En Vogue is an American vocal girl group whose original lineup consisted of singers Terry Ellis, Dawn Robinson, Cindy Herron, and Maxine Jones. Formed in Oakland, California, in 1989, En Vogue reached No. 2 on the US Hot 100 with the single "Hold On", taken from their 1990 debut album Born to Sing. The group's 1992 follow-up album Funky Divas reached the top 10 in both the US and UK, and included their second US number two hit "My Lovin' " as well as the US top 10 hits "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" and "Free Your Mind".
Funky Divas is the second studio album by American recording group En Vogue, released by Atlantic Records division East West on March 24, 1992, in the United States. Conceived after the success of their Grammy Award–nominated debut album Born to Sing (1990), En Vogue reteamed with their founders Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy to work on the entire album. As with Born to Sing, the pair borrowed from contemporary R&B, new jack swing, and hip hop, while also incorporating classic soul, blues and doo-wop elements, particularly on its on two Sparkle cover versions, as well as, in the case of "Free Your Mind," heavy metal sounds. The album became the quartet's second album to earn a Grammy Award nomination in the Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals category, while winning the American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Album and the Sammy Davis Jr. Award for Entertainer of the Year at the 1993 Soul Train Music Awards.
"Queen of the Night" is a song co-written by American singer and actress Whitney Houston along with L.A. Reid, Babyface and Daryl Simmons. Produced by Reid and Babyface and performed by Houston, it was released on October 13, 1993 by Arista Records as the fifth and final single from the soundtrack album The Bodyguard (1992), and is played during the closing credits of the film of the same name.
"My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" is a song by American pop/R&B group En Vogue, released in March 1992 as the lead single from their multi-platinum second album, Funky Divas (1992).
"Free Your Mind" is a song by American female group En Vogue from their second album, Funky Divas (1992). The track was composed and produced by Foster and McElroy. They were inspired by the Funkadelic song "Free Your Mind and Your Ass Will Follow." The guitar and bass tracks for the song were written and recorded by San Francisco-based guitarist Jinx Jones. The opening line: "Prejudice, wrote a song about it. Like to hear it? Here it go!", is adapted from a line originally used by David Alan Grier's character Calhoun Tubbs from Fox's In Living Color.
"Anything Is Possible" is the first single from American singer-songwriter-actress Debbie Gibson's third album of the same title (1990). Written, arranged, and produced by Gibson and Lamont Dozier, LP version was used for the single release worldwide except the United Kingdom and Europe, where an edited version of a remix by Harding and Curnow of PWL Records was used. The single fared relatively well on the US charts, reaching No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1991.
"Hold On" is a song by American girl group En Vogue, released in early 1990 as the first single from their debut album, Born to Sing (1990). It was produced by Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy, and written by the former two and all members of the group. It peaked at number five in the United Kingdom and number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. In the latter country, the song reached number one on the Billboard Dance Club Play, 12-inch Singles Sales, and Hot Black Singles charts. En Vogue performed "Hold On" at the 2008 BET Awards with Alicia Keys. In 2017, it was ranked number four on Spin magazine's ranking of "The 30 Best '90s R&B Songs".
"You Don't Have to Worry" is a song by American girl group En Vogue from their debut album, Born to Sing (1990). The song was released as the third single from the album on October 31, 1990, and was the group's third consecutive number-one single on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
"Something He Can Feel" is a song composed by Curtis Mayfield for the 1976 motion picture Sparkle. The song, a love ballad in a Chicago-/Philly-soul style, became a number-one hit on the Billboard's R&B singles chart in the United States twice with two separate recordings: a 1976 version by Aretha Franklin from the film's soundtrack, and a 1992 cover by girl group En Vogue.
"Give It Up, Turn It Loose" is a song by American R&B/pop vocal group En Vogue, released as the fourth single from their second album, Funky Divas (1992). The song's title is a reference to the 1969 James Brown song "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose". Released on November 12, 1992 by Eastwest Records, the single reached number 15 on the US Billboard Hot 100, number 16 on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart, and number 22 on the UK Singles Chart. It was written and produced by Thomas McElroy and Denzil Foster, and features Maxine Jones on lead entirely. The music video was directed by Marcus Nispel. In 1994, the song was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.
"Love Don't Love You" is a song by American R&B/pop vocal group En Vogue, released in February 1993 by Eastwest Records as the final single from their second album, Funky Divas (1992). The song was both written and produced by Thomas McElroy and Denzil Foster, and became the group's fifth consecutive top-40 single from the album in the United States. It peaked at numbers 36 and 31 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100. The song is led by group members Terry Ellis and Cindy Herron.
