavarotti, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian operatic tenor who also crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most commercially successful tenors of all time. As one of the Three Tenors, Pavarotti became well known for his televised concerts, Pavarotti was also noted for his charity work on behalf of refugees and the Red Cross, amongst others. He died from cancer on 6 September 2007. Luciano Pavarotti was born in 1935 on the outskirts of Modena in Northern Italy, the son of Fernando Pavarotti, a baker and amateur tenor, and Adele Venturi, a cigar factory worker. Although he spoke fondly of his childhood, the family had little money, according to Pavarotti, his father had a fine tenor voice but rejected the possibility of a singing career because of nervousness. World War II forced the family out of the city in 1943, for the following year they rented a single room from a farmer in the neighbouring countryside, where the young Pavarotti developed an interest in farming. After abandoning the dream of becoming a goalkeeper, Pavarotti spent seven years in vocal training. Pavarottis earliest musical influences were his fathers recordings, most of them featuring the popular tenors of the day – Beniamino Gigli, Giovanni Martinelli, Tito Schipa, at around the age of nine he began singing with his father in a small local church choir. He was interested in pursuing a career as a football goalkeeper. He subsequently taught in a school for two years but finally allowed his interest in music to win out. Recognising the risk involved, his father gave his consent only reluctantly, Pavarotti began the serious study of music in 1954 at the age of 19 with Arrigo Pola, a respected teacher and professional tenor in Modena who offered to teach him without remuneration. According to conductor Richard Bonynge, Pavarotti never learned to read music and he later said that this was the most important experience of his life, and that it inspired him to become a professional singer. At about this time Pavarotti first met Adua Veroni, like Pavarotti, Freni was destined to operatic greatness, they were to share the stage many times and make memorable recordings together. During his years of study, Pavarotti held part-time jobs in order to sustain himself – first as an elementary school teacher. The first six years of study resulted in only a few recitals, all in small towns, when a nodule developed on his vocal cords, causing a disastrous concert in Ferrara, he decided to give up singing. Pavarotti attributed his immediate improvement to the psychological release connected with this decision, Pavarotti began his career as a tenor in smaller regional Italian opera houses, making his debut as Rodolfo in La bohème at the Teatro Municipale in Reggio Emilia in April 1961. He made his first international appearance in La traviata in Belgrade, very early in his career, on 23 February 1963, he debuted at the Vienna State Opera in the same role. In March and April 1963 Vienna saw Pavarotti again as Rodolfo, while generally successful, Pavarottis early roles did not immediately propel him into the stardom that he would later enjoy
13.
Billboard (magazine)
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Billboard is an American entertainment media brand owned by the Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group, a division of Eldridge Industries. It publishes pieces involving news, video, opinion, reviews, events and it is also known for its music charts, including the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard 200, tracking the most popular singles and albums in different genres. It also hosts events, owns a publishing firm, and operates several TV shows, Billboard was founded in 1894 by William Donaldson and James Hennegan as a trade publication for bill posters. Donaldson later acquired Hennegens interest in 1900 for $500, in the 1900s, it covered the entertainment industry, such as circuses, fairs and burlesque shows. It also created a service for travelling entertainers. Billboard began focusing more on the industry as the jukebox, phonograph. Many topics it covered were spun-off into different magazines, including Amusement Business in 1961 to cover outdoor entertainment so that it could focus on music. After Donaldson died in 1925, Billboard was passed down to his children and Hennegans children, until it was sold to investors in 1985. The first issue of Billboard was published in Cincinnati, Ohio, on November 1,1894 by William Donaldson, initially, it covered the advertising and bill posting industry and was called Billboard Advertising. At the time, billboards, posters and paper advertisements placed in public spaces were the means of advertising. Donaldson handled editorial and advertising, while Hennegan, who owned Hennegan Printing Co. managed magazine production, the first issues were just eight pages long. The paper had columns like The Bill Room Gossip and The Indefatigable, a department for agricultural fairs was established in 1896. The title was changed to The Billboard in 1897, after a brief departure over editorial differences, Donaldson purchased Hennegans interest in the business in 1900 for $500, to save it from bankruptcy. That May, Donaldson changed it from a monthly to a paper with a greater emphasis on breaking news. He improved editorial quality and opened new offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, London and he also re-focused the magazine on outdoor entertainment like fairs, carnivals, circuses, vaudeville and burlesque shows. A section devoted to circuses was introduced in 1900, followed by more prominent coverage of events in 1901. Billboard also covered topics including regulation, a lack of professionalism, economics and it had a stage gossip column covering the private lives of entertainers, a tent show section covering traveling shows and a sub-section called Freaks to order. According to The Seattle Times, Donaldson also published articles attacking censorship, praising productions exhibiting good taste
14.
Ray Charles
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Ray Charles Robinson, known professionally as Ray Charles, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and composer. Among friends and fellow musicians he preferred being called Brother Ray and he was often referred to as The Genius. Charles was blind from the age of seven and he pioneered the genre of soul music during the 1950s by combining blues, rhythm and blues, and gospel styles into the music he recorded for Atlantic Records. He also contributed to the integration of music, rhythm and blues and pop music during the 1960s with his crossover success on ABC Records. While he was with ABC, Charles became one of the first black musicians to be granted artistic control by a record company. Charles cited Nat King Cole as an influence, but his music was also influenced by country, jazz, blues. In the late forties, he became friends with Quincy Jones and their friendship would last till the end of Charless life. Frank Sinatra called him the true genius in show business. In 2002, Rolling Stone ranked Charles number ten on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, Billy Joel observed, This may sound like sacrilege, but I think Ray Charles was more important than Elvis Presley. Robinson was the son of Bailey Robinson, a laborer, at the time, she was a teenage orphan making a living as a sharecropper. They lived in Greenville, Florida, with Robinsons mother and his wife, the Robinson family had informally adopted Aretha, and she became known as Aretha Robinson. When she, scandalously, became pregnant by Bailey, she briefly left Greenville late in the summer of 1930 to be family members in Albany, Georgia. After that, mother and child returned to Greenville, and Aretha and he was deeply devoted to his mother and later recalled her perseverance, self-sufficiency, and pride as guiding lights in his life. His father abandoned the family, left Greenville, and took another wife elsewhere, in his early years, Charles showed a fondness about mechanical objects and would often watch his neighbors working on their cars and farm machinery. Charles and his mother were always welcome at the Red Wing Cafe, pitman would also care for Rays brother George, to take the burden off Aretha. George drowned in Arethas laundry tub when he was four years old, Charles started to lose his sight at the age of four or five, and was completely blind by the age of seven, apparently as a result of glaucoma. Destitute, uneducated and still mourning the loss of George, Aretha used her connections in the community to find a school that would accept a blind African-American student. Despite his initial protest, Charles attended school at the Florida School for the Deaf, Charles further developed his musical talent at school, and was taught to play the classical piano music of J. S
15.
