M.C. Spice

M.C. Spice (born Amir Shakir on SeptembeR 5, 1966 in South Carolina) is a male rapper, songwriter and producer whose career began in the mid-’80s.

He first began his career working as an intern at the now-defunct WILD-AM 1090 radio station in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1986, he signed a record deal with Atlantic Records, becoming the first rapper in the nation to do so and the first rapper from Boston to sign a record deal to a major label.

During that same year, M.C. Spice founded SpiceRadio Incorporated, creating hip-hop inspired radio advertisements and imaging. He also created rap jingles for the New England Patriots, Governor Michael Dukakis’ “Say No To Drugs” radio campaign and radio commercials for Boston’s historic convenience store, A Nubian Notion.
In 1987, he released the single, “Don’t Treat Your Girly Like A Dog, Dog, Dog” on Atlantic Records which didn’t appear to make a lot of impact on the charts. During that same year, he founded the television show, “Strickly Hiphop TV” (along with his brother and partner, Al McFarland).

In 1988, M.C. Spice began working as the street team director for Def Jam Records, helping promote & market music for artists such as LL Cool J, Ice-T, Ice Cube, NWA, Wu-Tang Clan, Kelly Price, Brownstone, Method Man, Jeru Da Damaga, Boss and KRS-One.

He has also worked for other record labels such as Warner Bros., Gee Street, Menes Music, Priority Records, Capitol Records, Ruthless Records, Interscope Records and Death Row Records.

In the ’90s, M.C. Spice worked with Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch where he served as producer and creative director on their debut album. He also wrote their number-one hit song, “Good Vibrations” and their follow-up single, “Wildside.” In 1997, he began serving as Minister of Information for the Universal Zulu Nation.

During the 2000s and 2010s, he founded Roxbury Records in Boston; worked as a creative imaging consultant for The Wendy Williams radio show; founded a ministry called The Man-Up Movement; founded the BlackBerry Radio Network in 2010 (where he also serves as the CEO); and began working as a marketing director & brand manager for Power102net.

These days (according to research), M.C. Spice’s career is still active. He is the founder of 2626 Entertainment in Atlanta, Georgia, hosts a podcast called “Politickin’ with MC Spice” and is the morning show host of the “Mornings with MC Spice” on the BlackBerry Radio Network. He is also involved in community activism and serves as an advocate for social justice.

To see M.C. Spice’s official website, go to:
https://mcspice.net/

To see a video for “Don’t Treat Your Girly Like a Dog, Dog, Dog,” go to:

La-Creasha

La-Creasha (also known as La-Creasha Blue) was a female hip-hop artist from the late ’80s. Not much information is given about her, but she was signed to the JR Records label.

In 1987, she released her only single, “Real Love” which didn’t appear to make the charts. After that, it seems as if La-Creasha has faded into obscurity; nothing much has been heard from her since the ’80s.

To see a video for “Real Love,” go to:

[Updated on 12/06/2021]

Shantell & Dwayne

Shantell & Dwayne were young hip-hop rappers from the late ’80s. Not much information is given about them, but they were signed to the Vision Records label.

In 1988, they released their only single, “Ring My Phone.” It’s unknown how or if the single ever charted and afterwards, it seemed as they faded into obscurity.

To see a video for “Ring My Phone,” go to:

Artz & Kraftz

Artz & Kraftz were an R&B trio from the ’90s that consisted of Antonio Moore, Mitchell Lewis and Shagmar Grey.

In 1988, they released their debut single, “Burnin’ Love” on Profile Records which managed to peak at #13 on Billboard’s Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, staying on the chart for 13 weeks.

In 1990, the trio appeared on the soundtrack to the Kid ‘N’ Play film, “House Party” with the tracks: “Surely” and “What a Feeling” (which was released as a single, but didn’t chart). According to the Allmusic website, they released their first album, “Beginning of an Era” during that same year, but there doesn’t appear to be any further information about it.

In 1993, Artz & Kraftz released the album, “The Experience” on Columbia Records which didn’t appear to chart at all.

