Throwback Tuesday

I'm pretty easily distracted. I somehow manage to distract myself consistently and without fail. One way I do that during the day is via gchat/google talk. Today one of my friends and I were talking about the "good ol' days" It all started when she sent me a link to Jennifer Lopez's video for I'm Real.. In turn I was reminded of her first song If You Had My Love. Really I remembered my friend and I watching this video every morning on VH1 before we went to catch the bus for school.

All this lead to a back and forth of videos from our middle school days. There was always something about music I've been drawn to. I remember singing Baby, Baby, Baby by TLC and Hip Hop Hooray by Naughty by Nature on the bus when I was in Kindergarten (yes, complete with hands waving). Play a song from the 90s and I'm usually going to guess the year correctly (give or take a year), even if I never heard it. The 90s was broken up by certain types of sound.

The early 90s was fraught with R&B ballads. We were coming off the late 80s when people like Freddie Jackson, Al B Sure, and Peabo Bryson were popping. We also saw the entrance of New Jack Swing. Artists like SWV, TLC, and Guy were influenced by the sounds of producers like Teddy Riley who paved the way for...

The mid-90s. We had hip-hop songs that were R&B and influences of rap fused together. We got classics like "I Can't Stand the Rain" by Missy and "Kissin' You" by Total. I say Missy and Timbaland deserve a lot of credit for that shift.

The late-90s brought out a lot of boy bands. We had groups like Backstreet Boys, 98 Degrees and N'Sync claiming that groups from the 80s and early 90s like New Edition, and Boys II Men had influenced them. Something about a new millenium heading our way brought some futuristic sounds to Hip-Hop and Pop music. Folks started getting a little more free with studio effects and so we had the J.Los and Ashanti's. But we also saw some of the R&B princesses like Aaliyah, Brandy, Monica and Mya get some real play.

In honor of all the quality music we heard (and some of us didn't hear) from the 90s, I'm doing Throwback Tuesdays. I specifically want to highlight groups like Silk and Shai and Kut Klose and Jade who didn't stick around long but those of us who appreciate 90s R&B and hip hop really know and love them.

Up first, Shai -- If I Ever Fall

Shai - If I Ever Fall In Love
Uploaded by Momo59-93

Eventually I'm going to run short on ideas, so do send me suggestions. We'll be doing this every Tuesday.