Stephanie Mills and Shalamar

Stephanie Mills was in the music business from a very young age, performing in the Broadway play, “Maggie Flynn,” at the age of nine. That same year, she won first prize at New York’s Apollo Theater at the ‘Amateur Hour’ competition, which led to her being chosen as the opening act for the Isley Brothers. Her debut album, “Moving in the Right Direction,” for ABC Records was released in 1974. Her rich, soulful voice won her the role as Dorothy in the hit Broadway production, “The Wiz,” in 1975, whom she performed with for a number of years.

Mills moved to Motown in 1976, releasing her second album, “For the First Time,” which was written and produced by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. The album was full of sweet, tender songs showcasing her emotive voice. In 1978, Mills moved labels again to 20th Century Records, releasing “Watcha Gonna Do with my Lovin’” which went Gold and peaked at number 12 in the R&B charts and number 22 in the Billboard 200 in 1979. Her next releases, “Sweet Sensation” and “Stephanie” kept Mills’ music in the Top 40, receiving significant airplay with tracks such as “Two Hearts,” a duet with Teddy Pendergrass and “Don’t Stop Doin’ What Cha Do.”

Mills continued to have hit albums and singles throughout the 80s, having moved to MCA Records in 1983. Hits include “I have Learned to Respect the Power of love” (1985) spent two weeks at the R&B chart’s top spot, whereas “I Feel Good All Over” (1987) bettered that record with three weeks spent at number one. In the 90s, her recorded output lessened and also moved towards a more gospel-influenced sound, with her 1995 record, “Personal Inspirations.” Mills made a comeback in 2008, having recorded songs with BeBe Winans and DMX, as well as her independently released record, “Born For This” in 2004. She was also given the opportunity to display her talents to Pope Benedict XVI in 2008, when she performed in front of him at the Yankee Stadium in New York, USA. In 2012, she released a Christmas themed single, “So In Love This Christmas,” available as a download on ITunes.

With a line-up of both singers and dancers Howard Hewett, Jody Watley, and Jeffrey Daniel, Shalamar were joined by producer Leon Sylvers III, and signed with Griffey’s SOLAR Records in 1979 . The same year the group had their debut smash hit with “Take That to the Bank”, which sold over a million copies in the U.S. The single paved the way for a string of subsequent hits in both the U.S. and the UK, including “The Second Time Around” later in 1979, “I Owe You One” in 1980, and “I Can Make You Feel Good” in 1982.

“There It Is”, “Friends” and “A Night to Remember” also became smash hits in 1982, the latter of which popularised the group in the UK for Daniel’s body-popping dancing skills, where he premiered the moonwalk for the first time on the TV show "Top of the Pops". After watching Shalamar on the TV show “Soul Train”, Michael Jackson became a fan of the groups and took his 12 year old sister Janet to see the band perform at Disneyland. In addition Daniel later helped choreograph the iconic moves in Jackson’s “Bad” and “Smooth Criminal” music videos.

The band released three albums with this line-up “Big Fun”, “Three for Love” and “Friends”, representing Shalamar’s golden age. With increasing tensions with Dick Griffey and Solar Records, Watley and Daniel departed the group, making way for Micki Free and Delisa Davis. The change marked a musical move into a more new wave/synth inspired sound, however the band soon found success again. In 1984 the single “Dancing in the Sheets” from the “Footloose” soundtrack saw the band reached the Billboard Top 20 again and “Don’t Get Stopped in Beverly Hills” from “Beverly Hills Cop” earned the band their only Grammy. Hewett left the group shortly after and was replaced by Sydney Justin, although the band quickly sank into obscurity.

In 1996 the original line-up returned alongside LL Cool J and Babyface with the single “This Is for the Lover in You”. The group subsequent played again on “Top of the Pops”, the trio’s first live performance since 1983. Since then with a line-up of Daniel, Hewett and Dick Griffey’s daughter Carolyn Griffey, Shalamar have regularly toured the UK, including as part of “The Ultimate Boogie Nights Disco Concert Series” in 2009.