The only single released from the album, “All of It” peaked at #21 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot R&B Singles chart. After that, it seems as if the group has faded into obscurity. It’s unknown what the members are currently up to these days.

To see a video for “All of It,” go to:

To see a video for “What a Feeling,” go to:

To see a video for “Surely,” go to:

To see a video for “Burnin’ Love,” go to:

[Updated on 12/06/2021]

Jordy

Jordy (born Jordy Lemoine on January 14, 1988 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Yvelines, France) is a French pop/dance singer from the ’90s.

He became the youngest singer ever to have a number-one single at the age of 4 years old. His parents are record producer Claude Lemoine and former singer-songwriter, Patricia Clerget.

After Claude tried to involve Jordy in television ads for nappies where the baby should repeat “hard, hard to be wet,” Claude came up with the idea of using dance music and simple lyrics to create a catchy song. The song received positive reception in discotheques which convinced him to release it as a commercial single.
Jordy’s debut single, “Dur dur d’être bébé!” (or “It’s Tough to Be a Baby” in English) was released in September of 1992. By October, the song topped the French SNEP Singles Chart, making him the youngest singer to ever reach the top of a singles charts as listed in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The song also topped the charts in Belgium, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Indonesia, the Ivory Coast, Mexico, and Argentina. When the single was released in the United States a year later, it managed to peak at #58 on the Billboard Hot 100.
During that same year, he released his debut album, “Pochette Surprise” which peaked at #7 on the SNEP Albums Chart in France; by 1993, it was certified 2x Platinum, selling over 600,000 copies.
The second single from the album, “Alison” topped the music charts in France for five weeks; however, the next single, “Les Boules” peaked at #13 on the music charts in France.
In 1994, Jordy released his sophomore album, “Potion Magique” which consisted mostly of Christmas songs. It’s unknown how or if the album was successful, but it didn’t appear to match the success of his debut album.
The lead single from the album, “It’s Christmas, C’est Noel” (which was featured in the 1993 film, “Look Who’s Talking Now”) peaked at #18 on the music charts in France; however, the follow-up single, “Love Love Dance” didn’t make the charts.

There were some disturbing allegations that Jordy was being exploited by his parents for commercial gain which resulted in his music being banned from radio and television for his own good.
Under the ban, his third studio album, “Récréation” was released in 1995, but it failed to make any impact at all nor did the single, “Coolman”.

In 1996, Jordy’s parents opened up a children’s tourist attraction called La Ferme de Jordy (also known as “Jordy’s Farm”), but it suffered from financial difficulties and was eventually shut down. His parents later divorced and Jordy became legally emancipated. He lived on a farm near Caen for the remainder of his teenage years, studying dance and drumming.

In 2005, Jordy appeared on a popular French reality television show called “La Ferme Des Célébrités” and published his own book called “Je ne suis plus un bébé” (or “I’m Not A Baby Anymore”) where he accused his father of spending most of the royalties that he made which he should’ve gotten when he turned 18 years old.
In 2006, he released a new single called “Je T’apprendrai” which peaked at #45 on the music charts in France. He was also a member of a band called Jordy and the Dixies.

In 2009, Jordy filed a lawsuit against his former record company, CBS Records which he accused of having exploited his titles without paying him copyright and received a sum of 820,00 euros in damages.

In 2013, he began his own production company, Dur Dur Productions. According to research, Jordy lives in Great Britain with his wife and young son.

To see a video for “Dur Dur D’Etre Bebe,” go to:

To see a video for “Alison,” go to:

To see a video for “Les Boules,” go to:

To see a video for “It’s Christmas, C’est Noel,” go to:

To see a video for “Love Love Dance,” go to:

To see a video for “Coolman”  go to:

To see a video for “Je T’apprendrai,” go to:

Eternal

Eternal was an English R&B girl group that originally consisted of sisters Easther (born on December 11, 1972) & Vernie Bennett (born Vernett Bennett on May 17, 1971), Kelle Bryan (born on March 12, 1975 in Lewisham, London, England) and Louise Nurding (born on November 4, 1974 in Lewisham, London, England).