Four Tops
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The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet from Detroit, Michigan who helped to define the citys Motown sound of the 1960s. The groups repertoire has included music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, doo-wop, jazz. They were notable for having Stubbs, a baritone, as their singer, whereas most male. The group was the male vocal group for the highly successful songwriting and production team of Holland–Dozier–Holland. These included two Billboard Hot 100 number-one hits for the Tops, I Cant Help Myself in 1965, after Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown in 1967, the Four Tops were assigned to a number of producers, primarily Frank Wilson, but generally with less success. When Motown left Detroit in 1972 to move to Los Angeles, California, in the 1980s, the Four Tops recorded for Casablanca Records, Arista Records and Motown, returning to that label on two occasions for brief stays. Apart from their album Indestructible, Universal Music Group controls the rights to their entire catalog and also their 1956 single. A change of lineup was forced on the group when Lawrence Payton died on June 20,1997, the group initially continued as a three-piece under the name the Tops, before Theo Peoples was recruited as the new fourth member. Peoples eventually took over the role of lead singer when Stubbs suffered a stroke in 2000, on July 1,2005, Benson died of lung cancer. Paytons son Roquel Payton replaced him, Levi Stubbs died on October 17,2008. Fakir, McNeir, Roquel Payton, and Harold Spike Bonhart, Fakir is the only surviving founding member of the group. All four members of the began their careers together while they were high-school students in Detroit. At the insistence of their friends, Pershing High students Levi Stubbs and Abdul Duke Fakir performed with Renaldo Obie Benson, the quartet decided to remain together and named the group the Four Aims. With the help of Paytons songwriter cousin Roquel Davis, the Aims signed to Chess Records in 1956, over the next seven years, the Tops had unsuccessful tenures at Chess, Red Top, Riverside Records and Columbia Records. Without any hit records to their name, they toured frequently, developing a stage presence. In 1963, Berry Gordy, Jr. who had worked with Roquel Davis as a songwriter in the late 1950s, during their early Motown years, the Four Tops recorded jazz standards for the companys Workshop label. In addition, they sang backup on Motown singles by the Supremes, Martha, in 1964, Motowns main songwriting and production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland, created a complete instrumental track without any idea of what to do with it. They decided to craft the song as a mainstream pop song for the Four Tops
16.
James Brown
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James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer, and bandleader. The creator of music and a major figure of 20th century popular music and dance. In a career spanned six decades, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown began his career as a singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He joined an R&B vocal group, the Gospel Starlighters, in which he was the lead singer. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as Papas Got a Brand New Bag, I Got You and Its a Mans Mans Mans World. During the late 1960s he moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms, by the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J. B. s with records such as Get Up Sex Machine and The Payback. He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit Say It Loud – Im Black, Brown continued to perform and record until his death from congestive heart failure in 2006. Brown recorded 16 singles that reached number one on the Billboard R&B charts and he also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart which did not reach number one. Brown has received honors from many institutions, including inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Joel Whitburns analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, James Brown is ranked as number one in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on the music magazine Rolling Stones list of its 100 greatest artists of all time, Rolling Stone has also cited Brown as the most sampled artist of all time. Brown was born on May 3,1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie and 22-year-old Joseph Joe Gardner Brown, in a small wooden shack. Browns name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, Jr. however, his first and he later legally changed his name to remove Jr. His parents were black, in his autobiography, Brown stated that he also had Chinese and Native American ancestry. The Brown family lived in poverty in Elko, South Carolina. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five and his family first settled at one of his aunts brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt, Browns mother later left the family after a contentious marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and he managed to stay in school until the sixth grade
17.
Christina Aguilera
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Christina María Aguilera is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. Born in Staten Island, New York and raised in Rochester and Wexford, Pennsylvania, she appeared on the television series Star Search, after recording Reflection, the theme for Disneys 1998 film Mulan, Aguilera signed with RCA Records. She rose to prominence with her 1999 self-titled debut album spawned the Billboard Hot 100 number one singles, Genie in a Bottle, What a Girl Wants. The following year, Aguilera released two albums, the Spanish-language album Mi Reflejo and the holiday album My Kind of Christmas. She assumed creative control for her studio album, Stripped, which produced Dirrty, Beautiful. Aguileras fifth studio album, Back to Basics, debuted at one on the album charts of ten countries and spawned the tracks Aint No Other Man. In 2010, Aguilera released her studio album Bionic and starred in the film Burlesque. The following year, she debuted as a coach on the reality television series The Voice. Her seventh studio album, Lotus, was released in 2012, Aguilera has also been featured on several successful collaborations during her career, including Lady Marmalade, Moves like Jagger, and Say Something. Aguilera has been recognized as a pop icon and earned the title Pop Princess in her early years and her work has earned her five Grammy Awards, one Latin Grammy Award, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She has sold over 17.9 million albums in the United States as of 2014 and 50 million albums worldwide as of 2015. In 2009, she ranked at number 58 on Rolling Stones list of 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, thereby becoming the youngest and the only artist under 30 to be named. Billboard recognized her as the 20th most successful artist of the 2000s, aside from her work in the entertainment industry, Aguilera is involved in charitable activities through human rights, world issues, and her work as a UN ambassador for the World Food Programme. Christina María Aguilera was born in Staten Island, New York, on December 18,1980, to Shelly Loraine, a musician, and Fausto Xavier Aguilera and her father is Ecuadorian, while her mother has German, Irish, Welsh, and Dutch ancestry. Her family moved frequently because of her fathers service, and lived in places including New Jersey, Texas, New York. Aguilera and her mother alleged that her father was physically and emotionally abusive, claims which he denied, Aguilera used music as a form of escape from her turbulent household. Following her parents divorce when she was six years old, Aguilera, her younger sister Rachel, after several years of being estranged, Aguilera expressed interest in reconciling with her father in 2012. Growing up, Aguilera, known locally as the girl with the big voice, aspired to be a singer, singing in local talent shows
18.
Jumpin' Jack Flash
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Jumpin Jack Flash is a song by English rock band the Rolling Stones, released as a single in 1968. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, recording on Jumpin Jack Flash began during the Beggars Banquet sessions of 1968, regarding the songs distinctive sound, guitarist Richards has said, I used a Gibson Hummingbird acoustic tuned to open D, six string. Open D or open E, which is the same thing – same intervals –, then there was a capo on it, to get that really tight sound. And there was another guitar over the top of that, I learned that from somebody in George Jones band in San Antonio in 1964. The high-strung guitar was an acoustic, too, both acoustics were put through a Philips cassette recorder. Just jam the mic right in the guitar and play it back through an extension speaker, Richards has stated that he and Jagger wrote the lyrics while staying at Richards country house, where they were awoken one morning by the sound of gardener Jack Dyer walking past the window. When Jagger asked what the noise was, Richards responded, Oh, the rest of the lyrics evolved from there. Jagger said in a 1995 interview with Rolling Stone that the song out of all the acid of Satanic Majesties. Its about having a time and getting out. Just a metaphor for getting out of all the acid things, and in a 1968 interview, Brian Jones described it as getting back to. The funky, essential essence following the psychedelia of Their Satanic Majesties Request, in his autobiography, Stone Alone, Bill Wyman has said that he came up with the songs distinctive main guitar riff on a piano without being credited for it. It topped the US Cashbox chart for one week, the first Rolling Stones album on which the song appeared was their 1969 compilation album, Through the Past, Darkly, one year after the single was released. The Rolling Stones have played Jumpin Jack Flash during every tour since its release and it ranks as the song the band has played in concert most frequently, and has appeared on the concert albums Get Yer Ya-Yas Out. Jones is heard clearly, mixing with Richardss lead throughout the song, the intro is not usually played in concert and instead the song begins with the main riff. The open E or open D tuning of the guitar on the studio recording has also not been replicated in concert. Richards is particularly fond of the main riff, often crediting it as his favorite among all of his most revered guitar riffs. In March 2005, Q magazine placed Jumpin Jack Flash at number 2 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks, in 2004, Rolling Stone rated the song 124th on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. VH1 placed it at 65 on its show 100 Greatest Rock Songs, two promotional videos were made in May 1968, one featuring a live performance, another showcasing the band lip-syncing, with Jones, Jagger and Watts donning makeup
19.
