Johnny Gill set to perform at CFW

R&B superstar and singer of the worldwide #1 smash hits My My My, Rub You The Right Way and Wrap My Body Tight, Johnny Gill, will perform live in concert at CFW 2010.

Gill, the first of the celebrity performers to be announced by Pulse for this year’s 10th anniversary event, will be coming to Jamaica with his wife Carissa, herself a well- known cover girl. According to Pulse, other stars will be announced shortly, as the company looks to celebrate 10 years of CFW “in appropriate style”.

The year 2010 will be a record one for the event, a release from Pulse said. From as early as January, CFW had received more designer applications than it had ever received in a single year. With the addition of the Haiti Art and Fashion benefit event on Thursday, June 10, the collections are now scheduled for four nights of shows, instead of the usual three. Designers will come from over 20 countries, including France, Germany, the UK, Belize, the USA, South Africa, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and several other countries.

Johnny Gill, the son of a minister, was born in Washington, DC. He started singing at age five in a family gospel group called Wings Faith, which included his brothers Bobby, Jeff, and Randy. His recording career began in 1983 when his childhood friend, singer Stacy Lattisaw, convinced him to record a demo. This demo fell into the hands of the president of Atlantic Records, and his self-titled debut album was released shortly thereafter, featuring the minor hit, Super Love. Gill then teamed up with Lattisaw for a duet album, which featured their first hit together, Perfect Combination.

A second album on Atlantic Records yielded the song Half Crazy, which is still a fan favourite.

Gill began a new chapter in his career in 1987, when he was recruited by Michael Bivins to be the new fifth member of New Edition. The previous fifth member, Bobby Brown, had been voted out of the group and enjoyed a successful solo career before reuniting with the group. With Gill as one of the lead singers, the group developed a more mature, adult sound, hitting the charts with songs such as Can You Stand The Rain, NE Heartbreak, and the Gill-led Boys To Men.

Continuing his role as a romantic balladeer, he released a second self-titled album which included the hits My, My, My, Rub You the Right Way, Fairweather Friend and Wrap My Body Tight. On this album, Gill played guitar, bass, bongos, and drums, in addition to performing lead and background vocals. In 1993, Gill released another solo project, Provocative, which included the songs Quiet Time to Play, A Cute, Sweet, Love Addiction, and a moving gospel song, I Know Where I Stand.

In 1996, Gill was reunited with New Edition, including Brown, as they recorded Home Again, an album noted for the singles Hit Me Off and Still In Love. The title song, Home Again, although not released as a single, is one of the most impressive vocal performances recorded by the group to date.

In 1996, Gill also released Let’s Get the Mood Right, which included the title song Love In an Elevator and Maybe, which is considered by many to be one of his greatest vocal performances ever. The following year, he collaborated with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat to form the supergroup LSG which resulted in the multi-platinum debut album, Levert-Sweat-Gill, and a follow-up album in 2003 entitled LSG2.

His latest recording, You For Me (The Wedding Song) from the Madea’s Family Reunion soundtrack received strong reviews from music critics as well as the general public. In 2008, Gill, as a member of New Edition, was the recipient of the Golden Note Award at ASCAP’s 21st Annual Rhythm & Soul Music Awards.

With over 80 television and film appearances as a singer and actor, Gill earned much acclaim for his cameo role on the hit TV show, Family Matters (TV series) and thrilled audiences singing You For Me in the movie Madea’s Family Reunion. In October 2004 Rub You The Right Way appeared in popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Caribbean Fashion Week takes place June 8 – 14 at the National Indoor Sports Centre in Kingston.