Michael Sterling | |
---|---|
Genres | Funk, electro, soul, R&B |
Years active | 1980–present |
Labels | MSMG |
Website | http://www.michaelsterling.com/ |
Michael Sterling (born October 26, 1960) is an American singer and composer from Miami, Florida. His 1990 single 'Lovers and Friends' was a quiet storm classic, having notably been sampled in Usher, Ludacris and Lil Jon and the East Side Boyz 'Lovers and Friends'. Sterling also worked with Miami artists having produced for MC Shy D, engineered for 2 Live Crew and Poison Clan, and was briefly a member of the Reggae group Inner Circle.
His musical career started in his teens when he played bass guitar for popular Latino recording artist Ray Fernandez. Soon afterwards, Sterling and two childhood friends formed the group Silver Platinum, [1] who quickly scored a hit on the R&B charts with their single Dance. He then went on to play lead guitar and sing as a member of the Grammy award winning reggae band Inner Circle, well known for their hit Bad Boys. [2]
After touring with Inner Circle, Sterling returned to Miami and began his career as a solo artist. During this time, he started his own record label TSOM Records, where he engineered and produced for local artists 2 Live Crew, MC Shy D, Anquette, Poison Clan and others. He also served as musical director for BMG recording artist Blu Cantrell.
His first album, The Artist, didn't generate much attention. He first struck big time stardom with his second album, No Such Animal, in 1987 produced the songs, 'One More Chance', 'Is It Still Good To Ya' and the timely socially conscious theme song, 'Holiday'. The song, Cheating While She's Wearing My Ring, received a lot of airplay on the video channels (It is not on the album though). His voice is known for its trademark slight sweet and soft falsetto sound.
During the 1990s and 2000s, Sterling maintained a low profile, while still releasing albums and producing. He still garners rave reviews and fans worldwide.
In 2005, Usher, Ludacris and Lil Jon and the East Side Boyz covered his song, Lovers and Friends from his 1990 album, Trouble . [3] The song was released on the quadruple platinum album Crunk Juice and was the winner of two BMI Billboard awards including ‘Hip Hop Song of the Year'. [4] In 2006, his song Bedroom Boom was covered by The Ying Yang Twins feat. Avant on the platinum Ying Yang CD U.S.A.
On November 17, 2009, volume 1 of his new two volume album, Eyes Around My Heart was released online.
Sterling has received the key to Metropolitan Miami Dade County.
Sterling is married to Irene Rena Sterling.
Album | Year | Label |
---|---|---|
The Artist | 1986 | New/TSOM |
No Such Animal | 1987 | Magnum/New |
Trouble | 1990 | New/TSOM |
Love for Your Heart | 1991 | New/TSOM |
Trust | 1994 | New/TSOM |
Right Now | 2002 | BMG |
Eyes Around My Heart | 2009 | MSMG |
Black Songs | 2011 | MSMG |
Love Has No Disguise | 2015 | MSMG |
Beast Mode | 2017 | MSMG |
Made in Miami | 2019 | MSMG |
Album | Year | Label |
---|---|---|
Special Limited Edition | 1991 | New/TSOM |
The Songwriter | 1996 | Darkside |
All Night and Always | 2018 | MSMG |
Year | Single | Album |
---|---|---|
1983 | "Desperate" | The Artist |
1984 | "Oral" | |
1985 | "Nite Club 69" | |
"Anette Please" | ||
1986 | "You" | |
1987 | "Cheating While She's Wearing My Ring" | Non-album single |
"No Such Animal" | No Such Animal | |
1988 | "Holiday" | |
"Is It Still Good to Ya" | ||
1990 | "One More Chance" | Trouble |
"What Do You Do?" | ||
1991 | "All Night and Always" | |
"Lovers & Friends" | ||
"Love for Your Heart" | Love for Your Heart | |
1992 | "If You Still Love Me" | |
"Beautiful Smile" | ||
1994 | "Trust" | Trust |
"Falling for You" | ||
"Back to Blue" | ||
2007 | "Ghost" | Eyes Around My Heart |
"Baby, Where's Your Heart" | ||
"Girl It's on You" | ||
2008 | "Holiday" | |
"Falling for You" | ||
2009 | "I'm Taking You Back" | |
"Begging" | ||
2010 | "A little Sugar" | |
"Perfect" | ||
"Complicated" | ||
2011 | "Love Theory" | Black Songs |
"Show You Love" | ||
"One More Chance 2011" (featuring PM) | ||
2012 | "Love Theory" |
One Way Album | Year1987 |
---|---|
Something So Good | 1982 |
Artist | Year/Album | Song | Position |
---|---|---|---|
Anquette | 1988/Respect | I Will Always Be There For You | Peak #76 [5] |
Usher/Lil Jon/Ludacris | 2004/Crunk Juice | Lovers and Friends | Peak #3 [6] |
Crunk is a subgenre of southern hip hop that emerged in the early 1990s and gained mainstream success during the early to mid 2000s. Crunk is often up-tempo and one of Southern hip hop's more nightclub-oriented subgenres. Distinguishing itself with other Southern hip hop subgenres, crunk is marked and characterized by its energetic accelerated musical tempo, club appeal, recurrent chants frequently executed in a call and response manner, multilayered synths, its pronounced reliance on resounding 808 basslines, and rudimentary musical arrangement. An archetypal crunk track frequently uses a dominant groove composed of a nuanced utilization of intricately multilayered keyboard synthesizers organized in a recurring pattern, seamlessly shifting from a lower to a higher pitch that encompasses the song's primary central rhythm, both in terms of its harmonic and melodic aspects. The main groove is then wrapped up with looped, stripped-down, and crisp 808 dance claps and manipulated snare rolls coupled and accompanied by a bassline of thumping 808 kick drums. The term "crunk" was also used throughout the 2000s as a blanket term to denote any style of Southern hip hop, a side effect of the genre's breakthrough to the mainstream. The word derives from its African-American Vernacular English past-participle form, "crunk", of the verb "to crank". It refers to being excited or high on drugs.