Keith Richards
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Keith Richards is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, best-selling memoirist and founding member of the rock band the Rolling Stones. The magazine of the same name credited Richards for rocks greatest single body of riffs on guitar, fourteen songs that Richards wrote with the Rolling Stones lead vocalist Mick Jagger are listed among Rolling Stone magazines 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The Stones are generally known for their guitar interplay of rhythm, in spite of this, Richards plays the only guitar tracks on some of their most famous songs including Paint It Black, Ruby Tuesday, Sympathy for the Devil, Gimme Shelter, and Angie. Richards was born 18 December 1943 at Livingston Hospital, in Dartford, Kent and he is the only child of Doris M. L. and Herbert W. Richards. His father was a worker who was injured in World War II during the Normandy invasion. His great-grandfathers family originated from Wales and his maternal grandfather, Augustus Theodore Gus Dupree, who toured Britain with a jazz big band, Gus Dupree and his Boys, fostered Richards interest in guitar. Richards has said that it was Dupree who gave him his first guitar and his grandfather teased the young Richards with a guitar that was on a shelf that Richards couldnt reach at the time. Finally Dupree told Richards, that if Richards could reach the guitar then he could have it, Richards then devised all manner of ways of reaching the guitar, putting books and cushions on a chair and finally got the guitar and his grandfather let him have it. His grandfather taught him the rudiments of Richards first tune, Malagueña and he worked on the number like mad and then his grandfather let him keep the guitar. He called it the prize of the century, Richards played at home, listening to recordings by Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and others. His father, on the hand, disparaged his sons musical enthusiasm. One of Richards first guitar heroes was Scotty Moore, Richards attended Wentworth Primary School with Mick Jagger and was his neighbour until 1954, when the family moved. From 1955 to 1959 he attended Dartford Technical High School for Boys, recruited by Dartford Techs choirmaster, R. W. Jake Clare, Richards sang in a trio of boy sopranos at, among other occasions, Westminster Abbey for Queen Elizabeth II. In 1959 Richards was expelled from Dartford Tech for truancy and transferred to Sidcup Art College, at Sidcup he was diverted from his studies proper and devoted more time to playing guitar with other students in the boys room. At this point Richards had learned most of Chuck Berrys solos, Richards met Jagger on a train as Jagger was heading for classes at the London School of Economics. The mail-order rhythm & blues albums from Chess Records by Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters that Jagger was carrying revealed a mutual interest, along with mutual friend Dick Taylor, Jagger was singing in an amateur band, Little Boy Blue and the Blue Boys, which Richards soon joined. The Blues Boys folded when Brian Jones, after sharing thoughts on their joint interest in the music, invited Mick and Keith to the Bricklayers Arms pub. By mid-1962 Richards had left Sidcup Art College to devote himself to music and moved into a London flat with Jagger and his parents divorced about the same time, resulting in his staying close to his mother and remaining estranged from his father until 1982
20.
Aretha (1986 album)
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Aretha is the thirty-fourth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, originally released in 1986, on Arista Records. This is the album with this title to be released by the artist. Other Franklin albums titled Aretha were also released in 1980 and 1961, the album, again produced mainly by Narada Michael Walden, included Arethas first #1 Pop single since Respect in 1967 with the vibrant I Knew You Were Waiting, a duet with George Michael. Aretha also yielded three hit singles, Jimmy Lee, Rock-A-Lott and a hard rock cover of The Rolling Stones classic. All music videos were extremely popular on MTV, BET and other video outlets, following Arethas first-ever Platinum record, Whos Zoomin Who. Aretha was quickly certified Gold after only several weeks, before going out of print, the album had sold approximately 900,000 copies in the United States alone. Franklins vocal from Rock-A-Lott was sampled extensively in the 49ers 1990 hit Touch Me, all four of the singles were shot as music videos that received extensive play. The album is noteworthy for the cover, which was Andy Warhols final work before his death in early 1987. The album was remastered and re-released as an Expanded Edition in December 2014 by Funky Town Grooves, with bonus tracks, on December 161986, Aretha was certified Gold by the RIAA with no other certification added and this mark her seventh gold album in her illustrious career
21.
Mick Jagger
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Sir Michael Philip Mick Jagger is an English singer and songwriter, the lead singer and one of the founding members of the Rolling Stones. Jaggers career has spanned over 55 years, and he has described as one of the most popular. Jaggers distinctive voice and performance, along with Keith Richards guitar style, have been the trademark of the Rolling Stones throughout the career of the band, Jagger gained press notoriety for his admitted drug use and romantic involvements, and was often portrayed as a countercultural figure. In the late 1960s, Jagger began acting in films, to mixed reception, in 1985, he released his first solo album, Shes the Boss. In early 2009, Jagger joined the electric supergroup SuperHeavy, in 1989 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2004 into the UK Music Hall of Fame with the Rolling Stones. In 2003, he was knighted for his services to popular music, Michael Philip Jagger was born into a middle-class family in Dartford, Kent. His father, Basil Fanshawe Joe Jagger, and grandfather, David Ernest Jagger, were both teachers and his mother, Eva Ensley Mary, born in Sydney, Australia, of English descent, was a hairdresser and an active member of the Conservative Party. Jaggers younger brother, Chris, is also a musician, although brought up to follow his fathers career path, Jagger was always a singer as he stated in According to the Rolling Stones. I always sang as a child, I was one of those kids who just liked to sing. Some kids sing in choirs, others like to show off in front of the mirror, I was in the church choir and I also loved listening to singers on the radio–the BBC or Radio Luxembourg–or watching them on TV and in the movies. In September 1950, Keith Richards and Jagger were classmates at Wentworth Primary School, in 1954, Jagger passed the eleven-plus and went to Dartford Grammar School, which now has the Mick Jagger Centre installed within the schools site, named after its most famous alumnus. Jagger left school in 1961 after obtaining seven O-levels and three A-levels, Jagger and Richards moved into a flat in Edith Grove in Chelsea, London with a guitarist they had encountered named Brian Jones. In their earliest days the members played for no money in the interval of Alexis Korners gigs at a basement club opposite Ealing Broadway tube station, at the time, the group had very little equipment and needed to borrow Alexis gear to play. This was before Andrew Loog Oldham became their manager, the groups first appearance under the name the Rollin Stones was at the Marquee Club in London, a jazz club, on 12 July 1962. They would later change their name to the Rolling Stones as it seemed more formal, victor Bockris states that the band members included Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, Ian Stewart on piano, Dick Taylor on bass and Tony Chapman on drums. However, Richards states in Life that The drummer that night was Mick Avory--not Tony Chapman, avory himself has categorically denied on many occasions that he played with the Rollin Stones that night. In fact he only rehearsed twice with them in the Bricklayers Arms pub, Some time later the band went on their first tour in the United Kingdom, this was known as the training ground tour, because it was a new experience for all of them. The line-up did not at that time include drummer Charlie Watts or bassist Bill Wyman, by 1963 they were finding their musical stride as well as popularity
22.
Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves
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Sisters Are Doin It for Themselves is a 1985 song recorded as a duet by the British pop duo Eurythmics and American soul/R&B singer Aretha Franklin. It was released as a single by RCA Records in October 1985, Sisters Are Doin It for Themselves is considered to be a modern feminist anthem and was written by Eurythmics Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart. They had originally intended to duet with Tina Turner, who was unavailable at the time, the song was highly successful, reaching #9 on the UK Singles Chart and #18 on the U. S. Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at #10 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, the track also features three of Tom Pettys Heartbreakers, Stan Lynch on drums, Benmont Tench on organ, and Mike Campbell on lead guitar, plus session bassist Nathan East. This music video was taped at Detroits Music Hall, the video is interspersed with clips from old black and white films, including 1962s A Kind of Loving. The video uses the version of the song, as opposed to the album version. Often performed live by British supergroup Spice Girls, a recording of the song was released in 1998 as the track on the maxi-single for the song Goodbye. In 2005, The Pointer Sisters recorded a version of the song with Belgian singer Natalia. The single was released only in Belgium in October 2005 and reached two on the Belgian singles chart. Dutch singer Raffaëla Paton, winner of the 3rd season of the reality series Idols Netherlands and their rendition was included on Patons 2006 debut album Raffaëla. Hazell Dean recorded a version of this song with American Diva Marina in 1998 on MRK Records. The television show Xena, Warrior Princess featured a cover of the song by actress Lucy Lawless in the episode Lyre, Lyre, Eurythmics Annie Lennox – vocals, keyboards David A. In 1998 the Spice Girls performed a cover version of the song on their Spiceworld Tour. They also performed it on TFI Friday, in 2011 Christina Aguilera, Martina McBride, Florence Welch, Jennifer Hudson & Yolanda Adams covered this song at 53rd Grammy Awards. Youtube - Music video Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
23.
Eurythmics
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Eurythmics were a British music duo consisting of members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart. Stewart and Lennox were both previously in the band The Tourists, who split up in 1980, Eurythmics were formed that year in London. The duo released their first album, In the Garden, in 1981 to little fanfare, the title track was a worldwide hit, topping the charts in various countries including the US. The duo went on to release a string of hit singles, by this time Stewart was a sought-after record producer, while Lennox began a solo recording career in 1992 with her debut album Diva. After almost a decade apart, Eurythmics reunited to record their album, Peace. They reunited again in 2005 to release the single Ive Got a Life, as part of a new Eurythmics compilation album, Eurythmics have sold an estimated 75 million records worldwide. Lennox and Stewart met in 1975 in a restaurant in London and they first played together in 1976 in the punk rock band The Catch. After releasing one single as The Catch in 1977, the band evolved into The Tourists, Stewart and Lennox were also romantically involved. The Tourists achieved some success, but the experience was reportedly an unhappy one. Personal and musical tensions existed within the group, whose main songwriter was Peet Coombes and they were interested in creating pop music, but wanted freedom to experiment with electronics and the avant-garde. It was in a hotel in Wagga Wagga, Australia, while playing around with a portable mini-synthesizer that Lennox, the duo signed to RCA Records. At this time, Lennox and Stewart also split as a couple, during the period that Lennox and Stewart were in The Tourists, and later as Eurythmics, they were managed by Kenny Smith and Sandra Turnbull of Hyper Kinetics Ltd. They recorded their first album in Cologne with Conny Plank and this resulted in the album In the Garden, released in October 1981. The album mixed psychedelic, krautrock and electropop influences, and featured contributions from Holger Czukay and Jaki Liebezeit, drummer Clem Burke, Robert Görl, a couple of the songs were co-written by guitarist Roger Pomphrey. The album was not a commercial success, however, the three new singles they released that year all performed badly on initial release in the UK. Lennox apparently suffered at least one nervous breakdown during this period, Eurythmics commercial breakthrough came with their second album, Sweet Dreams, released in January 1983. The successful title track featured a dark and powerful sequenced synth bass line, the song reached no.2 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming one of the years biggest sellers, and later topped the US charts. The bands fortunes changed immensely from this moment on, and Lennox quickly became a pop icon and their previous single, Love Is a Stranger, was also re-released and became another chart success
24.
Who's Zoomin' Who?
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Whos Zoomin Who. is the thirty-third studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, originally released in the summer of 1985, on Arista Records. It was Arethas first ever Platinum record and received praising reviews from people such as Robert Christgau. The discs first of five singles, Freeway of Love, proved both a hit as well as a career achievement for Franklin, earning her a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Franklin said she wanted to do a record with a sound to it. Id been listening to the radio and I really liked what I heard, I figured to myself that it was time for me to do something serious. The albums lead single, Freeway of Love, produced by Narada Michael Walden, was one of Franklins biggest career hits and it held the #1 position on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for five consecutive weeks. Freeway of Love also won a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, the follow-up single was the albums title track, which reached #2 on the R&B chart as well as #7 on Billboards Hot 100. It also returned Franklin to the Top 10 on Billboards Adult Contemporary chart, also in 1985, Franklin duetted with the British rock/pop duo Eurythmics on the song Sisters Are Doin It for Themselves. The single was a top 10 hit in the UK, and was added to pressings of the Whos Zoomin Who. With this album, Franklin established herself as a star of music video, popular videos for Freeway of Love, Sisters and Another Night - enjoyed heavy rotation on MTV. At the time of its release, Franklin rated Whos Zooming Who. as one of her best albums ever, the album was ranked #89 in Rolling Stones 100 Greatest Albums of the 80s. On August 26,1985, Whos Zoomin Who, recorded at United Sound & The Power Station. Robert Kandor, Synthesizers, Nat Adderley, Jr. Engineered by Adam Williams & Don Smith, with assistance by Jay Willis, mixed by Dave Stewart & Don Smith. Engineered & mixed by Dr. Dave Frazer, with mixing by Michael Brauer. at AllMusic
25.
