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Laney Stewart | |
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Birth name | Philip Lane Stewart II |
Born | Chicago, Illinois, United States | January 10, 1966
Genres | R&B, pop, hip hop, house, electronic |
Occupations | Record producer, songwriter, publisher, manager |
Years active | 1978-present |
Labels | Redzone Entertainment, Morningside Trail Music, Groove Asylum Music, Famous Music, Peer Music, Universal Music Publishing Group, Stewart Music Group, The Sharpshootaz |
Laney Stewart (born January 10, 1966) is an American songwriter, music producer, musician, music publisher, music executive, manager and youth mentor. He has written, produced and published hits for some of the biggest names in R&B, hip hop and pop music over the past three decades. [1]
Philip Lane Stewart II was born in 1966 in the South Side suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Mary Ann Stewart, was a singer who had sung backgrounds for the Ohio Players, Curtis Mayfield and Aretha Franklin. His uncle, Morris "Butch" Stewart, was a musician and producer.
By age nine, Stewart had taught himself to play piano and drums. In Chicago's booming advertising industry he started singing on jingles at the age of 12, and began writing and composing jingles as a teenager. By age 15 he had his first commercially released songs on CBS Records with Ramsey Lewis's "This Ain't No Fantasy." At the age of 16 he became a regular in the burgeoning Chicago underground house music scene, and was one of the early house producers, producing songs for Arrogance such as "Crazy," [2] which was released on DJ International Records in 1986.
He began working as a session musician with his uncle, Wayne Stewart (drummer), Tony Brown (bassist), and with Patrick Leonard, known for his work with Madonna, who became his most significant keyboard influence. At age 18, Stewart and partner Kenneth Hale formed their own jingle company, Minute Men, composing popular spots for Bud Light, McDonald's and Coca-Cola. [1] They became the "go to" guys for urban-based spots for advertising companies such as the Burrell ad agency and DDB Needham, and they won an award for their work on the California Lottery ad campaign. Stewart was working House clubs at night and jingle sessions and meetings with ad executives by day.
In 1988, with help from ad executive and author Michelle McKinney Hammond, Stewart signed his first publishing deal with Famous Music (now Sony/ATV Music Publishing). He worked with songwriting partner Tony Haynes on a string of placements and upgraded his deal to joint venture with Famous Music. He decided to focus his career on working with recording artists instead of jingles. In 1990, he and Haynes formed The Groove Asylum, [1] and worked in the studio with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, [1] who influenced Stewart's songwriting and production style. Stewart co-produced songs with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and worked with well-known recording artists. He signed a group of young writers, his younger brother, Tricky Stewart, Kuk Harrell and Sean Hall, to his production company. His other younger brother, Mark E. Stewart, joined the company on the business side.
Stewart's next influence was MCA Records executive, Louil Silas Jr. Stewart worked with executives like Sylvia Rhone, Benny Medina and Quincy Jones on a run of successful songs, including "Never Let Them See You Sweat" by Go West, which was featured in White Men Can't Jump, and "Candlelight and You" by Keith Washington featuring Chante Moore, which was featured in House Party 2.
In 1992, Stewart relocated his company from Chicago to Los Angeles, CA. He and his brothers Tricky and Mark become founding partners in RedZone Entertainment in 1994.
In 1996, Stewart entered into a publishing deal and writing/production relationship with Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and his Edmonds Music Publishing company. [1] This relationship led to him working with Madonna, Shanice, and Tony! Toni! Toné! He wrote and produced songs for the feature film Soul Food, and wrote and produced the top 10 hit "Last Nights Letter" for K-Ci & JoJo’s Quadruple platinum album Love Always.
In 1999 Stewart moved to Atlanta GA and joined his brothers as a partner in RedZone Entertainment and Triangle Sound Studios. [1] RedZone helped to put Atlanta on the map as a music city, with hits like Blu Cantrell's "Hit ‘Em Up Style," [3] Sole's "4,5,6", TLC's "No Scrubs", Toni Braxton's "Love Me Some Him," and Destiny's Child's "Bills, Bills, Bills." Stewart took over as president of RedZone, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the company and keeping it active. Hit songwriter Ester Dean joined Redzone's publishing side. Stewart continued to write and produce hit songs, including, # 1 A.C. smash "Without You" by Charlie Wilson, and "Everything", which appears on multi-platinum selling B2K’s Pandemonium and Greatest Hits albums.