Jonathan H. Smith, better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American record producer and rapper. He was instrumental in the commercial breakthrough of the hip hop subgenre crunk in the early 2000s and is often credited as a progenitor of the genre. He was the frontman of the crunk group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz, with whom he has released five albums. In addition, Lil Jon served as a producer for most recordings by artists of whom popularized the genre; these include Pitbull, Too Short, E-40, Ludacris, Ciara, and Usher.
Crunk Juice is the fifth and final studio album by American Southern hip hop group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz. It was released on November 16, 2004, under BME Recordings and TVT Records. The production was primarily handled by Lil Jon himself, who also collaborated in the executive production, alongside Bryan Leach, Rob McDowell, Emperor Searcy, Vince Phillips, the Neptunes and Rick Rubin. The album includes guest appearances from rappers and singers, like R. Kelly, Ludacris, Ice Cube, Usher, Bun B from UGK, Jadakiss, Nas, T.I., the Ying Yang Twins and Pharrell.
The Ying Yang Twins are an American hip hop duo consisting of Kaine and D-Roc. Despite the name, the duo are not twins, brothers or related in any way.
"Yeah!" is a song by American singer Usher featuring American record producer Lil Jon and American rapper Ludacris. The song is written by the featured artists alongside Sean Garrett, Patrick "J. Que" Smith, Robert McDowell, and LRoc. The song incorporates crunk and R&B—which Lil Jon coined as crunk&B—in the song's production. The song was released as the lead single from Usher's fourth studio album Confessions (2004) on January 10, 2004, after Usher was told by Arista Records, his label at the time, to record more tracks for the album.
Me & My Brother is the third studio album by American hip hop duo Ying Yang Twins. It was released on September 16, 2003, through TVT Records. Recording sessions took place at ColliPark Studio and The Zone in Atlanta, at TDD Studios in Miami, and at The Sound Lab Studios in Smyrna, GA. Production was handled by Mr. Collipark, Lil Jon and Derrick Williams. It features guest appearances from Bonecrusher, Hitman Sammy Sam, Khujo Goodie, Killer Mike, K.T., Ms. Flawless, Tha Rhythum, Trick Daddy, Lil' Jon & The East Side Boyz.
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The discography of American hip hop recording artist Lil Jon consists of seven studio albums and fifteen singles. Lil Jon was the lead vocalist for the group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz from 1997 to 2004. Since the group broke up, Lil Jon has continued to produce his own music and tracks for other artists.
"Lovers and Friends" is a song by American rap group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz featuring American singer Usher and American rapper Ludacris, from the group's fifth and final studio album, Crunk Juice (2004). The song was written by the artists alongside Michael Sterling, while produced by Lil Jon. It was released by BME and TVT Records in November 2004, as the third single from the album. An R&B slow jam, the song consists of a piano melody and hook, and contains a sample of Sterling's song of the same name. The lyrics depict the three artists attempting to seduce women.
"Salt Shaker" is a song released by rap group Ying Yang Twins featuring Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz. It was released on their third studio album, Me & My Brother (2003). It was produced by Lil Jon with guitars played by Craig Love. The song reached the top 10 in the United States, peaking at number 9.
The following is a production discography of Lil Jon.
Trouble was released in 1991 and was produced, written and performed by Miami-based musician Michael Sterling.
The 4th BET Awards took place at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California on June 29, 2004. The awards recognized Americans in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. Comedienne Mo'Nique hosted the event for the second time.
"Rest of My Life" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Ludacris, featuring Usher and David Guetta. It was released November 2, 2012 in promotion of his ninth studio album, Ludaversal, which was released on 31 March 2015.
Certified Crunk is a compilation album by American Southern hip hop group Lil' Jon & the East Side Boyz. It was released on November 4, 2003 via Mirror Image Entertainment/Ichiban Records. Production was handled by Midnight Black, Kool-Ace, Mr. Collipark and Lil' Jon. It features guest appearances from Jazze Pha, 404 Soldierz, Darryl E., DJ Pryme, Hitman Sammy Sam, Killer Mike, Ludacris, No Surrender, Playa Poncho, Ying Yang Twins, Organized Noize and Jermaine Dupri. The album peaked at number 197 on the Billboard 200, number 40 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and number nine on the Independent Albums in the United States.
"Do You Mind" is a song by American musician DJ Khaled featuring Trinidadian musician Nicki Minaj and fellow American musicians Chris Brown, Jeremih, Future, August Alsina, and Rick Ross. It was released on July 28, 2016 by We the Best Music Group and Epic Records as the fourth single of the former's ninth studio album, Major Key. The song peaked at number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 9 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts. It was eventually certified triple platinum by the RIAA.
Libertad 548 is the eleventh studio album by American rapper, singer and record producer Pitbull. It was released on September 27, 2019, via Mr. 305 Records. The album also features guest appearances from El Micha, Lenier, Yomil y El Dany, Becky G, Blake Shelton, Chacal, Chesca, Daddy Yankee, Flo Rida, Guru Randhawa, IAmChino, Lil Jon, Ludacris, Natti Natasha, Ne-Yo, Papayo, Prince Royce, Sky Monroe, Tito El Bambino, and Wisin & Yandel.
"SexBeat" is a song by American musicians Usher, Lil Jon, and Ludacris, released on April 10, 2020. It is the third song between the trio, following "Yeah!" and "Lovers and Friends". Produced by Jon, the song was written by the artists alongside Jermaine Dupri and Antoine Harris.