When Kelle was 11 years old, she joined the Italia Conti Academy stage school. On her first day of school, she met Louise and became close friends. Prior to her music career, she worked as an actress, appearing on shows such as ITV’s “The Bill” and the hit BBC network show, “EastEnders.”

In 1992, when Kelle and Louise were out clubbing one night, they met record producer Denis Ingoldsby, who was starting a girl group. By 1993, Kelle, Louise, Easther and Vernie formed the group.

In September of 1993, Eternal released their debut single, “Stay” (which was originally sung by Glenn Jones in 1990). The song became a hit in the United Kingdom, peaking at #4 on the UK Singles chart.

When the single was released in the United States in March of 1994, it peaked at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100, #12 on Billboard’s Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart (staying on the chart for 13 weeks), #13 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Singles chart (staying on the chart for 20 weeks), #11 on Billboard’s Top 40 Mainstream chart and #33 on Billboard’s Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart.

Internationally, the song was successful in countries such as Australia (where it was certified Gold), Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand, France, Ireland and Germany.

In November of 1993, the group released their debut studio album, “Always & Forever.” The album peaked at #2 on the UK Albums chart and was certified 4x Platinum by the BPI, selling over 1.2 million copies. When the album was released in the United States in 1994, it peaked at #152 on the Billboard 200, #59 on Billboard’s R&B Albums chart, and #5 on Billboard’s Heatseekers album chart.

The follow-up single from the album, “Save Our Love” peaked at #8 on the UK Singles chart for 7 weeks and #20 on the Irish Singles chart.

The third single, “Just a Step From Heaven” also peaked at #8 on the UK Singles chart, spending 10 weeks on the chart and #26 on the Irish Singles chart.

The fourth single from the album, “So Good” peaked at #13 on the UK Singles chart, making it the first of the group’s three singles to miss the Top 10 on the UK Singles chart.

Eternal’s fifth single, “Oh Baby I” peaked at #4 on the UK Singles chart and #11 on the Irish Singles chart. It was certified Silver by the BPI on January 1, 1995, with sales over 200,000 within the UK.

The last single released from the album, “Crazy” peaked at #15 on the UK Singles chart and #23 on the Irish Singles chart; this was the only single where all members of the group sang lead vocals.

Another track from Eternal’s debut album, “Sweet Funky Thing” peaked at #54 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 13 weeks. They were named “Best Group” at the Smash Hits Poll Winners Party and were nominated for 4 Brit Awards. 

By 1995, Louise left Eternal to pursue a solo career, making the group a trio. In October of that same year, they released their sophomore album, “Power of a Woman” which peaked at #5 on the UK Albums chart and was certified 2x Platinum by the BPI.

The title song peaked at #5 on the UK Singles chart and topped the UK R&B chart. It was also moderately successful in Ireland, Australia, Iceland, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Scotland.

The second single, “I Am Blessed” peaked at #7 on the UK Singles chart and was certified Silver. It also reached the Top 10 on the music charts in Ireland and Scotland. They performed the song for Pope John II at the Vatican in 1995.

The third single, a remixed version of the track, “Good Thing” peaked at #8 on the UK Singles chart, becoming Eternal’s seventh non-consecutive Top 10 single on the chart.

The fourth single from the album, “Who Are You?” was only released in Japan where it peaked at #1 on the Japanese Singles chart and was used in a South East Asian Toyota advertisement.

The last single released from the album, “Secrets” peaked at #9 on the UK Singles chart and #4 on the UK R&B charts.

In August of 1996, Eternal contributed the song, “Someday” (which was first sung by R&B group All-4-One) for the soundtrack to the 1996 Disney film, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” The song peaked at #4 on the UK Singles chart, becoming the group’s eighth Top 10 hit on the chart.

In March of 1997, they released their third studio album, “Before the Rain” which peaked at #3 on the UK Albums chart. It was certified Platinum, selling over 300,000 copies, and also went gold in Japan & the Netherlands.

