Shannon (singer)
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| Shannon | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Shannon Brenda Greene |
| Born | 1958 Washington, D.C., U.S.[1] |
| Genres | Dance-pop[1] Post-Disco[1] Hi-NRG[1] Electro[1] Freestyle |
| Occupations | Singer |
| Labels | Mirage Atlantic |
Shannon (born Shannon Brenda Greene,[1][2] 1958) is an American singer. She is best known for her 1983 million-selling[2] record, "Let the Music Play". The record re-defined the electro funk sound that would eventually be called freestyle music.
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[edit] Biography
In the spring of 1983, Greene was enrolled at York College and toured with the New York Jazz Ensemble. Quintin Hicks, an associate of the production team of Mark Liggett and Chris Barbosa, later saw Shannon singing with a live band in her cousin's recording studio. Shannon auditioned for Liggett and Barbosa with the song "She Can't Love You Like I Do". They introduced her to the track "Fire and Ice", which would later evolve into Shannon's signature song, "Let the Music Play". This title would also be applied to Shannon's debut album.
In September 1983, the "Let the Music Play" single was released and Shannon was invited back to record more songs with Liggett and Barbosa. The single reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 (POP) and #1 on the Billboard"s United States R&B and Hot Dance and Club Play Chart chart. Today, it is ranked #23 among Billboard's best dance songs of all time.
Her debut album, Let the Music Play, was released in February 1984. The follow-up single from the album was "Give Me Tonight", which hit the top spot on the Hot Dance, Club Play and R&B chart. It also became a significant hit on Urban radio. It was one of Billboard's top 30 dance songs for the year 1984. In the U.S., the third single was "My Heart's Divided", another Latin freestyle track, featuring Jimi Tunnell as one of the back up vocalists. "Sweet Somebody", a mid-tempo soul effort, made the Top 20 in Europe.
Let the Music Play went on to sell over 8 million copies worldwide. Shannon was nominated for a Grammy and received numerous other awards, including the Dianah Washington (Jack the Rapper) Award, the Hall of Fame Award, the Gold Ampex Reel Award, a certified gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America, and the Best Billboard Top 10 female R&B vocalist.
In 1985, Shannon released her second album, Do You Wanna Get Away, which sported a sound similar to that of her debut album. The title track became her third #1 on the Dance charts and became her third hit on the Billboard Hot 100. She scored three more dance hits from the album, including "Stronger Together", a cover of "Urgent" by Foreigner, and "Stop the Noise", with a video sponsored by Pepsi and Black Angus. Her third album was 1986's Love Goes All the Way. Shannon was Executive Producer against all odds.
Shannon asked to be released from her recording contract with Atlantic Records in 1987. She recorded soundtracks and jingles, Criminal", for the movie Fatal Beauty and Budweiser . While touring the world, Shannon attended and graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.
In the late 1990s interest in Shannon rekindled, when VH1 spotlighted her on their One Hit Wonders series. Entertainment Tonight also taped a special about her life. In 1998, she co-wrote and sang on multi tracks produced by Todd Terry, Tony Moran, Germany's Sash & Les Rythmes Digitales.
In 1999, Shannon released her fourth studio album, The Best Is Yet to Come, on which she is credited as 50% writer of the album (contracted by BMG). Chris Barbosa was invited back as a producer, along with Andy "Panda" Tripoli and Tony Moran. A greatest hits album was released in November 2004 without Shannon's knowledge and agreement.
On April 20, 2006, Shannon participated in the Freestyle Extranvaganza concert along with Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, The Cover Girls, Coro, and Stevie B.. The event was sponsored by WKTU, WSKQ, and WCAA in New York.
A fifth studio album, "A Beauty Returns", was released in 2007 without the knowledge and agreement of Shannon.
Today Shannon is a voting member of the Grammys (Recording Academy) touring the world (Kuwait, Badghdad and Iraq) with the US Soldiers. She is also in the studio working on new hits for the year 2010.
[edit] Singles
| Title (Year) | Position U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] |
Position UK Singles Chart[2] |
Position U.S. R&B[3] |
Position U.S. Dance[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Let the Music Play" (1983) | 8 | 13 | 2 | 1 |
| "Give Me Tonight" (1984) | 46 | 24 | 6 | 1 |
| "My Heart's Divided" (1984) | 48 | 3 | ||
| "Sweet Somebody" (1984) | 25 | |||
| "Do You Wanna Get Away" (1985) | 49 | 13 | 1 | |
| "Stronger Together" (1985) | 46 | 26 | 25 | |
| "Stop the Noise" (1985) | ||||
| "Urgent" (1985) | 84 | 68 | ||
| "Love Goes All the Way" (1986) | ||||
| "Prove Me Right" (1986) | 82 | |||
| "Dancin'" (1987) | 91 | |||
| "It's Got To Be Love" (1995) | ||||
| "Do the Wrong Thing" *(1996) | ||||
| "It's Over Love" **(1997) | 16 | 1 | ||
| "Move Mania" ***(1999) | 8 | |||
| "Give Me Tonight 2000" (2000) | 3 | |||
| "Let the Music Play 2000" (2000) |
*- "Do the Wrong Thing"Afrika Bambaataafeat. Shannon illegal release
**- Todd Terry featuring Shannon
***- Sash! featuring Shannon
[edit] Albums
- 1984 Let the Music Play - Mirage/Atlantic Records
- 1985 Do You Wanna Get Away - Mirage/Atlantic Records
- 1986 Love Goes All the Way - Atlantic Records
- 1996 Essential Dancefloor Artists - Deep Beats
- 2000 The Best Is Yet to Come - Contagious Records
- 2004 Let the Music Play: The Best of Shannon - Shout Factory
- 2007 A Beauty Returns - Diggin4Brown
[edit] See also
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f allmusic > ((( Shannon - Overview ))). Retrieved on 12-27-2009.
- ^ a b c Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 494. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ a b c "Allmusic ((( Shannon > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p5406/charts-awards/billboard-singles.
