Howard Hewett
Encyclopedia
Howard Hewett is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

  R&B and gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....

 singer and former lead vocalist of the R&B group Shalamar
Shalamar
Shalamar was an American music group, primarily of the 1970s and 1980s, that was originally a disco-driven vehicle created by Soul Train booking agent Dick Griffey and show creator Don Cornelius. They went on to be an influential dance trio, masterminded by Soul Train producer Don Cornelius...

.

Raised in Akron, Ohio, Hewett moved to Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

. He would eventually meet Soul Train
Soul Train
Soul Train is an American musical variety show that aired in syndication from October 1971 to March 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists, although funk, jazz, disco, and gospel artists have also appeared.As a nod to Soul Trains...

dancer and future first wife Rainey Riley-Cunningham, then a secretary of the show's creator and original host Don Cornelius
Don Cornelius
Donald Cortez "Don" Cornelius is an American television show host and producer who is best known as the creator of the nationally syndicated dance/music franchise Soul Train, which he hosted from 1971-1993...

. It was he who introduced Hewett to fellow Soul Train dancers Jody Watley
Jody Watley
Jody Vanessa Watley is an American, singer, songwriter, record producer, and founder of Avitone Records whose music crosses genres from Pop, R&B, Jazz, Dance and Electronic Soul....

 and Jeffrey Daniel
Jeffrey Daniel
Jeffrey Daniel is an American dancer, singer-songwriter and choreographer, most notable for being a member of the R&B vocal group Shalamar. In Nigeria he is best known as an Idol series judge...

, and their group, Shalamar
Shalamar
Shalamar was an American music group, primarily of the 1970s and 1980s, that was originally a disco-driven vehicle created by Soul Train booking agent Dick Griffey and show creator Don Cornelius. They went on to be an influential dance trio, masterminded by Soul Train producer Don Cornelius...

, was born. The trio
Trio (music)
Trio is generally used in any of the following ways:* A group of three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.* The performance of a piece of music by three people.* The contrasting section of a piece in ternary form...

 is best known for songs such as "Second Time Around", "A Night to Remember", "Dancing in the Sheets" and the ballad "This Is For The Lover In You". Hewett was the group's lead singer from 1979 until 1985.

When Shalamar broke up in the mid 1980s, Hewett went on to pursue a solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...

 career. In 1986 Hewett was arrested and indicted in Miami with his fiance Mori Molina for possession with an intent to distribute cocaine. Hewitt subsequently married Molina who was convicted and served prison time. Hewett was then acquitted of the charges.
He signed with Elektra Records
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....

 and recorded 1986's I Commit To Love (R&B #12), a relatively solid urban album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

 that yielded two R&B hits, "I’m For Real" (R&B #2) and "Stay" (R&B #8). The album also included "Say Amen", a gospel tune that became a surprise hit on the Gospel charts and is Hewett's signature song
Signature song
A signature song is the one song that a popular and well-established singer or band is most closely identified with or best known for, even if they have had success with a variety of songs...

. Hewett contributed vocals to La Toya Jackson
La Toya Jackson
La Toya Yvonne Jackson is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, television personality, actress, businesswoman, philanthropist, activist and former model. She is the fifth child of the Jackson family...

's Hot 100 hit single "Heart Don't Lie" in 1984.

In 1990, Hewett released a self-titled album, which included the hit "Show Me" (R&B #2), and 1992 saw the release of the LP
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...

 Allegiance, which was not received as well as previous albums. He contributed to the second season theme song
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...

 of "Hangin' With Mr. Cooper
Hangin' with Mr. Cooper
Hangin' with Mr. Cooper is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC from 1992 to 1997, starring Mark Curry and Holly Robinson. The show took place in Curry's hometown of Oakland, California. Hangin' with Mr. Cooper was produced by Jeff Franklin Productions, in association with...

