| Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Kenneth Brian Edmonds |
| Also known as | Kenneth Edmonds Babyface |
| Born | April 10, 1958 |
| Origin | Indianapolis, Indiana, United States |
| Genre(s) | R&B/soul |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, record producer, film producer, and entrepreneur |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, mandolin, keyboard |
| Label(s) | SOLAR Records (1983?-????), Epic (1989?-2000), Arista (2001-2005), Island (2007-present) |
| Associated acts | After 7, The Deele, Az Yet, Jon B, Boyz II Men, Eric Clapton, Milestone, Manchild |
| Website | www.babyfacemusic.com |
| Notable instrument(s) | |
| Acoustic guitar, piano | |
Kenneth Brian "Babyface" Edmonds (born April 10, 1958), is an American R&B and pop singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, record producer, film producer, and entrepreneur.
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Edmonds, who is the fifth of six brothers (Kevon Edmonds also had a solo album), attended North Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana and as a shy youth, wrote songs to express his emotions.
In October 2005, Edmonds and his wife, Tracey, announced that they were ending their marriage of thirteen years. They have two sons, Brandon and Dylan Michael.
Edmonds began dating his backup singer Nicole "Nikki" Pantenburg in 2007. In September 2008, Edmonds and Nicole welcomed a daughter, Peyton Nicole Edmonds [1].
Edmonds later played with funk megastar Bootsy Collins, who tagged him "Babyface" while he was still a teen, and the nickname has stuck with him throughout his life. He also played in the groups Manchild (which had a 1977 hit "Especially for You" with band member Daryl Simmons), then in the light-funk and R&B group The Deele (which also included Antonio "L.A." Reid, with whom he would later form a successful writing and producing partnership). One of his first major credits as a songwriter for outside artists came when he co-wrote the tune "Slow Jam" for the R&B band Midnight Star in 1983. The tune appeared on Midnight Star's double-platinum No Parking on the Dance Floor album, and while it never hit the charts, the song has since become a quiet storm staple and a semi-classic of the genre. Meanwhile, Babyface remained in The Deele until 1988, when both he and Reid left the group.
In the late 1980s, he was responsible for contributing to the creation of new jack swing and was responsible for writing music for the likes of Bobby Brown, Karyn White, Pebbles and Paula Abdul.
In 1989, Edmonds co-founded LaFace Records with Reid. Two of the label's first artists Toni Braxton and TLC achieved massive success. Braxton's eponymous 1993 debut album went on to sell over eight-million copies, and earned her a Grammy Award as the year's best new artist in 1994. Meanwhile, TLC's first two albums on LaFace — 1992's Ooooooohhh.... On the TLC Tip and 1994's CrazySexyCool — combined to sell more than 15 million copies in the U.S. CrazySexyCool won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best R&B album.
Babyface was also instrumental in forming the popular late-90s R&B group, Az Yet.
Edmonds is also behind some of the biggest successes in contemporary music. “I’m Your Baby Tonight”, produced for Whitney Houston, is his first #1 hit in the US. He also wrote and produced Boyz II Men's "End of the Road" and "I'll Make Love To You", both of which established records for the longest stay at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He co-wrote, co-produced, and provided backing vocals on Madonna's 1995 7 week-#1 hit "Take a Bow", he shared billing with Eric Clapton on the chart-topping Grammy winner "Change the World" from the Phenomenon soundtrack. He also wrote and produced the #1 hit "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" for Whitney Houston as well as the rest of the critically acclaimed 10 million selling Waiting to Exhale soundtrack in 1995, which spawned additional hits for Whitney Houston, Brandy and Mary J.Blige. Additionally, he has produced and written music for many artists including Diana Ross, Sheena Easton, Toni Braxton, Michael Jackson, Paula Abdul, Pebbles, Tevin Campbell, Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston, Brandy, Mary J.Blige, Tamia, Janet Jackson, Shola Ama, 3T, Sisqo, Dru Hill, Fall Out Boy,Céline Dion, Katharine McPhee, Mariah Carey, Vanessa L. Williams, En Vogue, Eric Clapton, Madonna, Aretha Franklin, Japanese singer Ken Hirai, Pink, Marc Nelson and Phil Collins among others, and he has received an amazing three consecutive Grammy Awards for Producer of the Year in 1995–1997.
In 1994, he appeared and performed on an episode Beverly Hills 90210, titled Mr. Walsh Goes to Washington (Part 2).
