Rhona Bennett

Last updated

Rhona Bennett
RhonaBennett5.jpg
Bennett performing in 2009
Background information
Birth nameRhona Lynn Bennett
Also known asMiss R&B
Born (1976-05-10) May 10, 1976 (age 47)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • actress
Years active1991–present

Rhona Lynn Bennett (born May 10, 1976), [1] also known as Miss R&B, is an American singer and actress best known for her recurring role as Nicole on The Jamie Foxx Show . She is currently a member of R&B female group En Vogue. Bennett began her career doing voiceovers and industrial films before moving into professional theatre and television. Before joining the cast of The Jamie Foxx Show, Rhona was a castmember of the Disney Channel's variety show The All-New Mickey Mouse Club . She is a member of Zeta Phi Beta sorority. She also appeared as Loquatia on the short-lived UPN television sitcom Homeboys in Outer Space during the 1996–97 season.

Contents

Career

1991–1999: Mickey Mouse Club and television roles

Bennett started in music at 11 years of age with ETA Creative Arts Theater, and sang "Christmas Melody" in Goodman Theater. In 1991, she became a Mouseketeer on the '90s revival of The Mickey Mouse Club . She was also part of a spin-off dramedy titled Emerald Cove on the Disney Channel. After the show was cancelled in 1994, Bennett moved to California to continue her career as an actress, landing appearances on several shows, including Living Single and Martin . She also garnered a regular role in the mid-1990s, playing Loquatia on the sitcom Homeboys in Outer Space .

2000–2008: Rhona and En Vogue

In early 2000, casting director Dee Dee Bradley asked Bennett to join the fourth season of the WB sitcom The Jamie Foxx Show , in which she played Nicole, Jamie's co-worker and singing partner. [2]

Shortly after, in late 2000, Bennett signed with Sony Music under producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins' newfly founded boutique imprint Darkchild Records, where she was given the title "First Lady of Darkchild." [3] Jerkins recruited most of his regular collaborators to work alongside Bennett and him on her self-titled debut album, including Robert "Big Bert" Smith, LaShawn Daniels and his brother Fred Jerkins III. [3] The album's first single, "Satisfied," released in March 2001, became a top five hit on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart the following month, but failed to chart or sell noticeably elsewhere. [4] Following a promotional world trip, further plans to release Rhona were put on hold after a fallout between Sony Music and Darkchild Records. [3] Consequently, the album received a limited Japan-wide release only and Bennett was soon dropped from the label. [3]

In 2002, Bennett landed a leading role opposite Allen Payne in the stage play Men Cry in the Dark (2003), based on the same-titled 1999 novel by Michael Baisden. [5] The following year, Bennett joined En Vogue for a five-year tenure during which she released the album Soul Flower (2004) along with original band members Terry Ellis and Cindy Herron. [6] In 2008, following several years of touring, Bennett left the band amid their 20th Anniversary World Tour due to the return of original member Dawn Robinson. [7] Bennett also performed solo at the American Airlines Center on July 27, 2008, under the Miss R&B moniker, where she helped to raise funds for a new charity for the homeless. Bennett reunited with the members of En Vogue to perform at the American Music Festival on August 29, 2008.

2009–present: Solo projects and return to En Vogue

Following her departure from En Vogue, Bennett began work on her second solo album The Anticipation of R&B under her own label Tone'n'Rhone Productions. [8] The singer worked with a variety of musicians on the project, including producers J.Y. Park and J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, as well as guest vocalists such as Brandy, 40 Glocc and her former En Vogue colleagues Ellis and Herron. [8] Preceded by the singles "Range" and "Letting You Go," however, the album was shelved in 2010 due to internal conflicts and insufficient promotion. Bennett later released several songs from The Anticipation of R&B to her SoundCloud account. [9]