In his role as publisher Stewart worked with the writers, developing their skills and building an extensive catalog. He mentored "Tricky" Stewart, Kuk Harrell and Sean Hall, passing on the secrets of consistent hitmaking that he had learned from Jam & Lewis and Babyface and others. He published songs by Britney Spears, Usher, Pink, Sisqo, Toni Braxton, Tyrese,[ citation needed ] and the 1999 ASCAP Rap song of the year, "Who Dat" by JT Money, which reached #5 on the Billboard pop charts. One of the biggest R&B tracks in the catalog was "I Love Me Some Him" from Toni Braxton's "Secrets" album, which went 8 x Platinum. "Me Against The Music", a duet of Britney Spears and Madonna, peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart, was featured in an episode of Fox's "Glee." Pink's "Can't Take Me Home", and added a double platinum plaque to Stewart's collection.
Other pop hits included "Case of the Ex" by Mýa, which peaked at number 2 in its 16th week on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and at #1 on Billboard's R&B chart. It spent three weeks at number 2 and 29 consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and was an international success. In 1999 there was 3LW’s "No More"; in 2001 B2K’s premier smash "Uh-Huh," the number 1 selling single in the US that year.
Stewart entered into another publishing joint venture with Peer Music, [4] forming Morningside Trail Music in 2003. He discovered and signed writer/producer Terius "The-Dream" Nash, [5] and Nash and Stewart's first studio work resulted in the song "Everything," which appeared on B2K's album. Under Stewart's tutelage, Nash developed into an award-winning writer/producer and recording artist, with hits like "Shawty is the S*^!" and "Falsetto." Stewart introduced Nash to his brother Tricky and they wrote hits which included Rihanna's "Umbrella," J. Holiday's "Bed" and "Suffocate," Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body," Usher's "Moving Mountains," Mary J. Blige's "Just Fine," Justin Bieber's "Baby," and Beyoncé's "Single Ladies."[ citation needed ][ clarification needed ]
In 2005, Stewart took a break after learning that he was suffering from kidney cancer. In 2009, he and his wife formed Stewart Music Group, which combined publishing, production and management. In 2010 he received a transplant kidney from his wife. While still in hospital recovering from surgery, he finalized a deal for a joint venture with Universal Music Publishing Group, the largest music publishing company in the world. He developed a new publishing catalog under Music Gallery. A new writing/production team, "The SharpShootaz", was his first signing. Each writer in The Sharpshootaz was chosen by Stewart, including Alex Jacke, [6] Romika Faniel, Derek Yopp, Andrew Kim and Sidney Miller. In late 2011 The Sharpshootaz produced several songs for Jesse McCartney, including "Out Of Words," which was leaked to the internet in July 2012. [7] On July 9, 2012, Stewart and The Sharpshootaz released an Alex Jacke EP called "D.F.M." Stewart Music Group consisted of Music Gallery/UMPG Publishing, "The System" Management and Consulting, and LS Productions.
Stewart lives in Los Angeles, California, and is married to Khaila Stewart. They have three children: Jordan, Clarke and Christopher. Stewart and his wife are involved in research at UCLA for kidney disease and living donor transplants.
