By Michael Kinney
Transcript Staff Writer
"You run your fingers through my hair
You tell me you love me
You act like everything between us is all right, girl
But you know, you know that it's not true"
-- "How Deep is Your Love"
In the 1990s the world of R--B music was overwhelmed with soulful male crooners. The likes of Babyface, Christopher Williams, Guy, Bobby Brown and R. Kelly could be heard all over the airwaves as the New Jack Swing genre was at its pinnacle.
One of those men who helped take R--B from a just a niche sound was Keith Sweat. Now 21 years into his career, the songwriter/musician/producer has no signs of slowing down.
"It's surprising to me that my career has had such a long life span," Sweat stated. "When you first start out, you hope people will hear the music and you don't expect to be still around twenty years later. It feels good."
Born Keith Crier in Harlem in 1961, Sweat worked in the New York Mercantile Exchange and sang in nightclubs before finding a home with Elektra Records in 1987.
"Make It Last Forever" was Sweat's first album. It came out in 1987 and featured such slow dance standards as "How Deep is Your Love" and "I Want Her." The album sold three million copies and his music became the soundtrack to sex and love in the 1990s.
During his 20-year career, Sweat has sold more than 15 million albums, produced six No. 1 singles and three multi-platinum selling albums.
In 1997 Sweat joined with the late Gerald LeVert and Johnny Gill to form the group LSG. The trio produced two albums that were commercial successes.
Since then Sweat has produced a string of concert albums. None reached the success of his earlier work. Sweat seemed destined to fall out of the public consciousness even as male R--B artists are making a comeback.
However, the genre is now filled with teenage vocalists who may not have been alive when Sweat released his first album. It is young men such as Chris Brown, NeYo, Mario and J. Holiday who are monopolizing the charts.
However, Sweat isn't giving up his crown just yet.
"Parents play my stuff and then teens come to see me because they've heard my music," Sweat stated. "It's cool when an eighteen-year-old comes up to me in a mall and knows who I am."
Sweat will perform Saturday at the Riverwind Casino in concert as he prepares for the May 6 release of his newest studio album, "Just Me." The 46-year-old Sweat looks to regain the hold on the R--B charts he held that made him one of the most sought after singers for an entire decade.
Sweat, who hosts his own radio show, produced and wrote most of the songs for his 15th album.
"Just Me" features guest appearances by Keyshia Cole on "Love You Better."
Other songs that could catch fire are "Suga, Suga Suga," "Somebody" and "Just Wanna Sex You Up."
Sweat also teams back up with Athena Cage on the song "Butterscotch. Sweat and Cage joined together in the 1996 duet "Nobody," which sold more than a million copies.
"Hey, when you find something that works, why not do it again?" Sweat said. "I love Athena's voice and the musical chemistry between us really works..."
With "Just Me" Sweat is making a return to the style that made him a superstar on a R--B charts. Despite being 20 years since his first album, Sweat says he knows what his fans want to hear.
"I'm giving the people what they expect from me,' Sweat stated in a statement. "You hear other artists out here who make the mistake of trying to be trendy. They really try to keep up. I know people want to hear Keith Sweat. I'm conscious of the people who have followed me the whole time, since day one. I remember that I have a fan base and I'm very careful to give the people what they expect from me."
Entertainment
Keith Sweat
- Entertainment
-
-
2nd Friday Art Circuit tonight
Events for 2nd Friday Circuit of Art Feb. 10, 2012: Participating nonprofit organizations: · Firehouse Art Center, 444 S. Flood, will exhibit artworks by students from the Healing Studio Feb. 10 through March 24. Firehouse patrons ...
-
Breathe Owl Breathe flying to Opolis
Breathe Owl Breathe (BOB) is not a typical band. Not surprisingly the trio’s percussionist, Trevor Hobbs, is not a conventional drummer. Between recording music, playing local gigs and touring, he teaches earth sciences at two different ...
-
A rare viewing of “There is More to Love...”
The University of Oklahoma College of Fine Arts and Norman’s Sooner Theatre is presenting a rare opportunity next weekend to see a staged reading of a new musical, “There is More to Love…” Utilizing love songs by Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, ...
-
‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ turns 50
By Carolyn Kellogg Los Angeles Times “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.” Sure, everyone’s heard of it. But is it worth reading? Before Jack Nicholson won his first Oscar, before there was a bus full of merry pranksters, there was a writing ...
-
On Se Rechauffe! Let’s Heat It Up!
By Hannah Cruz norman etc. editor Thousands of people will gather the streets of Downtown Norman next weekend to enjoy Oklahoma’s original Mardi Gras parade....
-
An interesting take on espionage with “Safe House”
He must have joined “The Agency” with an eye toward excitement, exotic locales and danger. But in Capetown, a backwater as far as foreign intrigue goes, agency newcomer Matt Weston is stuck — a one-man show, running a never-used “safe ...
-
The artist life of Warrior Spirits
With nearly 1,000 distinct dialects spoken, hundreds of years of colonization from multiple countries as well as vast natural resources, Papua New Guinea is the epitome of diversity. Its native art is no exception....
-
The ONE event is coming to town with chairs
The unexpected will be the center of attention at the Norman Art Council’s ONE fundraiser in March: chairs....
-
Economy on the upswing at the Deli Tuesday
Life-long Norman resident Travis Pierce denies being a Communist. He explained writing a requiem for recently deceased North Korean strongman Kim Jong-il as recognition of his place in pop culture rather than as a tribute to a brutal ...
-
Steel drums to hit OU
The largest steel pan ensemble Oklahoma has ever seen will assemble in Norman next weekend for a steel pan festival, a two-day celebration of Calypso music that will make any stage seem small. “This is going to be the first time we’ve ...
- More Entertainment Headlines
-
2nd Friday Art Circuit tonight
