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Lane McCray | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Donald Lane McCray Jr. |
Also known as | Lane |
Born | Fort Bragg, North Carolina, U.S. | April 13, 1962
Genres | Eurodance, pop, gospel, hip hop |
Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, rapper, artist |
Instrument(s) | Vocals |
Years active | 1993–present |
Labels | McCray Records |
Website | La Bouche official website Lane McCray official website |
Lane McCray (born April 13, 1962) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper and artist best known for fronting the Eurodance group La Bouche.
He was stationed at various military installations around the globe with the United States Air Force. As an all-around entertainer in the US, Lane performed in regional musical theater productions of West Side Story , A Chorus Line , Tom Foolery , Sophisticated Ladies and La Bohème .
McCray left the USAF to pursue his musical career full-time. It was in Saarbrücken, Germany where he met Melanie Thornton (1967–2001) when they fronted the cover band Groovin' Affairs, going on to form La Bouche.
After Thornton died in a Crossair 3597 plane crash in 2001 while promoting a re-release of her solo album "Ready to Fly", McCray shied away from the limelight and took some time to mourn the death of his friend and partner. As of 2015, Lane (La Bouche) began working with a few different singers Dana Rayne, Timi Kullai, Sophie Cairo, Kim Sanders and Kayo Shekoni, with him as the focal point.
In September 2019, Lane was set to release a brand new La Bouche single with subsequent tracks to follow to the release of a complete new CD from the group.
As of 2020, McCray has embarked on a new musical journey under his own namesake "MCCRAY." The first release on McCray Records was entitled "Save My Life," about which he said: "There are many facets to all of us and for me there are just as many facets to my tastes in music." MCCRAY's latest single, entitled "I Keep Running," was released on October 1, 2021.
Lane is the son of Lane McCray Sr. (1937-2016) and Joyce McCray (b. 1940), brother of Doreen (b. 1958) and Deidre (b. 1959), father of Shannon Breonna McCray (b. 1983) and grandfather to Hamza Ishmael and Hafsa.
Lane resides in Germany where he continues to express himself through painting and has established the "Lane McCray Art Gallery." His works can be found and purchased on his official website.
Lane McCray devotes a great deal of his time educating people on HIV/AIDS through local, national, and international foundations.
La Bouche is a German-American Eurodance duo best known for the hits "Be My Lover", "Sweet Dreams", "You Won't Forget Me" and "S.O.S." La Bouche was founded in 1994 by record producer Frank Farian in Frankfurt am Main. He worked together with techno DJ Ulli Brenner and producer Amir Saraf to produce the music, while American singer Melanie Thornton and American rapper and backup singer Lane McCray fronted the act.
Melanie Janene Thornton was an American pop and dance music singer. She was the lead singer of the Eurodance group La Bouche from 1994 to 2000, alongside American rapper and backing vocalist Lane McCray. Their two most successful singles, "Sweet Dreams" and "Be My Lover", were released in 1994 and 1995 respectively. After leaving the group, Thornton began a solo career and found success primarily in European countries before her death in 2001. Her solo songs include "Love How You Love Me", "Heartbeat", "Makin' Oooh Oooh " and "Wonderful Dream ".
Hansa Records was a record label based in Berlin, Germany founded in 1962.
Mickey & Sylvia was an American R&B duo composed of Mickey Baker and Sylvia Vanderpool, who later became Sylvia Robinson. They are best known for their number-one R&B single "Love Is Strange" in 1957.
"Sweet Dreams (Ola Ola E)" is a song recorded by German Eurodance duo La Bouche. It was originally released in April 1994 by RCA as the lead single from the duo's debut album of the same name (1995). In North America, the song was released in November 1995. It was written by Melanie Thornton with Robert Haynes and Mehmet Sönmez, and produced by Frank Farian, Ulli Brenner and Gerd Amir Saraf.
