The sweet urban soul quartet 98° was formed in Los Angeles by four former Ohio residents: brothers Nick and Drew Lachey plus Jeff Timmons and Justin Jeffre. Timmons was trying to make it in the music industry, so he called Jeffre and Nick Lachey -- both former classmates at the Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Artists -- and formed... [+] Read More

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Not long after securing a contract with the LaFace label and releasing their self-titled debut album in late 1996, hip-hop group Az Yet reached the R&B Top 20 with their "Last Night" single. The track hit gold by early 1997. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide

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As if the roles of producer, songwriter, multi-musician, and entrepreneur aren't enough, this young artist is best known as the smooth neo-soul singer, E. BLAND. Coupled with powerful lyrics and soulful music, his silky smooth delivery is a gift that has already touched many around the world. His sound evokes the best in neo-soul with the... [+] Read More

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Born in Washington, D.C., Johnny Gill was discovered by singer Stacy Lattisaw after singing in his family's group Wings of Faith from age five. His solo career began in 1983 with the Top 30 R&B single "Super Love." In duo with Lattisaw, he scored an R&B Top Ten hit in 1984 with "Perfect Combination." In 1988, Gill joined New Edition, replacing... [+] Read More

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Cedric and Joel Hailey comprise the romantic R&B duo K-Ci & JoJo, who were one of two pairs of brothers that made up the chart-topping '90s group Jodeci. The Haileys grew up singing in church choirs in Charlotte, NC, and toured the South with their father's gospel group. When they met the DeGrate brothers, Dalvin and "DeVante Swing," they... [+] Read More

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After a false start with the late-'80s vocal group Maniquin, Kenny Lattimore became a minor urban R&B star in his own right in 1996, when his eponymous debut album generated two hit singles.

Lattimore was born and raised in Washington, D.C., where he grew up in a musical family. Before he reached his teens, he was winning talent... [+] Read More

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Along with fellow founders D'Angelo and Erykah Badu, Maxwell was enormously important in defining and shaping the neo-soul movement that rose to prominence over the latter half of the '90s. Drawing his greatest inspiration from the concept of the R&B auteur (looking to artists like Prince, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, etc.), Maxwell recorded some... [+] Read More

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Born one of the seven children of Thomas and Gwendolyn East on December 8, 1955, in Philadelphia, PA, Nathan East and his family moved to San Diego, CA, when he was four years old to accommodate his father's aerodynamic engineering job. As a child, East would peck out familiar melodies on the family piano. He began playing the cello in the... [+] Read More

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R&B singer Tyrese began his career at the age of 14, performing in local talent shows around his home in Los Angeles' Watts section; his big break came when he starred in a commercial for Coca-Cola, shortly followed in 1998 by his self-titled debut album for RCA. He followed three years later with 2000 Watts. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

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