"What a Man" is a song written by Dave Crawford, and originally recorded for Stax Records' Volt imprint by Linda Lyndell, whose recording reached number 50 on the Billboard R&B chart in 1968. The song was sampled and reinterpreted as "Whatta Man" in 1993 by the trio Salt-N-Pepa with En Vogue, which became a commercial success; reaching the top ten in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 2011, German singer Lena Meyer-Landrut covered the song while retaining the original title and lyrics.
"Whatever" is a song by American female vocal group En Vogue. It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Keith Andes, and Giuliano Franco for the group’s third studio album, EV3 (1997), while production was helmed by Edmonds, featuring additional production by Franco. Selected and released as the album's second single, it was the final single from EV3 to precede the release of its parent album. "Whatever" reached the top 10 in Canada and on the US Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart while peaking within the top 20 in Finland, the United Kingdom, and on the Billboard Hot 100. "Whatever" was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over 500,000 units.
"Runaway Love" is a song by American R&B/pop group En Vogue, released in September 1993 by Eastwest Records as the first single from the group's extended play (EP) Runaway Love. After the huge success of their second album, Funky Divas (1992), the single was released. It was written and produced by Thomas McElroy and Denzil Foster. Group members Cindy Herron and Terry Ellis share lead vocals, Dawn Robinson leads on the bridge, and spoken intro is by Maxine Jones. Elroy and Foster contributed vocals and spoken rap, their known as the alias FMob group. In the US, the song reached numbers 51 and 43 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100.
"Inside That I Cried" is a song by American singer CeCe Peniston, released as the fifth and last single from her debut album, Finally (1992), on A&M Records. The single release includes "Hitmix", a medley of her songs "Finally", "We Got a Love Thang", "Keep On Walkin'", "Lifeline" and "It Should Have Been You", all taken from the album. "Inside That I Cried" reached the top 10 of the American Billboard Hot R&B Singles & Tracks chart and peaked at number 94 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, the song reached number 42 on the UK Singles Chart.
"A Deeper Love" is a song written by American producers Robert Clivillés and David Cole, and performed by them as Clivillés & Cole featuring vocals by Deborah Cooper. Released by Columbia in 1991, the song was the duo's fifth number-one on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. On other US charts, "A Deeper Love" peaked at number 83 on the soul singles chart and number 44 on the pop chart. Overseas, especially in Europe the single charted higher, going to number 15 in the UK and number eight on the Dutch Top 40.
"Champagne" is a song by American hip-hop group Salt-n-Pepa, taken from the soundtrack to the 1996 movie Bulletproof, starring Damon Wayans and Adam Sandler. The song contains elements of "Love Rollercoaster" as performed by The Ohio Players. It reached the top 10 in the Netherlands, and was a top 20 hit in Finland, New Zealand and Sweden, while entering the top 30 in the UK.
"Do You Want It Right Now" is a song by American singer Siedah Garrett from the 1985 film Fast Forward. It was a bigger hit for Degrees of Motion in 1991. It has also been recorded by Taylor Dayne for her debut studio album, Tell It to My Heart (1988). A lyric sample of it was also used in Gat Decor's song "Passion", as well as in Armand Van Helden's 2007 hit "I Want Your Soul".
"Special Kind of Love" is a song by British singer-songwriter Dina Carroll, released in September 1992 as the second single from her debut album, So Close (1993). The song was written and produced by American record producers, songwriters, and remixers Clivillés and Cole. Carroll was approached by them and invited to New York to become the first British artist to work with the producers. The song reached number 16 in the UK Singles Chart, number 26 in the Netherlands and number 60 in Germany. A music video was also produced to promote the single.
"Apparently Nothin" is a song by British/American acid jazz band Young Disciples. It features singer Carleen Anderson, who also co-wrote it and was released in 1991 by Talkin' Loud as the second single from the band's only album, Road to Freedom (1991). The song samples "Here I Am Baby" by the Marvelettes and is inspired by the Gulf War. It peaked at number 13 on the UK Singles Chart, but on the UK Dance Singles Chart, it was even more successful, peaking at number two. Additionally, it was a top 20 hit in Luxembourg and a top 40 hit in the Netherlands. The band performed the song in the British music chart television programme Top of the Pops. It remains their biggest hit and is now widely considered as a classic of its genre.