The lead single, “Don’t You Love Me” peaked at #3 on the UK Singles chart and was moderately successful in Australia & Ireland.

The second single, “I Wanna Be the Only One” (featuring gospel singer BeBe Winans) topped the UK Singles chart, making it their only number-one single to date. 

The song was the 3rd-most played song on British radio and the most-played song on European radio by a UK act in 1997. It was certified Gold in Australia & Switzerland, and received a MOBO Award and a Capital FM Award for “Best Single.”

In October of that same year, Eternal released their greatest-hits album which peaked at #2 on the UK Albums chart and topped the UK R&B Albums chart. It was also certified 3x Platinum by the BPI for sales of over 900,000 copies.

The only single released from the album, “Angel of Mine” peaked at #4 on the UK Singles chart and #1 on the UK R&B chart. A year later, R&B singer Monica released a cover version of the song which topped the Billboard Hot 100.

In 1998 (a week after their “Party in the Park” performance), Kelle Bryan was controversially dismissed from Eternal by the Bennett sisters via fax from their solicitor, citing “a breakdown in professional relations” as the reason for dismissing Kelle. 

A short time later, Kelle was diagnosed with lupus which forced her to abandon her plans to pursue a solo career. In 1999, TJ Arlette joined the group for a brief period, but she ended up leaving after a few days and the Bennett sisters carried on as a duo.

In October of 1999, Eternal released the single, “What’cha Gonna Do” which peaked at #16 on the UK Singles chart. It was also moderately successful in Belgium, Germany, Scotland, Sweden and the Netherlands.

In November of that same year, they released their third self-titled studio album. Due to lack of promotion, it peaked at #87 on the UK Albums chart.

The track, “I Cry Real Tears” was supposed to be released as the follow-up single in April of 2000, but due to the poor sales of the album, the single was scrapped and Eternal was dropped from their record deal with EMI.

One of the tracks from the album, “Free To Live” was released as a single under the name “Libre para vivir” which was moderately successful in some European countries. The group’s last televised performance took place in 2000, on Songs of Praise. After that, they disbanded and the members moved on to pursue different projects.

In 2006, it was announced that Eternal would be reforming for a live reunion tour alongside other music acts such as Boyz II Men. Only Easther and Kelle were a part of the project; at the time, Vernie was pregnant and Louise was busy with her solo career. Due to unforseen circumstances, the reunion tour was ultimately cancelled.

In late 2013, the group officially confirmed that they would be reforming for the ITV2 documentary, “The Big Reunion” although Louise wouldn’t be rejoining them. Following the announcement of their reunion, their 1997 greatest hits album topped the iTunes hip-hop chart in January of 2017 and #27 on the iTunes chart.

In March of 2014, Eternal reformed to perform a concert at the Hammersmith Apollo where they performed their hit single, “I Wanna Be the Only One” alongside BeBe Winans.

These days (according to research), Kelle is a regular panellist on the ITV network show, “Loose Women” and stars on the British soap opera, “Hollyoaks” in the role of Martine Deveraux. She and her husband, Jay have two children: son Regan and daughter Kayori.

Louise is still active with her solo career. She was married to football player Jamie Redknapp from 1998 to 2017; together, they have two sons: Charles and Beau. In March of 2021, she released a memoir called “You’ve Got This: And Other Things I Wish I Had Known” and appeared on “The Masked Dancer” as a flamingo.

Vernie works as a lawyer; she and her husband, Bryan have two children: daughter Avery and son Phoenix. Although Easther appeared on the game show, “Pointless” in 2015, she has mostly kept herself out of the public eye.