Annie Lennox
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Ann Annie Lennox, OBE is a Scottish singer, songwriter, political activist and philanthropist. With a total of eight Brit Awards, including Best British Female Artist six times and she has also been named the Brits Champion of Champions. Lennox embarked on a career in 1992 with her debut album, Diva. To date, she has released six studio albums and a compilation album. Aside from her eight Brit Awards, she has collected four Grammy Awards. In 2002, Lennox received a Billboard Century Award, the highest accolade from Billboard Magazine. In 2004, she won both the Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Original Song for Into the West, written for the soundtrack to the feature film The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King. In addition to her career as a musician, Lennox is also a political and social activist, notable for raising money and awareness for HIV/ AIDS as it affects women and children in Africa. In 2011, Lennox was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II for her tireless charity campaigns, on 4 June 2012 she performed at the Queens Diamond Jubilee Concert in front of Buckingham Palace. Lennox performed the song Little Bird during the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in London on 12 August 2012, Lennox has been named The Greatest White Soul Singer Alive by VH1 and one of The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time by Rolling Stone. In 2012, she was rated No.22 on VH1s 100 Greatest Women in Music and she has earned the distinction of most successful female British artist in UK music history due to her commercial success since the early 1980s. As of June 2008, including her work within Eurythmics, Lennox had sold over 80 million records worldwide, Annie Lennox was born on Christmas Day 1954 in Summerfield Maternity hospital, Aberdeen, the daughter of Dorothy and Thomas Allison Lennox. In the 1970s, Lennox won a place at the Royal Academy of Music in London and she lived on a student grant and worked at part-time jobs for extra money. Lennox was unhappy during her time at the Royal Academy and spent her time wondering what direction she could take. Lennoxs flute teachers final report stated, Ann has not always sure of where to direct her efforts. She is very, very able, however, two years later, Lennox reported to the Academy, I have had to work as a waitress, barmaid, and shop assistant to keep me when not in musical work. She also played and sang with a few bands, such as Windsong, during the period of her course, in 2006, the academy made her an honorary Fellow. Lennox also was made a Fellow of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music, in 1976, Lennox was flautist with a band called Dragons Playground, leaving before they appeared on TVs New Faces
26.
David A. Stewart
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David Allan Dave Stewart is an English musician, songwriter and record producer, best known for Eurythmics, his successful professional partnership with Annie Lennox. He is usually credited as David A. Stewart, to avoid confusion with other musicians named Dave Stewart and he won Best British Producer at the 1986,1987 and 1990 Brit Awards. Stewart was born in Sunderland, England, in 1952 and he attended Bede Grammar School for Boys, whilst still in his teens, he secured a record deal as part of folk-rock band Longdancer. Despite being signed to Elton Johns record label, The Rocket Record Company, after leaving Wearside Stewart then spent several years living in squats in London. In late 1976, he was introduced to Annie Lennox by Paul Jacobs, soon, Stewart and Lennox became romantically involved. By 1977, the pair had teamed up with Sunderland musician Peet Coombes, the band then developed into The Tourists who enjoyed modest success, including a hit in 1979 with a cover of the Dusty Springfield hit I Only Want to Be with You. The Tourists split up in 1980, as did Stewart and Lennox and they formed a new musical project named Eurythmics. After a string of hit singles and albums, the duo split in 1990, Lennox and Stewart worked together again in 2005, recording two new tracks for the greatest hits package Ultimate Collection, released to coincide with Eurythmics 25th anniversary. When Eurythmics dissolved in 1990, Stewart moved to France and immediately released an album with his new band The Spiritual Cowboys, the song Party Town was featured in the 1990 film Flatliners. A second album followed in 1991, both albums were Gold in France, where Stewart concentrated his efforts. In 1992, Stewart collaborated with singer Terry Hall on the project Vegas, the duo released one self-titled album but this was commercially unsuccessful, though one of the singles from the album made the UK Top 40. In 1993, Stewart appeared in an Apple Inc. advertisement for the Power Macintosh in which he riffed on the word power and he also had a small cameo as a computer hacker in the 1995 film Hackers. In 1994, Stewart released an album, Greetings from the Gutter. The album was not a success, though Stewart scored a minor UK hit with the single Heart Of Stone which reached number 36. He then released another album, Sly-Fi, first on the internet, in 1997, Stewart released an album Come Alive with the actress and singer Rhona Mitra. In 1999, he produced an album, Female Icon. In November 2002, Stewart worked with former South African president Nelson Mandela and he then began organising the 46664 campaign and series of concerts in the fight against HIV/AIDS in South Africa. In 2007, Stewart announced on his MySpace page that he would be playing live concerts showcasing his entire career, according to the announcement, he was to be accompanied by various guest musicians as well as a 30 piece orchestra
27.
I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)
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I Knew You Were Waiting is a Grammy Award-winning number-one song performed by Aretha Franklin and George Michael as a duet in 1987. It was written by Simon Climie and Dennis Morgan and it also stands as Franklins biggest hit at the Adult Contemporary chart, spending several weeks at number two. The official music video for the song was directed by Andy Morahan and it begins with George Michael and two bodyguards entering a dark room. There is a viewing screen on the wall showing Aretha Franklin preparing for George Michael. Over the course of the video, the two are together, and shown performing the song both in front of the screen and on it. At the end of the video, Aretha winks at the camera, the song was a one-off project that helped Michael achieve his ambition to sing with one of his favorite artists, and it reached number-one in both the UK Singles Chart and Billboard Hot 100. The song was Franklins first and only UK number-one hit, and only her fourth top ten achievement in the country since I Say a Little Prayer and this was also the last of Franklins seventeen top 10 hits in the Billboard Hot 100. For Michael, it became his third consecutive number-one in the UK since going solo, following 1984s Careless Whisper, in the US, it was Michaels fourth number-one hit, counting his Wham. days. The single was the first Michael had recorded that he had not written himself, the co-writer, Simon Climie, was unknown at the time, although he later had success as a performer with Climie Fisher in 1988. A live version of the song was featured on the Bucks Fizz album Live at the Fairfield Hall, a cover of I Knew You Were Waiting was recorded in 2001 by HearSay as the B-side to their single Everybody. Michael McDonald covered it in 2008 on his album Soul Speak, a cover version of the chorus of I Knew You Were Waiting featured in Welcome Back, a 3-minute-long British TV commercial for telecommunications company T-Mobile which first aired on October 29,2010. The song was performed as a duet by Joshua Ledet and Jessica Sanchez on the season of American Idol during top 8 week. The song was performed as a duet by CJ Harris. Crystal Lewis and Michael English covered the song for Englishs 2012 project, lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
28.
George Michael
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Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, known professionally as George Michael, was an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and philanthropist who rose to fame as a member of the music duo Wham. He was best known for his work in the 1980s and 1990s, including hit singles such as Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go and Last Christmas, and albums such as Faith and Listen Without Prejudice Vol.1. Up to the time of his death, Michael sold more than 115 million records worldwide and his breakthrough duo Wham. sold 28 million records between 1982 and 1986, and his debut solo album Faith sold more than 20 million copies worldwide. Michael achieved seven number one singles in the UK and eight number one songs on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, including Careless Whisper and Praying for Time. He ranks among the best-selling British acts of all time, Michael, who came out as gay in 1998, was an active LGBT rights campaigner and HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser. In 2004, the Radio Academy named Michael the most played artist on British radio during the period 1984–2004, the documentary A Different Story covered his career and personal life. Michaels first tour in 15 years, the worldwide 25 Live tour, in the early hours of 25 December 2016, Michael, aged 53, was found dead in bed at his Oxfordshire home. A coroners report attributed his death to natural causes, Michael was born in East Finchley on 25 June 1963. His father, Kyriacos Jack Panayiotou, a Greek Cypriot restaurateur, had emigrated to Britain in the 1950s, Michaels mother, Lesley Angold, was an English dancer, and his maternal grandmother was Jewish. Michael spent most of his childhood in Kingsbury, London, in the home his parents soon after his birth. His older sisters are Yioda and Melanie, while he was in his early teens, the family moved to Radlett. There, Michael attended Bushey Meads School in Bushey, where he befriended his future Wham. partner Andrew Ridgeley, the two had the same career ambition of being musicians. Michael busked on the London Underground, performing such as 39 by Queen. His involvement in the business began with his working as a DJ, playing at clubs and local schools around Bushey, Stanmore. This was followed by the formation of a ska band called The Executive, with Ridgeley, Ridgeleys brother Paul, Andrew Leaver. Michael formed the duo Wham. with Andrew Ridgeley in 1981, the bands first album Fantastic reached No.1 in the UK in 1983 and produced a series of top 10 singles including Young Guns, Wham Rap. and Club Tropicana. Their second album, Make It Big, reached No.1 on the charts in the US, Michael sang on the original Band Aid recording of Do They Know Its Christmas. And donated the profits from Last Christmas/Everything She Wants to charity and he also contributed background vocals to David Cassidys 1985 hit The Last Kiss, as well as Elton Johns 1985 successes Nikita and Wrap Her Up
29.