In 2012, Bennett rejoined En Vogue after new material by all four original members had failed to materialize again and both Robinson and Jones once more had left the band. [10] In July 2014, Bennett, Ellis, and Herron signed a new contract with Pyramid Records and began work on the album Electric Café with mentors Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy. [11] In November, the trio appeared on the Lifetime holiday film An En Vogue Christmas in which they played fictional versions of themselves, reuniting to perform a benefit concert to save the nightclub where they got their start. [12] The original movie featured En Vogue's hit singles as well as two new tracks and a rendition of "O Holy Night", later released digitally through Ellis and Herron's own label En Vogue Records. [12]

In 2016, Bennett released the single "Take Me There" which was expected to precede a solo EP entitled R&B Gumbo. [13] As with The Anticipation of R&B, the EP failed to materialize. [13]

Discography

Studio albums

TitleAlbum details
Rhona
  • Released: June 20, 2001
  • Label: Darkchild, Epic
  • Formats: CD, cassette
The Anticipation of R&B
  • Unreleased
  • Intended for release: 2010

Singles

TitleYearPeak positionsAlbum
US
Dance
[14] 		AUS
[15] 		GER
[16] 		NL
[16] 		SWI
[16]
"Satisfied"2001471777170Rhona
"The Meaning of Love"—————
"Letting You Go" [17] 2009—————The Anticipation of R&B
"Range" [18] —————
"Take Me There" [19] 2016—————non-album release
"In Your Eyes (MMC '89 Version)" [20]
(with Arnel Pineda)		2021—————

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamie Foxx</span> American actor, comedian, and singer (born 1967)

Eric Marlon Bishop, known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He received acclaim for his portrayal of Ray Charles in the film Ray (2004), winning the Academy Award, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. That same year, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the crime film Collateral.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">En Vogue</span> American vocal girl group

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".

<i>The Jamie Foxx Show</i> American sitcom

The Jamie Foxx Show is an American television sitcom created by Jamie Foxx and Bentley Kyle Evans for The WB. It premiered on August 28, 1996 and ended on January 14, 2001, with a total of 100 episodes over the course of 5 seasons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawn Robinson</span> American singer (born 1965)

Dawn Sherrese Robinson is an American singer and actress best known as a founding member of the R&B/pop group En Vogue, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. Following her departure from En Vogue, Robinson joined Lucy Pearl and released their self-titled debut album Lucy Pearl in 2000, which went platinum worldwide and produced the successful singles "Dance Tonight" and "Don't Mess with My Man".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rodney Jerkins</span> American record producer and rapper

Rodney Roy Jerkins, also known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Ellis</span> American R&B singer

Terry Lynn Ellis is an American singer. She is best known as a founding member of the R&B/pop vocal group En Vogue which formed in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maxine Jones</span> American singer

Maxine Jones, is an American singer, songwriter, actress and businesswoman, best known as a founding member of the R&B/pop group En Vogue, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. She sang lead vocals on the group's signature singles "My Lovin' " and "Don't Let Go (Love)", both of which garnered international success and sold over a million copies. Throughout her career, Jones has sold over 20 million records with En Vogue. Her work has earned her several awards and nominations, including two American Music Awards, a Billboard Music Award, four MTV Video Music Awards, and four Soul Train Music Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cindy Herron</span> American singer and actress

Cynthia Ann Herron, professionally known as Cindy Herron and sometimes credited as Cindy Herron–Braggs is an American singer and actress. Herron is best known as a founding member of the R&B/pop group En Vogue, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. She sang lead vocals on the group's first single "Hold On", which garnered mainstream success and sold over a million copies. Despite being absent from the group during certain periods, Herron and fellow group member Terry Ellis are the only original members to appear on all of the group's album releases to date. In the 1980s, Herron began her career as an actress, making her debut appearance in Up and Coming as "Valerie".

