Genres: Rap/Hip Hop,Soundtracks,Soul/R&B,Electronica/DanceThe American rap and RnB group from Baltimore created a lot of commercially successful albums during the late nineties. Even though the music was contemporary rap and hip/hop, the roots of the band was always gospel music. The gospel music influence shows right through their entire catalogue. The band has recorded several no.1 RnB hits such as "In My Bed", "How Deep Is Your Love" and "Never Make a Promise". They have contributed their songs to many Hollywood soundtracks including the Jackie Chan hit "Rush Hour" and for the Broadway musical Aida. The bands vocal harmonies mixed with rap and RnB style has had a lasting impression among the MTV generation of the late 90s.
Read more...
Dru Hill - Rap And Gospel Fusionists
"I'm the best R&B singer in the game right now." - Sisqo
The Soul Rappers!
The American rap and RnB group from Baltimore created a lot of commercially successful albums during the late nineties. Even though the music was contemporary rap and hip/hop, the roots of the band was always gospel music. The gospel music influence shows right through their entire catalogue. The band has recorded several no.1 RnB hits such as "In My Bed", "How Deep Is Your Love" and "Never Make a Promise". They have contributed their songs to many Hollywood soundtracks including the Jackie Chan hit "Rush Hour" and for the Broadway musical Aida. The bands vocal harmonies mixed with rap and RnB style has had a lasting impression among the MTV generation of the late 90s.
Band Formation
The original band members all hail from Baltimore. Mark "Sisqo" Andrews and James "Woody" Green got together when they were still in school. They also knew Tamir "Nokio" Ruffin. The trio jammed together and wanted to pursue a career in music. They added Larry "Jazz" to complete the line-up.
Together they worked at a fudge factory where they often sang an entertained the guests. In 1996 they got their big break when they were booked to perform at a local convention center. Island Records executives got wind of the band upon hearing their performance they signed the band. They swiftly moved into a studio to record their first album. The self-titled first album was released in Nov 1996 and it had an immediate impact. The album received a lot of critical acclaim and it went on to sell enough copies to be certified Gold. Their first single "Tell Me" was added to the soundtrack of the Whoopie Goldberg film Eddie. The single also gave the band a Top 5 chart success on the RnB chart
Mainstream Success
The band could harmonize as good as any other boy band in the genre but they still maintained the edgy nature in their persona and lyrics which gave them their freshness in an overcrowded genre. Sisqo's other notable influence was the iconic Stevie Wonder.
During their live performance the each member of the band would take turns to sing lead and perform dance solos. It was Sisqo who made the biggest impression with the audience. The production of the first album was done by the band along with Keith Sweat who also wrote on some songs. Sisqo also bleached his hair blonde and completely stood out. His charismatic instincts started to take over which would lead to a lot of infighting within the band in later years
Controversy and other Success
The band recorded a single for the Soul Food movie soundtrack titled "We're Not Making Love Anymore" which was produced by Babyface. In 1997Dru Hill started recording their new album for Island when a huge controversy erupted.
The bands manager was attacked by an Island employee with a pool cue. The band immediately stopped recording and filed a suit against Island Records asking to be relieved from all contractual obligations with the label. It would follow a highly controversial and racist statement made by CEO of PolyGram (Island Records parent company). In the end the record label managed to settle all issues with Dru Hill and decided to continue to work together.
The new album "Enter the Dru" was released in 1999 and it was a runaway success selling 2 million copies. But among the press and their fans it was Sisqo who was now being seen as the de-facto leader which irked the rest of the band.
Sisqo Rises
But within a few months all four of the original members signed up with the newly formed Island Def Jam records. As part of the contract the band members allowed to release a solo album. This would be a defining moment for the band as Sisqo's solo album skyrocketed to massive success. His "Thong Song" became the biggest hit of the year and therefore it further fueled the discontent among the band.
Sisqo has no interest to quickly return to recording with the rest of them. He started working on the follow up to his first album. The bands album kept getting delayed. Sisqo walked out by fall of 2000 and the band broke apart. They reunited after Sisqo's second album flopped and released "Dru World Order" but it failed commercially
In 2005, the label released Greatest Hits which also featured the Sisqo hits. They were also no longer a part of the Island record label and the group disappeared from public view. In 2008 there was some reconciliation without Woody and a new album is expected in the summer of 2010
- Dru Hill's first major exposure was appearing on Will Smith's "Wild Wild West"
- The band is named after the Dru Hill Park, a popular park in West side of Baltimore - Maryland
- Dru Hill were caught on a YouTube video fighting during the radio announcement of their union.
- Unlimited Music Access
- Music File Sharing
- Country Based Radio Channels
- Easy, Fast and Safe!
- 100% Free!