To follow Kelle on Twitter, go to:

https://twitter.com/kellebryan

To follow Kelle on Instagram, go to:

https://www.instagram.com/kelle.bryan/

To follow Louise on Twitter, go to:

https://twitter.com/louiseredknapp

To follow Louise on Instagram, go to:

https://www.instagram.com/louiseredknapp/

To see a video for “Stay,” go to:

To see a video for “Save Our Love,” go to:

To see a video for “Just a Step from Heaven,” go to:

To see a video for “So Good,” go to:

To see a video for “Oh Baby I…,” go to:

To see a video for “Crazy,” go to:

To see a video for “Sweet Funky Thing,” go to:

To see a video for “Power of a Woman,” go to:

To see a video for “I Am Blessed,” go to:

To see a video for “Good Thing,” go to:

To see a video for “Who Are You?”, go to:

To see a video for “Secrets,” go to:

To see a video for “Someday,” go to:

To see a video for “Don’t You Love Me,” go to:

To see a video for “I Wanna Be the Only One,” go to:

To see a video for “Angel of Mine,” go to:

To see a video for “What’cha Gonna Do,” go to:

To see a video for “Free to Live,” go to:

[updated on 12/06/2021]

Eric C

Eric C was an R&B artist from the mid-’90s. Not much information is given about him, but he was signed to Scotti Bros. Records.

In 1995, he released his only single, “I Got the Flava” which didn’t appear to make the charts at all. After that, it seems as if he has faded into obscurity. Nothing much has been heard from him since the ’90s.

To see a video for “I Got the Flava,” go to:

NKRU

NKRU (which stands for Naughty Kreations R Unified) were a female hip-hop/R&B quartet from the early ’90s that consisted of members Jennifer Dial, Scjuan O’Neal, Antonne Broussard and Kellie Weaver. Not much information is given about them, but they were signed to the Kyper Records label on RCA Records.

In 1993, they released a cover version of Zapp’s 1985 song, “Computer Love” which peaked at #55 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 10 weeks.

The follow-up single, “Seis Nueve” didn’t make the charts at all. NKRU were planning on releasing their debut album, “Freaky To You”, but for reasons unknown, it was never released.

After that, it seems as if NKRU faded into obscurity. It’s unknown what the members of the group are currently up to these days.

To see a video for “Computer Love,” go to:

To see a video for “Seis Nueve,” go to:

[updated on 12/06/2021]

Strawberri

Strawberri (born in 1978 in Brooklyn, New York) is a female R&B singer from the 90’s. Not much information is given about this artist, but she was signed to East Pointe Records.
In 1998, she released her debut single, “Saddle You Up” which peaked at #22 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart and #59 on Billboard’s Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 18 weeks.
In 1999, Strawberri released her debut and only album, “Nothing Better” which didn’t appear to peak at all on the charts.
The follow-up single, “Secret” peaked at #96 on Billboard’s Hot R&B\Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, staying on the chart for only 5 weeks. The last single from the album, “Play If You Wanna Play” didn’t make the charts.
By 2003, she was signed to the Xela Entertainment Group record label where she released two singles: “Spend Some Money” (featuring rapper Trina) and “Come N Get It” (featuring rapper Lil’ Jon and Hot Grits) which didn’t make the charts.

Afterwards, it seemed as if Strawberri has faded into obscurity. Nothing much has been heard from her since the 2000s.

To see a video for “Saddle You Up,” go to:

To see a video for “Secret,” go to:

To see a video for “Play If You Wanna Play”, go to:

To see a video for “Spend Some Money”, go to:

To see a video for “Come N Get It”, go to:

New Born

New Born (born Sammy Stanford Jr. from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a hip-hop artist from the ’90s who started out in the music business when he was only 7 years old.

He was discovered by music producer Jeff Steinberg when his father, Sam Stanford (who worked in the car detailing business) took him to see New Born and his siblings, Keisha & Mike perform. He was offered a record deal with Arista Records, but his family decided to sign to a smaller record label.

In 1993, New Born released his debut single, “Falling in Love” on the Relativity record label. The song peaked at #97 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #38 on Billboard’s Rhythmic Top 40 chart. After that, nothing much was heard from him and it seemed as if he faded into obscurity. 

According to a YouTube comment that I received from New Born’s father, he changed his stage name to MIF (which stands for Music Industry Finest), but it doesn’t appear as if he has released any music under that name and it’s currently unknown what he’s up to these days.

To see a video for “Falling in Love,” go to:

[updated on 12/06/2021]