In the mid-1990s, Edmonds and his then wife, Tracey Edmonds, expanded into the business of motion pictures, setting up "Edmonds Production Company" and producing films such as Soul Food (1997) and Josie and the Pussycats (2001). They are the current executive producers of the hit BET reality series College Hill. Edmonds also worked with David Foster to compose "The Power of the Dream", the official song of the 1996 Summer Olympics, performed by superstar Céline Dion. Linda Thompson provided the lyrics.
In 1999, a 25-mile (40-km) stretch of Interstate 65 that runs through Indianapolis was renamed Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds Highway.
Babyface also participated as a duet partner on the FOX reality show Celebrity Duets.
Babyface was in the studio for about two years with Ashanti to produce her album The Declaration [2].
Babyface has recently signed a new deal with Island Records to release his new album. Playlist consists of eight cover songs including Bob Dylan’s "Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door," Dan Fogelberg’s "Longer," Dave Loggin's "Please Come To Boston", Bread's "Diary", Jim Croce's "Time In A Bottle," Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" and James Taylor’s "Fire & Rain" and "Shower The People". The two original works in the album are entitled "Not Going Nowhere" and "The Soldier Song". It was released on September 18, 2007. It will be the first album on the newly re-launched Mercury Records Label [3].
He was on the highly anticipated Lil Wayne album, Tha Carter III, on the Kanye West-produced "Comfortable." He is also rumored to work with Raven-Symone on her upcoming album .
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | UK Singles Chart | |||
| 1986 | "Lovers" | - | 42 | - | Lovers |
| 1987 | "I Love You Babe" | - | 8 | - | |
| "If We Try" | - | 65 | - | ||
| "Mary Mack" | - | 29 | - | ||
| 1989 | "Love Saw It" (duet with Karyn White) | - | 1 | - | Karyn White's Karyn White (original version) A Closer Look (remix version) |
| "It's No Crime" | 7 | 1 | - | Tender Lover | |
| "Tender Lover" | 14 | 1 | 86 | ||
| 1990 | "Whip Appeal" | 6 | 2 | - | |
| "My Kinda Girl" | 30 | 3 | - | ||
| "Love Makes Things Happen" (duet with Pebbles) | 13 | 1 | - | Pebbles' Always (original version) A Closer Look (remix version) |
|
| 1992 | "Give U My Heart" (duet with Toni Braxton) | 29 | 2 | - | Boomerang soundtrack |
| 1993 | "For the Cool in You" | 81 | 10 | - | For The Cool In You |
| "Never Keeping Secrets" | 15 | 3 | - | ||
| 1994 | "And Our Feelings" | 21 | 8 | - | |
| "Rock Bottom" | - | - | 50 | ||
| "When Can I See You" | 4 | 6 | 35 | ||
| "Dream Away" (with Lisa Stansfield) | - | - | - | The Pagemaster soundtrack | |
| 1995 | "Someone to Love" (with Jon B) | 10 | 7 | - | Jon B's Bonafide |
| 1996 | "Slow Jams" (Quincy Jones featuring Babyface, Tamia, Portrait and Barry White) | 68 | 19 | - | - |
| "This Is for the Lover in You" (featuring LL Cool J, Jody Watley, Howard Hewett, and Jeffrey Daniel) | 6 | 2 | 12 | The Day | |
| 1997 | "Everytime I Close My Eyes" (featuring Mariah Carey and Kenny G) | 6 | 5 | 13 | |
| "How Come How Long" (featuring Stevie Wonder) | - | - | 10 | ||
| "Sunshine" (Jay-Z featuring Babyface and Foxy Brown) | 37 | - | 25 | In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 (Jay-Z album) | |
| 1998 | "Fire" (duet with Des'ree) | - | - | - | Hav' Plenty soundtrack |
| 2000 | "Reason for Breathing" | - | 59 | - | A Collection of His Greatest Hits |
| 2001 | "There She Goes" | 31 | 10 | - | Face 2 Face |
| "What If" | 80 | 28 | - | ||
| 2004 | "The Loneliness" | - | 49 | - | Grown & Sexy |
| 2005 | "Sorry for the Stupid Things" | - | 65 | - | |
| "Grown & Sexy" | - | 51 | - | ||
| 2007 | "Fire & Rain" | - | - | - | Playlist |
| 2008 | "I Need A Love Song" | - | 91 | - | - |
(List includes only top 10 hits)