This section needs to be updated.(October 2023) |
Year | Artist | Album | Label | Songs worked on | Notes |
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1983 | Kitty Haywood | - | Lance Records | "Givin It Up" (single) | |
"Could I Be Dreamin" (single) | |||||
1986 | Arrogance | - | DJ International Records | "Crazy" (single) | |
1990 | Patrick O'Hearn | Mix Up | Private Music | "Journey To Yoroba (Laney Stewart Remix)" | |
1991 | Altitude | - | Bahia Entertainment | "Work It (Like A) 9 To 5" (single) | |
Louis Price | Louis Price | Motown | "Flesh & Blood" | ||
Nicki Richards | Naked (To The World) | Atlantic | "Fire's Burning", "What's Going On", "Dirty Job" | ||
Karyn White | Ritual of Love | Warner | "How I Want You", "Walking the Dog", "Beside You" | ||
Keith Washington | Make Time For Love | Qwest/Warner | "When You Love Somebody", "Ready, Willing, & Able" | [9] | |
1992 | Chanté Moore | Precious | MCA | "Candlelight & You", "Without Your Love" | [9] |
Sue Ann Carwell | Pain Killer | "Sex or Love", "7 Days, 7 Nights" | |||
Jason Weaver | The Jacksons: An American Dream soundtrack | Motown | "I Wanna Be Where You Are" | ||
1993 | Go West | Aces and Kings – The Best of Go West | Chrysalis/EMI USA | "Never Let Them See You Sweat" | This song appeared on the White Men Can't Jump soundtrack |
Regina Belle | - | Columbia | "The Deeper I Love" (single) | ||
Darnell Owens | - | MCA | "Since You Went Away" (single) | ||
Aaron Hall | The Truth | Silas/MCA | "Let's Make Love", "Until I Found You", "Freaky", "Pick Up the Phone" | [9] | |
1994 | Chanté Moore | A Love Supreme | MCA | "Old School Lovin'", "Who Do I Turn To" | |
Ebony Vibe Everlasting | Good Life | "Grove of Love", "Thinkin'", "Good Life" | |||
1995 | The Whispers | Toast to the Ladies | Capitol | "Come On Home" | |
IV Xample | For Example" | MCA | "From The Fool" | ||
1996 | Jesse Powell | - | Silas | "All I Need" (single) | [9] |
1997 | Sam Salter | It's On Tonight | LaFace | "After 12 Before 6", "There You Are", "Every Time a Car Drives By", "One My Heart", "I Love You Both", "It Took A Song" | [9] |
Tony! Toni! Toné! | Hits | Mercury | "Boys and Girls" | "Boys and Girls" also appeared on the Soul Food soundtrack | |
K-Ci & JoJo | Love Always | MCA | "Last Night's Letter" | [9] | |
1999 | Coko | Hot Coko | RCA | "This Ain't Love" | |
The Winans Phase 2 | We Got Next | Myrrh | "Everyday Away" | ||
Billy Crawford | Billy Crawford | V2 | "I Wish", "Someone Like You", "If It's Alright" | ||
Shanice | Shanice | LaFace | "Fly Away" | [9] | |
Ideal | Ideal | Virgin | "I Don't Mind" | ||
2000 | Kandi | Hey Kandi... | Columbia | "Just So You Know" | |
Chanté Moore | Exposed | MCA | "Bitter", "Train of Thought", "Why Am I Lonely" | ||
Charlie Wilson | Bridging the Gap | Interscope | "Without You", "Come Back My Way", "Charlie's Angels", "Can I Take You Home" | ||
2001 | Her Sanity | Xclusive | Universal | "Can I Be Sure" | |
Blu Cantrell | So Blu | Arista | "10,000 Times", "It's Alright" | ||
2002 | Snow | Two Hands Clapping | Virgin | "Legal", "Stay Ballin'" | |
B2K | Pandemonium! | Epic | "Everything" | "Everything" also appears on B2K Greatest Hits; the song peaked at #2 on Billboard 200[ when? ][ citation needed ] | |
2004 | Billy Crawford | Big City | V2 | "Bright Lights" | Certified Gold[ citation needed ] |
Chanté Moore | Millennium Collection | Geffen | "Candlelight & You", "Old School Lovin'", "Train of Thought" | ||
2005 | Shawn Desman | Back for More | UOMO and Sony BMG | "Ooh" | |
2012 | Alex Jacke | D.F.M. | "One Thing", "Callin For You", "Nobody's Perfect", "Enjoy the Ride", "All She Wrote", "Days Of Our Lives" | D.F.M. Deluxe (2013) also included the songs "No Hands", "Love To Love Ya", "We Should Have Sex", and "Pure Perfection" | |
2023 | Usher | - | "Boyfriend" (single) | [10] | |
Honey | - | "More Than Love" (single) |
Toni Michele Braxton is an American R&B singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won seven Grammy Awards, nine Billboard Music Awards, seven American Music Awards, and numerous other accolades. In 2011, Braxton was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. In 2017 she was honored with the Legend Award at the Soul Train Music Awards.
Secrets is the second studio album by American singer Toni Braxton, released on June 18, 1996, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. The album was nominated for Best Pop Album at the 1997 Grammy Awards. Secrets has been certified eight-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Worldwide, the album has sold over 15 million copies. In support of the album, Braxton embarked on the Secrets Tour, playing dates in North America and Europe from August 1996 to October 1997.
