New Edition is an American R&B/pop group from the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by singer/rapper Bobby Brown with Ralph Tresvant serving as the group's lead singer for over 40 years. Their name is taken to mean a new edition of the Jackson 5. The group reached its height of popularity in the 1980s and is considered the blueprint for what would become the modern boy band. The lineup originally consisted of Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ronnie DeVoe, Bobby Brown, and Ralph Tresvant, the lead singer. Brown left the group in late 1985 to begin a successful solo career, and they continued as a quartet for one album, before adding Johnny Gill to the lineup in 1987. Early hits included "Candy Girl", "Cool It Now", and "Mr. Telephone Man". Tresvant was the lead singer on most of the songs. In 1990, both Gill and Tresvant released their own solo albums, while the remaining three members formed the trio Bell Biv DeVoe; the group ceased to work together for the first half of the 1990s.

Robert Barisford Brown Sr. is an American singer and rapper. Brown, alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, is noted as one of the pioneers of new jack swing: a fusion of hip hop and R&B. Brown started his career in the R&B and pop group New Edition, from its inception in 1978 until his exit from the group in December 1985.