Biography of Will Smith

Beginning his career during the mid-'80s under the name the Fresh Prince, by the following decade rapper Will Smith was one of the biggest superstars of his time -- not only a pop music sensation, he also conquered television and eventually feature films, starring in a string of box-office megahits. Born September 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, he was 16 when he met aspiring DJ Jeff Townes; joining forces as DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, the duo immediately became local favorites, but their continued existence was threatened when Smith graduated high school and was offered a scholarship to MIT. Ultimately, he chose to pursue a career in music, and in 1987 he and Townes issued their debut record, Rock the House, scoring a hit with the single "Girls Ain't Nothing but Trouble."Propelled by the smash "Parents Just Don't Understand," DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince broke into the mainstream a year later with He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper, one of the first hip-hop LPs to achieve double-platinum status. Clean-cut, witty, and easygoing, the duo's bubblegum approach was a stark contrast to the dominant, harder-edged rap sound of the period; viewed as a non-threatening alternative to their peers, they received the parental seal of approval, and their appeal spread across racial lines as well. And in This Corner... followed in 1989, and soon Hollywood began taking notice of Smith's success; in 1990, he was tapped to star in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a sitcom for NBC. An immediate hit, it made Smith a household name, and continued in production through 1996. Smith also continued his music career, and in 1991 DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince scored their biggest chart hit to date with the excellent "Summertime," from the album Homebase. The year following, he made his feature film debut in the drama Where the Day Takes You; in 1993, his supporting turn in Six Degrees of Separation was the subject of much critical acclaim. That same year, the final Jazzy Jeff/Fresh Prince record, the disappointing Code Red, was released. In 1995, Smith co-starred in the action film Bad Boys, a major box-office hit; it set the stage for his leading role in 1996's Independence Day, the summer's biggest smash. A year later, he starred in Men in Black, again the box-office champ of the summer season; recording for the first time under his given name, he also scored a smash with the movie's rap theme. Smith's debut solo LP, Big Willie Style, also appeared in 1997, notching the hits "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It," "Just the Two of Us," and "Miami." Shortly on the heels of his first box-office disappointment, 1999's Wild Wild West, he returned with the album Willennium. It also fared poorly, compared to Smith's previous material, and occasioned the release of a (slightly) more artistic record, ^2002's Born to Reign. It also failed to live up to expectations, and Smith's next record, 2005's Lost and Found, was a sobering album. ~ Jason Ankeny

Biography of Larry Blackmon

Larry Blackmon was the leader/drummer/producer/principal songwriter of the funk band Cameo. Blackman's nasal funky vocals can be heard on the #1 R&B hits "So Strange," "Word Up" and "Candy." Blackmon grew up in Harlem in a neighborhood that included the legendary Apollo Theater. As a child, his aunt would take him to see such greats as Jackie Wilson, Sam Cooke and James Brown. In his teens, he started playing drums in a band. Getting into recording session work, Blackmon played on sides by Black Ivory such as "Don't Turn Around," which went to #38 R&B on Billboard's R&B chart in late 1971. He then joined a group called The New York City Players, who recorded a disco single, "Find My Way." The single came to the attention of Neil Bogart, head of Casablanca Records. "Find My Way" was reissued on Cecil Holmes' Chocolate City label, a subsidiary of Casablanca. The New York City Players evolved into Cameo with Blackmon becoming the band's leader. Cecil Holmes flew to New York to listen to material from the band and chose to issue their track, "Rigor Mortis" as a single. It went to number 33 R&B, number 103 Pop in early 1977. In the meantime, Blackmon was taking classes at Julliard School Of Music and had a part-time job as a salesman at a clothing store. When he heard "Rigor Mortis" on WBLS on the store's radio, he quit his job to make music full time. The hits continued: "Funk Funk" (#20 R&B, #104 Pop, fall 1977), "It's Serious" (#21 R&B, spring 1978) and "Insane" (#17 R&B, late 1978). In 1983, Blackmon moved his base of operations to Atlanta, GA and formed his own label, Atlanta Artists, which was distributed by Polygram Records. The third single, "She's Strange," co-written by Blackmon, Charlie Singleton, Nathan Leftenant and Tomi Jenkins, held the #1 R&B spot for four weeks, #47 Pop on Billboard's charts in spring 1984. The She's Strange LP went gold and also yielded "Talkin' Out The Side Of Your Neck" (#21 R&B, summer 1984) and "Hangin' Downtown." Their next LP, Single Life went gold and gripped the #1 R&B spot for three weeks (#58 Pop) off the strength of the singles, "Attack Me With Your Love" (#3 R&B, spring 1985), "Single Life" (#2 R&B, summer 1985) and the mellow "A Goodbye." Single Life also included the jaunting "I've Got Your Image," the cautionary '80s-era nuclear war themed/reggae-flavored "Dangerous Toys" and a duet ballad between Blackmon and Barbara Mitchell, former lead singer of Motown act High Inergy. In 1986, Blackmon pared down the at one-time 13-member Cameo to himself, Tomi Jenkins and Nathan Leftenant, using guest musicians in concert and on record. Blackmon's muse was sparkled by a popular hip hop expression of the time, "word up." He included rock influences on what would become Cameo's second number one R&B single, "Word Up." The smash hit parked at #1 R&B for three weeks, #6 Pop in fall 1986. The Word Up LP went platinum, locking at #1 R&B for five weeks, #8 Pop in fall 1986. It boasted the sweet ballad "Don't be Lonely," the optimistic "You Can Have The World," the funny "She's Mine" and another number one R&B single, "Candy," which stayed at #1 R&B for two weeks, #21 Pop in early 1987. Its smooth chugging follow-up, "Back and Forth" went to #3 R&B, #50 Pop in spring 1987. The snare drum sound that Blackmon created for "Word Up" and "Candy" was duplicated on releases by a wide range of artists. In spring 2000, Cameo's first album of the 21st century, Sexy Sweet Thing was issued. ~ Ed Hogan

Biography of Cameo

This funk group from Los Angeles was originally formed as The New York City Players in 1974. Members included Wayne Cooper, Tomi Jenkins (vocals), Larry Blackmon (drums), and Gregory Johnson (keyboards), but by 1985 Johnson and Cooper had left the group, and Nathan Lefenant was added. Hits include "Candy" and "Word Up." ~ Iotis Erlewine