" which was a remake of Sam & Dave
Sam & Dave
Sam & Dave were an American soul and rhythm and blues duo who performed together from 1961 through 1981. The tenor voice was Samuel David Moore , and the baritone/tenor voice was Dave Prater .Sam & Dave are members of...

's R&B Top 10 hit "Soul Man
Soul Man (song)
"Soul Man" is a 1967 song written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, first successful as a #2 hit single by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam & Dave.-Song history and background:...

". This recording was produced by singer Steve Tyrell.

After 1995’s It’s Time (released by Expansion Records
Expansion Records
Expansion Records is a British record label founded by Northern soul DJ Richard Searling and Soul Bowl owner John Anderson. In 1989 DJ, Author & Journalist Ralph Tee joined the label, which both he and Searling run to this day.-Label history:...

 in the UK), Hewett stopped recording solo, spending much of his time providing guest vocals on albums by jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 artists such as Joe Sample
Joe Sample
Joseph Leslie "Joe" Sample is an American pianist, keyboard player and composer.He is one of the founding members of the Jazz Crusaders, the band which became simply The Crusaders in 1971, and remained a part of the group until its final album in 1991 .- Biography :Sample began playing the piano...

, Brian Culbertson
Brian Culbertson
Brian Culbertson is a musician and instrumentalist from Decatur, Illinois, United States. Son of jazz band director and trumpeter Jim Culbertson, Brian's instruments include the keyboard and trombone....

, and George Duke
George Duke
George Duke is a multi-faceted American musician, known as a keyboard pioneer, composer, singer and producer in both jazz and popular mainstream musical genres. He has worked with numerous acclaimed artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and professor of music...

, among others. In 2000, The Rippingtons
The Rippingtons
The Rippingtons are a contemporary group mainly relating to the genres Smooth jazz, Jazz pop, and Crossover jazz. Formed in 1986 by guitarist and band leader Russ Freeman , their career has spanned two decades...

 featured Hewett on "I Found Heaven" on their "Life in the Tropics" album. In 2001, Hewett recorded his first full gospel album, The Journey, followed a year later by The Journey Live: From the Heart.

In October 2006, Hewett released a new single, "Enough" (with jazz legend George Duke
George Duke
George Duke is a multi-faceted American musician, known as a keyboard pioneer, composer, singer and producer in both jazz and popular mainstream musical genres. He has worked with numerous acclaimed artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and professor of music...

), which has received substantial play on urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...

 and R&B radio stations. Hewett is signed to The Groove Records, an independent label based in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

. http://www.themachineproductions.com/artists.php?id=8 In October 2008, Hewett released his long awaited Christmas CD "Howard Hewett Christmas" which combines Hewett's soulful warm R&B voice with magical heartfelt classic Christmas songs to create what just may be the best new Christmas album in decades. Working together with, music greats Earth Wind and Fire, Stevie Wonder, and a new vocal sensation, Jasselle, who brings a Latin flair to the new CD, Hewett proves once again that his musical style remains wonderfully classic, offering a refreshing message that encourages the soul and reignites the true spirit of Christmas. In 2009 he record a duet with soul singer Teena Marie, "Lover's Lane," on her album Congo Square.

Albums

  • I Commit To Love (1986)
  • Forever And Ever (1988)
  • Howard Hewett (1990)
  • Allegiance (1992)
  • It's Time (1994)
  • The Journey (2001)
  • The Journey Live (2002)
  • Intimate: Live (2005)
  • If Only (2007)
  • Howard Hewett Christmas (2008)

Personal life

Hewett was married to Mari Molina in 1986 until they divorced. Hewett also married
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 actress/singer Nia Peeples
Nia Peeples
Virenia Gwendolyn "Nia" Peeples is an American R&B and dance music singer and actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Nicole Chapman on Fame...

 and they have a son, Christopher (b. 1989). Peeples appeared in the music video for his song "Show Me." Hewett married current wife Angela in 1998 and they have one daughter, Anissa and currently live in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

.

External links

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