<i>Soul Flower</i> 2004 studio album by En Vogue

Soul Flower is the sixth studio album by the American recording group En Vogue. Released through 33rd Street and Funkigirl Records and distributed by Bayside Entertainment on February 24, 2004 in the United States, the album marked the band's debut with the label as well as their first full-length release to feature vocals by new band member Rhona Bennett who had joined remaining founding members Terry Ellis and Cindy Herron the year before following the departure of Amanda Cole, resulting into the partial re-recording of several songs on Soul Flower that Cole had originally lent her voice to.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enough Cryin</span> 2006 single by Mary J. Blige

"Enough Cryin" a song by American singer Mary J. Blige. It was written by Blige, Sean Garrett, Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, and Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins for her seventh studio album, The Breakthrough (2005), while production was helmed by the latter. The song introduces Blige's rap alter ego, Brook Lynn, who delivers the song's rap verse. Blige's rap verse was originally written by Jay-Z for Foxy Brown, but Jerkins rejected Brown's vocals and it was instead suggested that Blige record the verse herself.

<i>Electric Café</i> (En Vogue album) 2018 studio album by En Vogue

Electric Café is the seventh studio album by American female vocal group En Vogue. It was released worldwide on April 6, 2018. Their first studio album in fourteen years, it marked their first full-length release through eOne Music and their own label, En Vogue Records. Material for Electric Café was originally conceived between 2014 and 2018. The trio reteamed with their founders Foster & McElroy to work on the majority of the album, with additional contribution coming from musicians Raphael Saadiq, Dem Jointz, Taura Stinson, Kid Monroe, Ne-Yo, and Curtis "Sauce" Wilson. Rapper Snoop Dogg appears as a guest vocalist. Musically, Electric Café contains a range of genres, blending a mix of neo soul, pop, and contemporary R&B with electronic dance music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love Don't Love You</span> 1993 single by En Vogue

"Love Don't Love You" is a song by American R&B/pop vocal group En Vogue, released as the final single from their second album, Funky Divas (1992). It was released in 1993 and became the group's fifth consecutive top-40 single from the album in the United States. The song is led by Terry Ellis and Cindy Herron.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riddle (song)</span> 2000 single by En Vogue

"Riddle" is a song recorded by American R&B group En Vogue. It was written by Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy, along with band members Cindy Herron, Maxine Jones, and Terry Ellis, for their fourth studio album Masterpiece Theater (2000), while production was helmed by Foster & McElroy. An angry mid-tempo song about a sneaking, cheating lover, "Riddle" is built around a clapping game motif, and interpolates the band's 1992 song "My Lovin' ." Lyrically, it has the protagonist revealing her feelings about discovering that her love interest is having an affair with someone else over the course of the week.

<i>The Gift of Christmas</i> (En Vogue album) 2002 studio album by En Vogue

The Gift of Christmas is fifth studio album and the Christmas album by American female recording group En Vogue, released on October 8, 2002 by Discretion Enterprises following their departure from Elektra Records. Produced and arranged by long time collaborators Thomas McElroy and Denzil Foster, featuring additional production by Timothy Eaton, it is the group's first Christmas album and their only record to feature vocals from Amanda Cole who remained two years with the group. The Gift of Christmas features original Christmas tunes as well as cover versions of classic holiday songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The One (Mary J. Blige song)</span> 2009 single by Mary J. Blige featuring Drake

"The One" is a song by American singer Mary J. Blige featuring Canadian rapper Drake. Written alongside Ester Dean and producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, it was released on July 21, 2009 as the lead single from her ninth studio album Stronger with Each Tear. The song marked Blige's 5th entry on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, on which it reached number 32. Blige's sum extended her lead for most charted titles among women in the 1990s and 2000s.

"Ooh Boy" is a song recorded by American recording group En Vogue. It was written by Jamie Brewer, Kisha Griffin, Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy for their sixth studio album Soul Flower (2004), while production was helmed by Foster and McElroy. An uptempo R&B song with a funky disco groove, it features lead vocals from Rhona Bennett and Terry Ellis. "Ooh Boy" was released as the second and final single from the album, serving as its lead single. The song reached the top thirty of the US Billboard Adult R&B Songs chart. In support of the song, En Vogue performed it on several US television shows such as Soul Train and On Air with Ryan Seacrest.