"Be My Lover" is a song recorded by German Eurodance group La Bouche and released in March 1995 by Arista and RCA as the second single from their debut album, Sweet Dreams (1995). The song was written by group members Melanie Thornton and Lane McCray with Uli Brenner and Gerd Amir Saraf, who co-produced it with Frank Farian. It remains their most successful song, alongside "Sweet Dreams", and was a worldwide hit. In Europe, it was a number-one hit in the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Romania, and Sweden, as well as on the Eurochart Hot 100. In the US, the single reached number five on the Cash Box Top 100, number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and also topped the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for two weeks in December 1995. To date, it has sold six million copies worldwide. "Be My Lover" earned La Bouche the 1996 Echo award in Germany in the category for Best Dance Single as well as the ASCAP award in the US for the 'Most Played Song in America'. It was dubbed into many megamix tracks and has had several remix versions.
"When You Were Sweet Sixteen" is a popular song, written by James Thornton and published in 1898. Inspired and sung by the composer's wife, the ballad quickly became a hit song in vaudeville. It has a long recording history that includes numerous popular singers, has been heard on film, and is considered a standard for barbershop quartets.
Le Click was a German Eurodance duo. The duo consisted of Swedish/Nigerian singer Kayo Shekoni and rapper/singer Robert Haynes.
Steven Rinkoff is an American Grammy Award–winning record producer, mixer, and sound engineer, best known for his work with songwriter-producer Jim Steinman. He worked with Steinman from 1986 on various projects, in all facets of production, and was Steinman's partner in Ravenous Records, a record label.
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Helen Schneider is an American singer and actress working mainly in Germany.
Amanda Lear discography consists of eighteen full-length studio albums, thirty-eight compilation albums, two extended plays and seventy-six singles. She has also released one video album and numerous music videos.
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Zeus B. Held is a German music producer and musician, known for his work in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. He was involved with several artists of the krautrock, disco, and new wave era, such as Birth Control, Rockets, Gina X Performance, Dead Or Alive, John Foxx, Fashion, and Men Without Hats on their successful album Pop Goes the World.
"Fallin' In Love" is a song by American music trio Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. It was written by band member Dan Hamilton and featured on the trio's third studio album by the same name (1975).
"You Won't Forget Me" is a song recorded by German Eurodance group La Bouche, released on 29 September 1997 as the lead single from their second album, A Moment of Love in most of the world, and second single from S.O.S., the US version of the album. It achieved a minor success in comparison with their 1995 hit, "Be My Lover", peaking at number 18 in Finland, number 24 in Sweden, number 28 in France and number 29 in Germany. On the Eurochart Hot 100, the song reached number 70. In the US, it peaked at number 48 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was also their last single on that chart.
"Be My Lover" is a song recorded by Romanian singer Inna for the deluxe edition of her third studio album, Party Never Ends (2013). It was released on 26 July 2013 through Roton. The track was written by Uli Brenner, Lane McCray, Gerd Amir Saraf and Melanie Thornton, with production handled by Afrojack and METI. Musically, "Be My Lover" encompasses dubstep, electro dance, club and house genres, sampling the 1995 song of the same name by La Bouche, for which Brenner, McCray, Saraf and Thornton received writing credits.
Sweet Dreams is the debut studio album by German Eurodance duo La Bouche. Four singles were released from the album: "Sweet Dreams", "Be My Lover", "Fallin' in Love" and "I Love to Love". The album was very successful all over the world, reaching number two in Finland and Switzerland, and number three in Germany. It sold to gold in countries like Canada, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Poland and Switzerland.
Fletcher Bangs "Biff" Watson is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. His musicianship has been a part of recording sessions for many artists.
"Bolingo (Love Is in the Air)" is a song recorded by German Eurodance group La Bouche, released in October 1996 by various labels as a single. It achieved moderate success on the charts in Europe, entering the top 20 in Austria (19), Denmark (19), Finland (15) and Switzerland (15). On the Eurochart Hot 100, the song reached number 47 in December 1996. Its music video was shot in Ibiza, Spain.