Simon Climie
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Simon Climie is an English songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK duo Climie Fisher. He formed Climie Fisher together with Rob Fisher, whom he had met when they were both session musicians at Abbey Road Studios. Climie Fisher had hits in more than 35 territories – and number ones in some – with Love Changes, which won an Ivor Novello Award, Rise to the Occasion, This Is Me and many other songs. After leaving EMI and the final Climie Fisher album Coming in for the Kill, Climie signed to Sonys Columbia label as a solo artist, releasing an album called Soul Inspiration in 1992. From the mid-90s Climie expanded to production, producing and writing songs for a number of artists, including Eternal, Louise Redknapp, B. B. King, Michael McDonald and Zucchero Fornaciari. Then, on the fringes of session work, he did the Fairlight programming for Scritti Polittis legendary album Cupid & Psyche. George Michael and Aretha Franklins single I Knew You Were Waiting reached number one worldwide, including in the UK Singles Chart, during this time he produced Platinum albums for other artists, including Michael McDonalds renowned Motown, Motown II and Soul Speak. The latter featured collaborations with Stevie Wonder and Toni Braxton, while the Grammy-nominated Motown spawned the huge US hit Aint No Mountain High Enough, in 2011 success continued with Climies songs. Together with U2 founder member Larry Mullen, Jr. Climie also contributed keyboards, Climie also worked with Clapton, on Clapton and JJ Cales album The Road to Escondido, released in 2006. Apart from Clapton, he worked with former Doobie Brothers member Michael McDonald on his Motown albums. Cale, a project on which Mark Knopfler, Don White, John Mayer, Willie Nelson, Derek Trucks, in 2016, Climie was the co-producer with Clapton on the album Live in San Diego which was recorded during the Doyle & Derek World Tour in 2007. Climie is the son of David Climie, co-writer of the popular 1960s and 1970s television comedy series, Oh, which starred Derek Nimmo. and the comedy film Desert Mice. Includes songs and albums Climie has written, performed and/or produced, everything Coming In for the Kill Soul Inspiration – Retail Therapy - T. D. F. TDF is an acronym for Totally Dysfunctional Family, the project released one album called Retail Therapy on the Reprise record label. The title supposedly alludes to Claptons addiction to buying clothes, eric Clapton states in his autobiography that he persuaded Giorgio Armani, a friend of Claptons, to let them do the music for one of his fashion shows
30.
Frank Sinatra
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Francis Albert Sinatra was an American singer, actor, and producer who was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century. He is one of the music artists of all time. Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, to Italian immigrants, Sinatra began his career in the swing era with bandleaders Harry James. Sinatra found success as a solo artist after he signed with Columbia Records in 1943 and he released his debut album, The Voice of Frank Sinatra, in 1946. Sinatras professional career had stalled by the early 1950s, and he turned to Las Vegas and his career was reborn in 1953 with the success of From Here to Eternity, with his performance subsequently winning an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. Sinatra released several critically lauded albums, including In the Wee Small Hours, Come Fly with Me, Only the Lonely and Nice n Easy. Sinatra left Capitol in 1960 to start his own label, Reprise Records. It was followed by 1968s collaboration with Duke Ellington, using his Las Vegas shows as a home base, he toured both within the United States and internationally until a short time before his death in 1998. Sinatra forged a successful career as a film actor. After winning an Academy Award for From Here to Eternity, he starred in The Man with the Golden Arm and he appeared in various musicals such as On the Town, Guys and Dolls, High Society, and Pal Joey, winning another Golden Globe for the latter. Toward the end of his career, he associated with playing detectives. Sinatra would later receive the Golden Globe Cecil B, on television, The Frank Sinatra Show began on ABC in 1950, and he continued to make appearances on television throughout the 1950s and 1960s. While Sinatra never formally learned how to read music, he had a natural, intuitive understanding of it, a perfectionist, renowned for his impeccable dress sense and cleanliness, he always insisted on recording live with his band. His bright blue eyes earned him the popular nickname Ol Blue Eyes, Sinatra led a colorful personal life, and was often involved in turbulent affairs with women, such as with his second wife Ava Gardner. He went on to marry Mia Farrow in 1966 and Barbara Marx in 1976, Sinatra had several violent confrontations, usually with journalists he felt had crossed him, or work bosses with whom he had disagreements. He was honored at the Kennedy Center Honors in 1983, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Reagan in 1985, Sinatra was also the recipient of eleven Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Trustees Award, Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. After his death, American music critic Robert Christgau called him the greatest singer of the 20th century, Francis Albert Sinatra was born on December 12,1915, in an upstairs tenement at 415 Monroe Street in Hoboken, New Jersey. He was the child of Italian immigrants Antonino Martino Marty Sinatra
31.
Duets (Frank Sinatra album)
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Duets is an album by American singer Frank Sinatra, released in 1993. Recorded near the end of Sinatras career, it consists of electronically assembled duets between Sinatra and younger singers from various genres. The album was a success, debuting at No.2 on the Billboard albums chart, reaching No.5 in the UK. It is the only Sinatra album to date to achieve platinum certification. The guest singers had been directed to sing along to his vocal parts. The cover art displays a specially commissioned painting of Frank Sinatra by LeRoy Neiman and its sequel, Duets II, was released the following year. Sinatra was approached in 1992 with the idea of making an album of duets, phil Ramone, Eliot Weisman and Don Rubin discussed the details at Sinatras house in Palm Springs, California. For duet partners, Sinatra suggested Ella Fitzgerald but she was not well enough to participate, other artists, younger than Sinatra, were put on the list of potential partners. Sinatra specified that the partners must not be in the studio when he was singing his part. The project was pushed forward by Charles Koppelman, the CEO of EMI Records Group North America, an orchestra was rehearsed at Capitol Records Studio A in Los Angeles, where Sinatra had recorded many times, the orchestra using classic Nelson Riddle arrangements. At this point, about $350,000 had been spent to put the project together, and Ramone was worried the record would never be completed. On the third day, June 30,1993, Sinatra appeared looking sharp and confident in a suit and tie, and he proceeded to record nine songs in five hours, beginning with Come Fly With Me. The various duet partners were invited to participate remotely, their recordings sent to Capitol by way of ISDN digital telephone lines connected by EDnet to the recording equipment. Bono and Aretha Franklin asked that Ramone fly out to appear in person at their studios to strengthen the connection to Sinatra. Bono recorded his part to Ive Got You Under My Skin while standing on a couch in the STS Studios control room in Dublin, after Franklin recorded her part to What Now My Love in Detroit, she recorded a personal message to Sinatra, thanking him for the opportunity. Ramone felt that Sinatras classic songs would be brought to new, despite the album being advertised as The Recording Event of The Decade, its sterile recording process did not satisfy many observers. Criticism of Sinatras choice of isolated recording style drove Tony Bennett to specify the opposite style for his similar projects Duets, An American Classic and Duets II. For those recording sessions, Ramone and Bennett flew in many cases to join the duet partners in their local studios.24.93 PR, Frank Sinatra Duets Album Set For Release
32.
