Soul diva Patti LaBelle has enjoyed one of the longest-lived careers in contemporary music, notching hits in a variety of sounds ranging from girl group pop to space-age funk to lush ballads. Born Patricia Holt in Philadelphia on May 24, 1944, she grew up singing in a local Baptist choir, and in 1960 teamed with […]

The synth-funk unit Midnight Star scored several times on the charts during the mid-’80s, led by their double-platinum album No Parking on the Dance Floor in 1983. Just one of the successful acts on Solar Records (also including Shalamar, Lakeside, and the Whispers), the group was formed in 1976 at Kentucky State University by the […]

The S.O.S. Band hit with a two-million-selling single, “Take Your Time (Do It Right),” their first time out, before having several hit singles written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The Atlanta, GA-borne band was started in 1977, when keyboardist/vocalist Jason Bryant, saxophonists Billy Ellis and Willie “Sonny” Killebrew, guitarist Bruno Speight, bassist […]

Regina Belle emerged as a prolific, consistently engaging vocalist on the urban contemporary scene. Born in New Jersey, Belle’s early experience was in gospel, though she was also attracted to R&B during her childhood. She studied trombone, tuba, and steel drums, and at 12 won a school contest singing the Emotions’ “Don’t Ask My Neighbors.” […]