Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Throughout his career, Vandross was an in-demand background vocalist for several different artists including Todd Rundgren, Judy Collins, Chaka Khan, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, David Bowie, Ben E. King, and Donna Summer. He later became a lead singer of the group Change, which released its gold-certified debut album, The Glow of Love, in 1980 on Warner/RFC Records. After Vandross left the group, he was signed to Epic Records as a solo artist and released his debut solo album, Never Too Much, in 1981.
Diane Eve Warren is an American songwriter, musician and record producer. She rose to prominence in 1983, and has since written songs for and co-written songs with multiple singers, as well as for several films.
Kandi Lenice Burruss-Tucker, known professionally by her mononym Kandi, is an American singer, songwriter, television personality, actress, and business woman. Burruss first gained notice in 1992 as a member of the female American vocal group Xscape. In 2000, she won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for her writing contributions on the TLC hit song "No Scrubs". Burruss has starred in the Bravo reality television series The Real Housewives of Atlanta since its second-season premiere on July 30, 2009. Burruss has appeared in five Real Housewives spinoff and companion series as of 2020, beginning with 2012's The Kandi Factory. She also played a recurring role as Roselyn Perry in the third season of the Showtime drama series The Chi. Burruss won the third season of the Fox competition series The Masked Singer.
"The Best Things in Life Are Free" is a Grammy-nominated duet between American singers Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson, recorded for the Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis-produced soundtrack to the 1992 American film, Mo' Money, starring Damon Wayans. The song was composed by Jam, Lewis, as well as Michael Bivins and Ronnie DeVoe. Additionally, the song was remixed by David Morales, Frankie Knuckles, and CJ Mackintosh. The duet became a major hit in several countries, peaking at number two in Australia and the United Kingdom, number six in Ireland and New Zealand, number eight in Canada and Germany, and number 10 in the United States.
Warren Thomas "Pete" Moore was an American singer-songwriter and record producer, notable as the bass singer for Motown group The Miracles from 1955 onwards, and was one of the group's original members. He is also a 2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, and a BMI and ASCAP award-winning songwriter, and was the vocal arranger on all of the group's hits.
"Respect" is a song originally released by American singer-songwriter Otis Redding in 1965. The song became a 1967 hit and signature song for singer Aretha Franklin. The music in the two versions is significantly different, and through a few changes in the lyrics, the stories told by the songs have a different flavor. Redding's version is a plea from a desperate man, who will give his woman anything she wants. He won't care if she does him wrong, as long as he gets his due respect when he brings money home. However, Franklin's version is a declaration from a strong, confident woman, who knows that she has everything her man wants. She never does him wrong, and demands his "respect". Franklin's version adds the "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" chorus and the backup singers' refrain of "Sock it to me, sock it to me, sock it to me...".
So Amazing: An All-Star Tribute to Luther Vandross is a tribute album to the late American R&B and soul legend, Luther Vandross, consisting of cover versions of past songs by Vandross and other artists, recorded by several R&B and/or soul singers, in addition to rapper Wyclef Jean and pop singers Elton John and Celine Dion. The album debuted at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200 and number one on the U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums selling 104,000 copies in its opening week. This album was released three months after Vandross' death.
Jump to It is the twenty-eighth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, produced by Luther Vandross and released on July 26, 1982 by Arista Records.
David Eldon Lasley is an American recording artist, singer and songwriter best known for his contributions as a background singer for such artists as Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, Luther Vandross, Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield and Boz Scaggs.
"Dance with My Father" is the RIAA Gold-certified title track to singer and songwriter Luther Vandross' fourteenth studio album. With Richard Marx, Vandross wrote the song based on his personal experience. The lyrics recall childhood memories with Vandross' father, who used to dance with him and his mother.
Hubert Eaves III is a keyboardist, songwriter and record producer. In the early 1980s, he worked on hits by the dance act D-Train. He also did session work with Mtume.
"The Closer I Get to You" is a romantic ballad performed by singer-songwriter Roberta Flack and soul musician Donny Hathaway. The song was written by James Mtume and Reggie Lucas, two former members of Miles Davis's band, who were members of Flack's band at the time. Produced by Atlantic Records, the song was released on Flack's 1977 album Blue Lights in the Basement, and as a single in 1978. It became a major crossover hit, becoming Flack's biggest commercial hit after her success with her 1973 solo single, "Killing Me Softly with His Song". Originally set as a solo-single, Flack's manager, David Franklin, suggested a duet with Hathaway, which resulted in the finished work.
The Moment of Truth World Tour was the second worldwide tour by American recording artist Whitney Houston and supported her multi-platinum hit album Whitney. The trek started on July 4, 1987 in North America and continued overseas during 1988 in Europe, Asia and Australia.
"Jump to It" is a 1982 song by American recording artist Aretha Franklin. The track is from her Gold-certified 1982 album, Jump to It, produced by Luther Vandross. The song was written by Vandross and Marcus Miller and features background vocals performed by Vandross and Cissy Houston. The single reached No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart, remaining there for four consecutive weeks.
Paul Riser is an American trombonist and Motown musical arranger who was responsible for co-writing and arranging dozens of top ten hit records. His legacy as one of the "Funk Brothers" is similar to that of most of the other "Brothers", as his career has been overlooked and overshadowed by the stars of Motown that became household names. Some of the Funk Brothers he worked with include: Earl Van Dyke, Johnny Griffith, Robert White, Eddie Willis, Joe Messina, Dennis Coffey, Wah Wah Watson, James Jamerson, Bob Babbitt, Eddie Watkins, Richard "Pistol" Allen, Uriel Jones, Andrew Smith, Jack Ashford, Valerie Simpson, Eddie "Bongo" Brown, Benny Benjamin, Cornelius Grant, Joe Hunter, Richard "Popcorn" Wylie, Marcus Belgrave, Teddy Buckner and Stevie Wonder.
Lauren Evans is an American singer and platinum-selling songwriter. She is an ASCAP Award Winner and has written hit singles for Alexandra Burke, Monrose, Jordin Sparks, and Camila. As a songwriter, Evans has achieved five platinum certifications and two gold certifications in six countries.
Rex Benson is an American songwriter and music publisher most associated with Country music.
Eritza Laues is a Panamanian-American singer-songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, composer and Television personality.
Shep Crawford is a Grammy Award-winning American R&B and gospel musician, songwriter, and record producer best known for Whitney Houston's "Same Script, Different Cast", Deborah Cox's "Nobody's Supposed to Be Here", Tamia's "Stranger in My House", Sisqó's "Incomplete", and Kelly Price's "As We Lay". He is the founder and pastor of The Experience Christian Ministries in Los Angeles, California.
Wayne Garfield is an American composer, collaborating songwriter, vocalist, social entrepreneur, community activist, and producer. He is co-founder of the music collective Change, which launched the career of Luther Vandross with the hit song "The Glow of Love" which became #1 on the Billboard Dance/Disco Chart in the summer of 1980.