Phil Ramone
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The success of the original A&R Recording allowed it to expand into several studios and a record production company. He was described by Billboard as legendary, and the BBC as a CD pioneer, Ramone was born in South Africa and grew up in Brooklyn, New York, USA. As a child in South Africa, Ramone was a musical prodigy, in the late 1940s he trained as a classical violinist at the Juilliard School, where one of his classmates was Phil Woods. Ramone opened his own recording studio before he was 20 and he became a naturalized citizen of the United States on December 14,1953. In 1959, Ramone established an independent recording studio A & R Recording, later the partnership which owned the studio consisted of Brooks Arthur owning half while Ramone, Donald Frey and Arthur Downs Ward owned the other fifty percent. In the studio he quickly gained a reputation as a sound engineer and music producer. He is also credited with having recorded Marilyn Monroes intoxicated version of Happy Birthday, in 1972, management of A & R included Robert Gerics, Nick Diminno, and Irving Joel. The studios were located at 799 7th Avenue and 322 West 48th Street and he won his first production Grammy for his work on 1975s Still Crazy After All These Years by Paul Simon. He produced Billy Joels 1977 album The Stranger and began a collaboration with Joel producing a string of hit albums throughout the rest of the 1970s and 1980s. In 1993, he produced Duets, Frank Sinatras comeback album, Ramone was a founding member of META. October 1,2016, marked the anniversary of the worlds first commercially marketed compact disc. On that date in 1982, A & R Recording released a compact disc version of Billy Joels 52nd Street in Japan. Ramone introduced optical surround sound for movies and his book, Making Records, The Scenes Behind the Music, written with Chuck Granata, was released on October 9,2007. Also in October 2007, Ramone produced a limited engagement performance of Richard Veteres Be My Love, the play was directed by Charles Messina and co-produced by Sonny Grosso. It premiered at The Tilles Center in Greenvale, New York, a champion of music educational programs, Ramone served on the boards of the National Mentoring Partnership and Berklee College of Music. On July 8,2008, Columbia records released The Stranger 30th Anniversary and this box set includes a remastered version of the 1977 Billy Joel album, The Stranger by Ramone. The following summer, Ramone produced Gershwin Across America, an album to the music of George. The album features Jewel, Jason Mraz, Darius Rucker, in 2011, Ramone worked with George Michael, during his 2011 Symphonica Tour
33.
Harvey Mason Jr.
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Harvey Jay Mason Jr. is an American record producer, songwriter and movie producer. He has written and produced songs for performers in the music industry including Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears. Dre and Ice Cube in Straight Outta Compton and Mary J. Blige, Mason Jr. was born into a musical family. His father, noted jazz drummer Harvey Mason, Sr. and mother, Sally Mason, Harvey moved with his family to Los Angeles as a child and followed his father to many recording sessions with such greats as Quincy Jones, The Brothers Johnson and Herbie Hancock. Mason Jr. penned his first song at the age of eight for Grover Washington Jr. titled Love Makes It Better, after attending the University of Arizona on a basketball scholarship from 1986–1990 and playing in the 1988 Final Four, he began working as a songwriter/record producer. Some early work included tracks for British pop artist Michelle Gayles album Sensational in 1997 and he co-produced the jazz album Ratamacue with his father, Harvey Mason in 1997. In addition he worked with Mason Sr. s group Fourplay, in 1997, Mason Jr. also penned the track Truthfully which caught the attention of record producer, Rodney Jerkins. The track was produced for Brandys 1998 album Never Say Never, in 2000, Mason Jr. co-wrote the track I Like Them Girls with Damon Thomas for Tyreses album 2000 Watts. The success of song led to a partnership and the formation of Underdog Entertainment. In 2001, he collaborated with British designer and former member of the Spice Girls Victoria Beckham on her album including tracks like Girlfriend. In 2004, The Underdogs signed a deal through BMG under Clive Davis and created Underdog Music Publishing. In 2006, The Underdogs produced the soundtrack to the motion picture “Dreamgirls” which won the Critics Choice Award in 2007 for best movie soundtrack. After a three year hiatus, The Underdogs reunited in 2011 to produce Up 2 You for Chris Browns album F. A. M. E, the Underdogs wrote and produced the song The Living Proof performed by Mary J. Blige for the movie The Help. The Underdogs wrote and produced the single from Chris Browns album Fortune titled Turn Up the Music. In 2012 The Underdogs produced the vocals for the film Pitch Perfect, starring Anna Kendrick and Brittany Snow. In 2014, they produced South Korean girl group Girls Generations hit Mr. Mr. & its labelmate Exos Overdose, as well as the music for biopic Get on Up about the life of James Brown. In 2015, The Underdogs produced the music for the sequel to the widely successful Pitch Perfect movie, Pitch Perfect 2, Mason Jr. formed his independent company Harvey Mason Media in 2008. It encompasses his film and record productions, music publishing, and he produced the title track I Look To You along with Tricky Stewart and the cover of Song for You along with Stargate for Whitney Houstons 2009 album I Look To You
34.
Kalenna Harper
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Kalenna Lashante Harper-Vick, mononymously known as Kalenna, is an American singer-songwriter, hit TV show personality and record producer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is perhaps best known as a member of the hip hop soul group Diddy-Dirty Money, which also included Sean Diddy Combs and fellow singer-songwriter Dawn Richard, until they disbanded in 2012. From 2014 to 2015, she was a supporting cast member on the VH1 reality series Love & Hip Hop, Atlanta and as of 2015, is working on her new album titled, Rose Water. Harper was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Randy Howard, an emcee and serviceman, and Donna Harper, kalennas mother was 16 when she had her and for that reason, Kalenna grew up an old soul. She has been trained since the tender age of 9. Her step father, Randy Howard, played a role in her becoming who she is as a musician. She lived in places like Germany, Hawaii, Korea, Fort Richardson, Fort Stewart, Fort Gordon, and Fort Meade. Throughout her adolescence she became a classically trained player, member of an all-state choir called CREATIVE IMPRESSIONS. She began recording in studios in Maryland to better her craft while she was attending her last year of high school. Kalenna received a scholarship to FAMU for running track. She was featured on Rasheedas GA Peach on the track Pack Ya Bags, a track leaked in 2008 titled Kaboom is a duet between Harper and Lady Gaga recorded during their sessions with Jim Jonsin, before either singer was famous. Additional credits include, Maino, Three 6 Mafia, Ciara, Trina, shes also been featured on the movie soundtracks to “Phat Girls” and “Confessions of a Shopaholic”. Let Them Hoes Fight was originally slated to feature Gaga, Harper became a member of a group called Diddy – Dirty Money, which included Harper and former Danity Kane member Dawn Richard. The band worked heavily on Diddys new album Last Train to Paris and they released three singles in total. Angels was the debut single and featured The Notorious B. I. G. and was officially released on November 3. The video was directed by Hype Williams, the bands second single Love Come Down was released later that day. Both singles appeared on Diddys album Last Train To Paris, on November 13, a new Diddy-Dirty Money song leaked onto the internet. The song Hurt was a demo but officially known as Loving You No More
35.