<i>Never Say Never</i> (Brandy album) 1998 studio album by Brandy

Never Say Never is the second studio album by American singer Brandy. It was released on June 9, 1998, by Atlantic Records. Atlantic consulted David Foster, as well as producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins and his team to work with Norwood on the record; Jerkins went on to craft the majority of the album and would evolve as Norwood's mentor and head producer on her succeeding projects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocket (En Vogue song)</span> 2017 single by En Vogue

"Rocket" is a song by American recording group En Vogue. It was written by singer-songwriter Ne-Yo and recorded for their seventh studio album Electric Café (2018), while production was handled by Curtis "Sauce" Wilson. The R&B song served as the album's lead single and was released on December 1, 2017 through En Vogue Records and eOne Music. In the United States, the song peaked at number eight on Billboard's Adult R&B Songs chart, becoming En Vogue's first top 10 hit in twenty years.

"Reach 4 Me" is a song by American recording group En Vogue. Written by Dwayne Abernathy and Isabella Peschardt, "Reach 4 Me" was produced by Abernathy under his pseudonym Dem Jointz and released as the second single from their seventh studio album Electric Café (2018). In the United States, the song peaked at number 16 on Billboard's Adult R&B Songs chart, making it the second top 20 appearance by a single from Electric Café.

Japhe Tejeda was an American singer, songwriter, and producer, best known for co-writing "Don't Wanna Be a Player" and "The Boy Is Mine", as well as other various work with Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins and his brother Fred Jerkins III. Tejeda, alongside friends Jermaine Paul, Danny Martinez, and Charles Paul, were former members of the R&B vocal quartet 1 Accord, one of the first signees on Shaquille O'Neal's short-lived The World Is Mine (T.W.IsM.) imprint in collaboration with A&M Records.

References

  1. ↑ Rhona Bennett at IMDb
  2. ↑ "Rhona Bennet Speaks About Working On The Jamie Foxx Show! "It Was CRAZY I Never Even Auditioned!"". March 29, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2022– via YouTube.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Bennett, Rhona (August 14, 2014). Beyond a Wish – How to Discover the Champion Within. United States: Booktango. ISBN   978-1-4689-4888-2.
  4. ↑ "Rhona Rare CD Record COLLECTor's ITEMS". Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2005.Mediawars.ne.jp Retrieved on 05-11-07
  5. ↑ Historical Dictionary of African American Cinema. United States: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. May 7, 2015. ISBN   978-1-4422-4702-4.
  6. ↑ Harrison, Quentin (March 23, 2017). "INTERVIEW: En Vogue's Cindy Herron-Braggs, Forever a Funky Diva". Albumism. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  7. ↑ "En Vogue My Lovin' You're Never Gonna Get It on KTLA". YouTube. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  8. 1 2 "The Anticipation of R&B". September 23, 2009. Retrieved August 26, 2022– via YouTube.
  9. ↑ "Stream Rhona Bennett (MissR&B)" . Retrieved August 26, 2022– via SoundCloud.
  10. ↑ Schneider, Marc (February 13, 2015). "En Vogue Sued for Millions After Label Flip". Billboard . Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  11. ↑ En Vogue Vocal Outtakes for New Album "Electric Café". Youtube.com. Retrieved on August 26, 2022.
  12. 1 2 Schneider, Michael (September 30, 2014). "Exclusive: En Vogue Reunites for Lifetime Christmas Movie". TV Guide . Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  13. 1 2 Armour, TJ (February 29, 2016). "En Vogue's Rhona Bennett talks new music, blog and books". Rolling Out. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Chart Search (Rhona)". Billboard.com . Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  15. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 233.
  16. 1 2 3 "Single-Hitparade". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  17. ↑ "Rhona Bennett – Letting You Go". Shazam . Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  18. ↑ "Thank you for your support of the two single releases [...]". July 9, 2010. Retrieved August 25, 2022– via Facebook.
  19. ↑ "Rhona Bennett – Take Me There". Spotify . Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  20. ↑ "In Your Eyes (MMC '89 Version)". Spotify . Retrieved August 25, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.