Men Of Vizion
Encyclopedia
Men of Vizion is an R&B
quintet that came to fame in 1996, with the debut album, Personal, which featured the song
s "Housekeeper" and "Do Thangz", produced by Teddy Riley, "Lil" Chris Smith.
Men Of Vizion formed and is based in Brooklyn
. The group began at La Guardia High School of Music and Art where the members attended school. Corley Randolph was training to be a classical pianist
and sang frequently around the city in a jazz ensemble. Writing the first five part harmony selection for the group entitled " Kingdom on top of the world", Corley remains a writer and producer residing in Dallas Texas. In 2007 Corley Randolph opened The Vocal School of Texas. Desmond Greggs not only sings but also writes
and produces
the group's singles
and album
s. The group was formed by George "G-Fly" Spencer III along with Brian Deramus, Desmond Greggs, Corley Randolph, and original fifth member Courtney. The group started singing in gospel but later changed to R&B but Courtney felt uneasy about the decision and left the group to stay with gospel. The group down to a quartet started doing backup vocals and also danced with Queen Latifah
along with high school classmate and actor Omar Epps
. They were originally called Vizion. They then replaced Courtney with eventual lead singer and fellow Brooklyn
native Prathan "Spanky" Williams. During the early years, the band played at parties, entered talent show
s and performed at local nightclub
s. Their persistence paid off when they were signed to Jade Productions. With the support of new jack swing
vocalist Teddy Riley, the group was eventually signed with MJJ Music. As the group matured they changed their name to Men Of Vizion. Replacement members Anthony Fuller, Dwayne Jones, and Michael Best appeared in the 1989 biographical-drama film
, Lean on Me
starring Morgan Freeman
. as members of the R&B group Riff
.
Their debut album, Personal, was released in 1996. Aside from the band's hits
, Men of Vizion also worked with Tasha Scott, Sherri Blaire, "Lil" Chris Smith and Teddy Riley. Men of Vizion covered
the 1977 Jackson Five hit "Show You the Way To Go." Deramus, Greggs and Randolph left the group after the first album's release and Deramus and Greggs eventually formed a duo called The Kraft. They were replaced by three members of the R&B Group Riff
from Patterson
, New Jersey
, Anthony "Chill" Fuller, his brother Dwayne "Stylz" Jones, and Michael "Nitty Green" Best and the group released their second album MOV in 1999.
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
quintet that came to fame in 1996, with the debut album, Personal, which featured the song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s "Housekeeper" and "Do Thangz", produced by Teddy Riley, "Lil" Chris Smith.
Career
This urban quintet combines R&B basics of harmony and soul to produce a sound characteristic of '90s R&B bands. With Prathan "Spanky" Williams on vocals and George Spencer III, Brian Deramus, Desmond Greggs and Corley Randolph backing him up, Men of Vizion produced several R&B chart singles such as "House Keeper," "Do Thangz," and "Do You Feel Me? (... Freak You)." Some of their more well-known songs include "You Told Me You Love Me," "Forgive Me" and "That's Alright." Many of their songs take on a ballad-type rhythm and harmony.Men Of Vizion formed and is based in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. The group began at La Guardia High School of Music and Art where the members attended school. Corley Randolph was training to be a classical pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
and sang frequently around the city in a jazz ensemble. Writing the first five part harmony selection for the group entitled " Kingdom on top of the world", Corley remains a writer and producer residing in Dallas Texas. In 2007 Corley Randolph opened The Vocal School of Texas. Desmond Greggs not only sings but also writes
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and produces
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
the group's singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
and 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...
s. The group was formed by George "G-Fly" Spencer III along with Brian Deramus, Desmond Greggs, Corley Randolph, and original fifth member Courtney. The group started singing in gospel but later changed to R&B but Courtney felt uneasy about the decision and left the group to stay with gospel. The group down to a quartet started doing backup vocals and also danced with Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah
Dana Elaine Owens , better known by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American singer, rapper, and actress. Her work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy...
along with high school classmate and actor Omar Epps
Omar Epps
Omar Hashim Epps is an American actor, singer, songwriter, and record producer. His film roles include Major League II, Juice, Higher Learning, Scream 2, The Wood, In Too Deep, and Love and Basketball. Epps' television work includes the role of Dr. Dennis Gant on the US medical drama series ER,...
. They were originally called Vizion. They then replaced Courtney with eventual lead singer and fellow Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
native Prathan "Spanky" Williams. During the early years, the band played at parties, entered talent show
Talent show
A talent show is an event where participants perform their talent or talents of acting, singing, dancing, acrobatics, drumming, martial arts, playing an instrument, and other activities to showcase a unique form of talent, sometimes for a reward, trophy or prize...
s and performed at local nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
s. Their persistence paid off when they were signed to Jade Productions. With the support of new jack swing
New jack swing
New jack swing or swingbeat is a fusion genre spearheaded by Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle which became extremely popular from the late-1980s into the mid-1990s. Its influence, along with hip-hop, seeped into pop culture and was the definitive sound of the inventive Black New York club scene...
vocalist Teddy Riley, the group was eventually signed with MJJ Music. As the group matured they changed their name to Men Of Vizion. Replacement members Anthony Fuller, Dwayne Jones, and Michael Best appeared in the 1989 biographical-drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
, Lean on Me
Lean on Me (film)
Lean on Me is a 1989 dramatized biographical written by Michael Schiffer, directed by John G. Avildsen and starring Morgan Freeman. Lean on Me is loosely based on the story of Joe Louis Clark, a real life inner city high school principal in Paterson, New Jersey, whose school is at risk of being...
starring Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...
. as members of the R&B group Riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
.
Their debut album, Personal, was released in 1996. Aside from the band's hits
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
, Men of Vizion also worked with Tasha Scott, Sherri Blaire, "Lil" Chris Smith and Teddy Riley. Men of Vizion covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
the 1977 Jackson Five hit "Show You the Way To Go." Deramus, Greggs and Randolph left the group after the first album's release and Deramus and Greggs eventually formed a duo called The Kraft. They were replaced by three members of the R&B Group Riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
from Patterson
Patterson
-Places:Canada*Patterson, New Brunswick*Patterson Settlement, New Brunswick*Patterson Siding, New Brunswick*Patterson, Ontario*Pattersons Corners, Ontario*Patterson, Quebec*Patterson Township, Ontario*Patterson, Calgary a neighbourhood in Calgary, Alberta....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, Anthony "Chill" Fuller, his brother Dwayne "Stylz" Jones, and Michael "Nitty Green" Best and the group released their second album MOV in 1999.
Albums
- PersonalPersonal (Men of Vizion album)Personal is the debut album by R&B group Men of Vizion released by MJJ Music on May 14, 1996.-Tracklisting:# "That's Alright 5:36# "Instant Love 5:42# "House Keeper 4:33# "When You Need Someone 6:47# "Forgive Me 5:44# "Personal 6:33...
(1996) MJJ MusicMJJ MusicMJJ Music was an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment recording company, founded by American pop singer Michael Jackson....
/SonySony, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues.... - MOVMOV (Men of Vizion album)MOV is the second album by R&B group Men of Vizion released by MJJ Music on May 4, 1999.-Tracklisting:# "I Think About It# "I Like It Like That# "Hiding Place # "Real Love# "Do You Feel Me?...
(1999) MJJ MusicMJJ MusicMJJ Music was an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment recording company, founded by American pop singer Michael Jackson....
/SonySony, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....