More Than a Woman is the fifth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton, released on November 18, 2002, by Arista Records. The album contained both hip hop and urban adult contemporary sounds, as well as some softer and more contemporary melodies. Throughout the project, Braxton worked with her sister Tamar and husband Keri Lewis on most of the songs, who had written and produced material for her previous album. She also worked with hip hop producers and rappers such as Irv Gotti, The Neptunes, Mannie Fresh and Loon, as well as Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, protégé Big Bert and his domestic partner, singer Brandy.
Christopher Alan "Tricky" Stewart is an American record producer, record executive, songwriter, and music publisher. Stewart began producing music in 1992, and has since won five Grammy Awards and is responsible for over 50 million records sold. He is credited on numerous singles and albums which have reached mainstream success, across the genres of hip hop, R&B and pop. Often in tandem with production partner and R&B singer The-Dream, his production work includes Mýa's "Case of the Ex" (2000), Britney Spears' "Me Against the Music" (2003), Rihanna's "Umbrella" (2007), Mary J. Blige's "Just Fine" (2007), Beyoncé's "Single Ladies " (2008), Karina Pasian's "16 @ War" (2008), Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" (2008) and "Obsessed" (2009), Justin Bieber's "One Time" (2009) and "Baby" (2010), and Ciara's "Ride" (2010), among others.
"Please" is a song by American recording artist Toni Braxton. It was written by Scott Storch, Makeba Riddick, Vincent Herbert, and Kameron Houff for her fifth studio album, Libra (2005), while production was chiefly helmed by Storch. One out of several songs on the album to feature a more hard-edged production, "Please" is a spare, mid-tempo R&B and hip hop song with a heavy bottom and zippy strings. Lyrically, it talks about how to handle a temptation in a relationship.
"Hit the Freeway" is a song by American recording artist Toni Braxton, released as the lead single from her fourth studio album, More Than a Woman (2002). The song, which features American rapper Loon, was written by Pharrell Williams and Loon himself, while production was handled by Pharrell's production duo The Neptunes. It is a hip hop and R&B song, with lyrics about an ex trying to rekindle with Braxton, but Braxton claims she's not interested in him anymore.
"He Wasn't Man Enough" is a song by American R&B singer and songwriter Toni Braxton. It was written by Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III, LaShawn Daniels, and Harvey Mason, Jr. for her third studio album, The Heat (2000), while production was helmed by the former. "He Wasn't Man Enough" is an uptempo R&B song that differs from Braxton's previous ballads. The song was released by LaFace Records on February 29, 2000, as the lead single from the album.
American singer Toni Braxton has released ten studio albums, five extended plays, six compilation albums, two remix albums, thirty-four singles, two video albums and twenty-two music videos in a career spanning over 30 years. Braxton was born in Severn, Maryland, on October 7, 1967. Her mother, an opera vocalist, encouraged Braxton and her four sisters to sing in church at a young age. In 1990, songwriter Bill Pettaway discovered the sisters and helped them obtain a record deal with Arista Records, as the group titled The Braxtons; the group's debut single, "Good Life", was released the same year. Although the song failed to chart, Braxton's voice caught the attention of producers, L.A. Reid and Babyface, who signed her to their newly formed LaFace Records. In 1991, Braxton recorded songs for the soundtrack to the 1992 film Boomerang. Her solo debut single, "Love Shoulda Brought You Home", reached the top forty of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top five of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Two years later, her self-titled debut album was issued through LaFace. The album topped the US Billboard 200 and R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts and was certified eight-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It spawned four singles, including "Breathe Again", which peaked within the top ten in the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The album has sold over ten million copies worldwide.
"Another Sad Love Song" is a song by American singer-songwriter Toni Braxton. Written and produced by Daryl Simmons and Babyface, featuring additional production from L.A. Reid, it was released as the lead single and its opening track from Braxton's self-titled debut album (1993) on June 11, 1993, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. Lyrically, it talks about Braxton complaining that every song played on the radio is a reminder of her ex-boyfriend.
"Breathe Again" is a song by American R&B singer Toni Braxton. It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and produced by Edmonds, L.A. Reid, and Daryl Simmons for Braxton's self-titled debut album (1993). Its lyrics evokes a sense of nostalgia from a relationship that has run its course. The ballad was released as the album's second single on October 6, 1993, by LaFace and Arista Records.
