Biography of Jocelyn Brown

Jocelyn Brown comes from a musical family: her aunt, Barbara Roy, sang in the female group Ecstasy, Passion and Pain (EPP). Her grandmother, mother, two aunts, and a cousin all sang. Brown spent her preschool years with her grandmother in Kinston, NC. Her aunt's success with EPP provided the inspiration for Brown to spread her own musical wings. Beginning in church and singing with various gospel choirs out of Brooklyn, Brown built up a solid following, becoming a favored soloist at her uncle's church in Washington, D.C. Gradually, Brown left gospel for secular music -- disco in particular -- singing with local bands like Machine and Kleer. She was a member of Monty Rock's pseudo-soul group Disco Tex and the Sex-O-Lettes, who scored with "Get Dancing," and Musique, who waxed "Keep on Jumpin'" and the risqué "Push Push in the Bush." Brown was traveling all over the world doing what she loved best -- singing. At home she worked with producer Greg Diamond on different projects, including the group Change, which featured a male vocalist by the name of Luther Vandross. She kept busy touring with Change and doing studio and live background vocals for a laundry list of artists, eventually including Lou Reed, Roberta Flack, Mick Jagger, Dan Hartman, Bette Midler, George Benson, and Culture Club. When the members of Change disbanded, Brown started recording with other groups like Inner Life on Salsoul Records, where she soloed on a superlative disco version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and established herself on the dance club circuit. All the while, she kept her bank account afloat by doing session work throughout the late '70s and early '80s. Around 1982, she worked in the movie Divine Madness, starring Bette Midler. Returning east, she waxed "Caught Up in a One Night Love Affair," a very popular number in New York's disco clubs like Studio 54, Paradise Garage, the Fever, Harlem World, and Bond's International. In the fall of 1983, Brown teamed with her sister Annette and wrote "Somebody Else's Guy," her most popular recording to date; it reached the number two position of Billboard's black singles chart and number 13 in the U.K. -- Brown was truly a disco diva. She has appeared on Manu Dibango's Soul Makossa LP; cut "Ego Maniac" and "Whatever Satisfies You" (produced by Hubert Eaves III); waxed sides as a duet with Kym Mazelle in "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)" and "Love Me the Right Way"; recorded "Riding on the Wings" with Motiv 8; and appeared in concert with Roy Ayers and Ray Gaskins (her cousin) overseas. Another cousin, La Rita Gaskins, is a singer and musician in New York; Ray Gaskins resides in London and is a noted saxophonist, songwriter, and producer. Brown continues to write songs with her sister Annette, who also helps manage her family members' creative activities. Like her brother, Brown lives in London (since 1990) and continues to be in demand. ~ Andrew Hamilton