Isaac Hayes
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Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. was an American singer-songwriter, actor, voice actor and producer. Hayes was also a 2002 inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The song Soul Man, written by Hayes and Porter and first performed by Sam & Dave, has recognized as one of the most influential songs of the past 50 years by the Grammy Hall of Fame. It was also honored by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, by Rolling Stone magazine, during the late 1960s, Hayes also began a career as a recording artist. He had several successful albums such as Hot Buttered Soul. In addition to his work in music, he worked as a composer of musical scores for motion pictures. He was well known for his score for the film Shaft. For the Theme from Shaft, he was awarded the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1972 and he became the third African-American, after Sidney Poitier and Hattie McDaniel, to win an Academy Award in any competitive field covered by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He also won two Grammy Awards for that same year, later, he was given his third Grammy for his music album Black Moses. In recognition of his work there Hayes was crowned honorary king of the Ada. He acted in motion pictures and television, such as in the movies Truck Turner and Im Gonna Git You Sucka and he voiced the character Chef from the animated Comedy Central series South Park from its debut in 1997 until 2005. On August 5,2003, Hayes was honored as a BMI Icon at the 2003 BMI Urban Awards for his influence on generations of music makers. Throughout his songwriting career, Hayes received five BMI R&B Awards, as of 2008, his songs generated more than 12 million performances. Isaac Hayes, Jr. was born in Covington, Tennessee and he was the second child of Eula and Isaac Hayes, Sr. After his mother died young and his father abandoned his family, Isaac, Jr. was raised by his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Willie Wade. The child of a family, he grew up working on farms in Shelby County, Tennessee. At age five Hayes began singing at his church, he taught himself to play the piano, the Hammond organ, the flute. Hayes dropped out of school, but his former teachers at Manassas High School in Memphis encouraged him to complete his diploma
36.
David Porter (musician)
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David Porter is an American record producer, songwriter, singer, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Porter was a 2005 inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, in 2015, Rolling Stone listed him among the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time. He is best known for songwriting, having written Sam & Daves Soul Man, Mariah Careys Dreamlover, Will Smiths Get Jiggy Wit It, Sam and Daves Hold On, Im Comin, and Biggie Smallss Who Shot Ya. He is also the founder of the Memphis-based Consortium MMT, an organization seeking to develop the music industry in Memphis. Porter was the ninth of twelve born to James and Corean Porter in Memphis, his second oldest brother was COGIC Bishop W. L. Porter. Porters career began in music after singing in church, school, Memphis venues and competitions, often with friend and classmate Maurice White. Porter graduated from Booker T. Washington High in 1961 and later attended LeMoyne College, while still a high-school student working at a grocery across from Satellite Records, he went over to find if the label would consider recording soul music. After meetings with Chips Moman, Porter became active at Satellite as a songwriter, with this role, Porter arranged for his friends and classmates to record for the Satellite label, including Booker T. Jones, William Bell, and Andrew Love. Soon after, Satellite rebranded as Stax Records and redefined their focus to become a music label. Porter was the first staff songwriter at Stax Records and developed his skills in A&R, in Porters A&R capacity, he signed acts including The Emotions, Homer Banks, The Soul Children and was a catalyst for bringing in Isaac Hayes as a writing partner. As house composers for Stax Records, Porter and Hayes penned most of Sam & Daves hits, including Soul Man, I Thank You, When Something Is Wrong with My Baby and Hold On, Im Comin. They also wrote material for Carla Thomas, Johnnie Taylor, starting in the late 1960s, Hayes became increasingly focused on his own recording career, eventually leading to the end of the songwriting partnership. The Hayes-Porter duo composed 200 songs during their collaboration, Porter then began recording his own albums for Stax. He did a single for Stax itself in 1965, Cant See You When I Want To and he cut several albums for Stax in the early 1970s, including a concept LP, Victim of the Joke. which includes an upbeat cover of The Beatles Help. Also, he released on other labels under the pseudonyms Little David and he and Hayes received Pioneer Awards from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1999. On June 9,2005, Porter was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame alongside Bill Withers, Steve Cropper, Sherman, Richard M. Sherman, John Fogerty, and his longtime writing partner Isaac Hayes. In 2012, Porter founded The Consortium MMT, a 501 non-profit with the goal of developing a music industry in Memphis through structured teaching, experience. Porter was awarded the 2013 Governors Arts Award for his achievements including the founding, heres a previously published story on Porters early experiences establishing The Consortium MMT, http, //www. huffingtonpost. com/timarnold/heart-and-soul-memphis-gets_b_7186486. html
37.
Mary J. Blige
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Mary Jane Blige is an American singer, songwriter, model, record producer and actress. My Life, in particular, is considered among the greatest albums ever recorded according to Rolling Stone, Time, for her part in combining hip hop and soul in the early 1990s and its subsequent commercial success, Blige received the Legends Award at the World Music Awards. Blige made Time magazines Time 100 list of individuals around the world in 2007. As of 2013, Blige has sold more than 50 million albums and 25 million singles worldwide, Billboard ranked Blige as the most successful female R&B artist of the past 25 years. The magazine also lists her 2006 song Be Without You as the top R&B song of the 2000s, in 2011, VH1 ranked Blige as the 80th greatest artist of all time. Moreover, she is ranked number 100 on the list of 100 greatest singers of all time by Rolling Stone magazine, in 2012, VH1 ranked Blige at number 9 in The 100 Greatest Women in Music. Blige also earned high remarks for her work in film and she starred in the 2009 Tyler Perry box-office hit I Can Do Bad All By Myself and played a role in the film Rock of Ages. She received a Golden Globe Award nomination for her contribution to the film The Help. In partnership with the Home Shopping Network and Carols Daughter, Blige released her My Life perfume, the perfume broke HSN records by selling 65,000 bottles during its premiere. The scent went on to win two FiFi Awards, including the Fragrance Sales Breakthrough award, in 2017, she stars in the period drama film Mudbound directed by Dee Rees. Blige spent her years in Richmond Hill, Georgia, where she sang in a Pentecostal church. Blige later moved to Schlobohm Houses in Yonkers, New York, immediately north of New York City, Blige dropped out of high school in her junior year. Pursuing a musical career, Blige spent a period of time in a Yonkers band named Pride with band drummer Eddie DAprile. In early 1988, she recorded a cover of Anita Bakers Caught Up in the Rapture at a recording booth in the Galleria Mall in White Plains. Her mothers boyfriend at the later played the cassette for Jeff Redd. Redd sent it to the president and CEO of the label, Harrell met with Blige and in 1989 she was signed to the label, becoming the companys youngest and first female artist. After being signed to Uptown Records, Blige began working with record producer Puff Daddy and he became the executive producer and produced a majority of the album. Derived from Bliges past occupation as a 4-1-1 operator, it was also an indication by Blige of being the real deal, the music was described as revelatory on a frequent basis
