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Jade | |
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| Origin | Chicago,Illinois, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active |
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| Labels | Giant |
| Members |
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| Past members |
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| Website | officialjademusic |
Jade is an Americangirl group, formed inChicago in 1991, whose original line-up was composed of Joi Marshall, Tonya Kelly, and Di Reed. They are best known for their hit singles "I Wanna Love You", "Don't Walk Away", "One Woman", and "Every Day of the Week".
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The group Jade originally consisted of Joi Marshall, Angela M. Slates, and Debra Mitchell, under the name JAD. Producer Vassal Benford sold the song "I Wanna Love You" before Marshall, Slates, and Mitchell’s voices were recorded on the song. In order to keep the song on the soundtrack for the 1992Kid 'n Play comedyClass Act, Benford had to reproduce the song with the actual voices of the group members. When that could not be accomplished he implored the record label to drop Slates and Mitchell from the group and replace them with Di Reed and Tonya Kelly who were the voices on the song and who were signed to his production company.
Tonya Kelly and Di Reed were signed by producer Vassal Benford and the group's name was extended to Jade.[1] Kelly grew up in Chicago listening to jazz vocalists includingSarah Vaughan andNat King Cole. Joi Marshall was also from Chicago but grew up listening toMotown, especiallyDiana Ross. Reed grew up inHouston singing gospel anywhere she could.[2]
Jade's first success was on theClass Actsoundtrack in 1992. Theirhit single "I Wanna Love You" was one of the breakout songs on the soundtrack, cracking the Top 10 of the R&B charts and reaching #16 on theBillboard Hot 100. Their follow-up single "Don't Walk Away", was their biggest hit and climbed to #2 on the R&B chart and was certifiedgold by theRIAA in 1993. The single went on to sell 1.5 million copies worldwide. Subsequent singles "Looking for Mr. Do Right" and "One Woman" helped push their debut albumJade to the Max to platinum status, sparking a lengthy tour and spots onThe Tonight Show,The Arsenio Hall Show, and the U.K.'sTop of the Pops.
Jade also performed onBET'sListening Party Live. The session was recorded and released as a CD in 1993. Jade was the only group to have aBET Listening Party album released. In1994 the band appeared in themovieThe Inkwell, and released their second studio albumMind, Body & Song, on which they served as co-writers and co-producers. Singles "5-4-3-2 (Yo! Time Is Up)" and "Every Day of the Week" propelled the album to gold status.
Jade appeared onBeverly Hills, 90210 in the episode, "You've Got To Have Heart", which aired on February 8, 1995. During their appearance, they performed "Every Day of the Week". Thereafter, Tonya Kelly left the group, then briefly reunited with Joi Marshall in 1997 to contribute the track "Keep on Risin" to the soundtrack for the filmThe Sixth Man. WithTLC,SWV,Xscape and other female singers, the trio appeared on "Freedom", which first appeared on thesoundtrack to the 1995 film of the same title,Panther. The song "5-4-3-2 (Yo! Time Is Up)" was used as part of the soundtrack for theNew York Undercover episode "Eyewitness Blues".
After the group disbanded, Di Reed became a backup singer forRod Stewart,Stevie Wonder,Smokey Robinson,Christina Aguilera,Elton John, andGwen Stefani. Angela Slates became a successful music producer (producing songs forTrina & Tamara,Tony! Toni! Toné!, Vybe,Somethin' for the People andEric Benét) and she earned a Ph.D. in education. Debra Mitchell (now known as Debra Taylor) became a member of the group Vybe onIsland Records. Debra became a Contract Manager for the NFL. In February 2018, Marshall released her debut solo single "Love Language."[3]
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(February 2015) |
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [4] | US R&B [4] | AUS [5] | GER [6] | NL [7] | UK [8] | |||||||||
| 1992 | Jade to the Max
| 56 | 19 | 126 | 82 | 48 | 43 | |||||||
| 1994 | Mind, Body & Song
| 80 | 16 | 189 | — | — | — |
| ||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Album details | Peak |
|---|---|---|
| US R&B [4] | ||
| 1993 | BET's Listening Party
| 67 |
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [4] | US R&B [4] | AUS [10][5] | AUT [11] | CAN [12] | GER [6] | NL [7] | NZ [13] | SWE [14] | UK [8] | |||||
| 1992 | "I Wanna Love You" | 16 | 7 | 96 | — | 69 | — | — | 24 | — | 13 | Jade to the Max | ||
| "Don't Walk Away" | 4 | 2 | 72 | 25 | 65 | 26 | 9 | 28 | 23 | 7 | ||||
| 1993 | "One Woman" | 22 | 16 | 150 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 22 | |||
| "Looking for Mr. Do Right" | 69 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| 1994 | "5-4-3-2 (Yo! Time Is Up)" | 72 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Mind, Body & Song | ||
| "Every Day of the Week" | 20 | 15 | 138 | — | 85 | 79 | — | — | — | 19 | ||||
| 1997 | "Keep on Risin'"(featuring Lil' Rachett & Vaz) | — | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | The 6th Man | ||
| 2014 | “Baby Luv” | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | ||
| "—" denotes a recording which did not chart or was not released in that territory | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Title | Artist | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [4] | US R&B [4] | UK [16] | ||||||||||||
| 1993 | "All Thru the Nite" | P.O.V. | 120 | 31 | 32 | Handin' Out Beatdowns | ||||||||
| 1995 | "Freedom" | Various Artists | 45 | 18 | — | Panther | ||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording which did not chart or was not released in that territory | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 1995 | MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best R&B Video, "5-4-3-2 (Yo! Time Is Up)" |
