James Mtume
| James Mtume | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | James Forman |
| Also known as | Mtume |
| Born | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Genres | R&B, soul, post-disco, funk, quiet storm, smooth soul, hip hop, pop, jazz |
| Occupations | Singer-songwriter, radio personality, composer, record producer, instrumentalist, musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, percussionist, piano, keyboards, sampler, drums, guitar, bass guitar, |
| Years active | 1961–present |
| Labels | Columbia Records (1972–76), Various (1977–present) |
| Associated acts | Reggie Lucas, Mtume, Phyllis Hyman, Stephanie Mills, Miles Davis, Jimmy Heath, Eddie Henderson, Mary J. Blige, R. Kelly |
James Mtume (born James Forman, 27 March 1947, in Philiadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American R&B and soul musician, songwriter, composer, arranger and radio personality. He came to prominence working with Miles Davis between 1971 and 1975. Mtume's group, also called Mtume, is perhaps best known for the 1983 R&B hit song "Juicy Fruit", which has been much sampled. Mtume the band also had a Top Five R&B hit with the single "You, Me, and He". He and Mtume band member, fellow musician Reggie Lucas both won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for writing and producing fellow R&B artist Stephanie Mills' top-ten hit, "Never Knew Love Like This Before", for which she also won a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
Mtume is the son of jazz saxophonist Jimmy Heath, and the father of Damu Mtume and Fa Mtume, both music producers. He has also worked as a session musician with Players Association, and has done on-air radio personality work at New York's KISS 98.7 FM. As a songwriter, Mtume has written hits for various artists such as Phyllis Hyman, Roberta Flack, Donny Hathaway, Stephanie Mills, R. Kelly, Mary J. Blige, Teddy Pendergrass, Inner City, as well as being lead songwriter for his own band Mtume.
Discography
As leader
- Alkebu-Lan: Land of The Blacks (1972, Strata-East Records) - with Mtume Umoja Ensemble
- Rebirth Cycle (1977) - with Mtume
- Kiss This World Goodbye (1978) - with Mtume
- In Search of the Rainbow Seekers (1980) - with Mtume
- Juicy Fruit (1983)- with Mtume
- You, Me and He (1984)- with Mtume
- You are my Sunshine (1984) - with Mtume
- Theater of the Mind (1986) - with Mtume
As sideman
With Miles Davis
- On the Corner (Columbia, 1972)
- In Concert: Live at Philharmonic Hall (Columbia, 1973)
- Big Fun (Columbia, 1974)
- Get Up with It (Columbia, 1974)
- Dark Magus (Columbia, 1974)
- Agharta (Columbia, 1975)
- Pangaea (Columbia, 1975)
With Eddie Henderson
With Azar Lawrence
- Bridge into the New Age (Prestige, 1974)