"You Mean the World to Me" is a song by American singer-songwriter Toni Braxton. It was written and produced by Antonio "L.A." Reid, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, and Daryl Simmons for her self-titled debut album (1993). Selected as the album's fourth single, it was released on CD on April 21, 1994, by LaFace and Arista Records. It peaked at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart, while reaching the top ten of the Canadian Singles Chart. The music video for "You Mean the World to Me" was directed by Lionel C. Martin.
Samuel Salter was an American R&B singer.
Terius Adamu Ya Gesteelde-Diamant, better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer from Atlanta, Georgia. Beginning his career in 1995, The-Dream is known for his songwriting on numerous hit records for prominent artists in R&B and hip hop, often in tandem with production partner Tricky Stewart.
Felix Weber is a German composer, songwriter and record producer.
Thaddis Laphonia "Kuk" Harrell is an American songwriter, vocal producer, arranger and engineer. He was a member of a songwriting–production team composed of himself, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash. In 2011, Kuk Harrell and partner Tricky Stewart joined the ranks of Fox's American Idol along with music mogul Jimmy Iovine, producing many of the songs performed on television by the contestants and released via iTunes. 2011 marked the highly anticipated return of Jennifer Lopez and her album LOVE? in which Kuk served as Album Vocal Producer. Earning his fourth Grammy for the vocal production of Rihanna's No. 1 Billboard Single "Only Girl ", Harrell is also the vocal producer and co-writer of Rihanna's Grammy-winning single "Umbrella". A composer and engineer on Beyoncé's chart topping "Single Ladies " from the album I Am... Sasha Fierce, he is also vocal producer and engineer of the Diane Warren-penned "I Was Here" from Beyoncé's 2011 album 4. He also produced the majority of the vocals on Mary J. Blige's Platinum album Growing Pains, which won the 2008 Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B Album. The first single from Growing Pains, "Just Fine", earned a Grammy nomination for best R&B vocal performance in 2007.
RedZone Entertainment is an Atlanta-based, music-production entity. Redzone's discography includes collaborations with many artists, producers, and composers of note, and is responsible for over 25 million records sold. RedZone Entertainment has produced acts such as P!nk, Britney Spears, Celine Dion, Mary J. Blige, Usher, Ciara, Sting, Rihanna, and Justin Bieber.
Makeba Riddick-Woods, also known as "Girl Wonder", is an American singer-songwriter who has been active in the music industry since 2005. She is originally from West Baltimore, Maryland, US. She is currently represented by Roc Nation, a record label and production house founded by Jay-Z. Their official website describes her as one of the industry's top pop music songwriters and vocal producers.
Alex Jacke was born and raised in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, CA. The singer and songwriter realized his passion for music as a child when he fell in love with 1990s R&B and Hip Hop. Jacke's music influences also include soul, funk, gospel, rock, and pop music. Self-taught on the piano, he began composing songs by middle school. By the time he started his freshman year at Morehouse College, he knew music was his future and he focused his energy on songwriting, & performing at school events and venues around Atlanta. During his sophomore year, he appeared on the highly popular MTV series "My Super Sweet 16," as the special guest performer for DJ Spinderella and former NBA player, Kenny Anderson's daughter, Christy. His performance caught the attention of music executive and producer, Laney Stewart, who invited Jacke to work with him over the summer. Jacke jumped at the opportunity to pursue his dream, and left Morehouse College at the end of his junior year to return to Los Angeles. Like others before him, most notably Tricky Stewart and The-Dream. Laney Stewart took Alex Jacke under his wing which led Jacke to land a worldwide publishing deal with Music Gallery/Universal Music Publishing Group in 2011. Along with Stewart and his production team The Sharpshootaz, Alex Jacke spent most of the first half of 2012 perfecting his debut EP, D.F.M. released on July 9, 2012. On Valentine's Day 2013, Alex released a "Deluxe" version of his D.F.M. release, simply titled "D.F.M. Deluxe".
Paul Boutin is a French-born American music mixer, audio engineer and a long-time collaborator with producer/songwriter/artist Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.
Sex & Cigarettes is the eighth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton. It was released on March 23, 2018, by Def Jam Recordings. Her first solo album in eight years, it served as her debut for the label after signing a new record deal. Braxton worked with a variety of producers on the album, including Fred Ball, Antonio Dixon, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, Dapo Torimiro, Stuart Crichton, Tricky Stewart, and Pierre Medor. Its release was preceded by the release of two singles, "Deadwood" and "Long as I Live" as well as a remix EP of the song "Coping" which features on the album.