m0rninggl0ry
All Star
Sadly, we must report the passing ofMelvin Edmonds who was a member of the vocal group After 7 member and brother of Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds.
Reports say the After 7 co-founder and co-lead singer’s death comes after a long illness. His specific cause of death has not yet been revealed.
At Indiana University, brothers Kevon and Melvin Edmonds teamed with college mate Keith Mitchell to form After 7 and played local gigs in the Bloomington area. Meanwhile, the Edmonds’ older brother, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, became part of the funk group the Deele, and ultimately joined with bandmate L.A. Reid to become the top songwriting and production team in modern music. Together LA and Babyface worked with Boyz II Men, Toni Braxton, Whitney Houston and dozens of other top acts, while Babyface also forged a successful solo singing career.
In 1988 Babyface and Reid entered into an artist development agreement with Virgin Records and approached After 7 about signing with the label. With some trepidation the trio, by then in their 30s, signed, and the resulting self-titled debut recording became a smash on both Soul and Pop radio, yielding three hits, including the chart topper “Ready or Not.” After 7 went on to become a consistent, if understated, charting act, scoring moderate hits with “Nights Like This” (from The Five Heartbeats soundtrack) and a nice cover of “Baby I’m For Real” before landing a major crossover hit in 1995 when Babyface returned to the production and songwriting helm with the wonderful midtempo number “Til You Do Me Right.”
While the group continued to score gold albums, by 1996 they were in their 40s and were considered an “adult” act. Their relationship with Virgin soured and, shockingly, After 7 members found themselves unsigned. Babyface brought brothers Melvin and Kevon together with K-Ci and JoJo to form the one song group Milestone, which landed in the top 10 with the exquisite “I Care About You” for the Soul Food soundtrack. But After 7 soon split, with Melvin (who had had some friction with the other two group members) taking a job as a truck driver and Keith working construction.
WE REMEMBER: After 7's Melvin Edmonds Passes Away
@stomachlines @O.T.I.S. @Deacon Frye @Paradise
Reports say the After 7 co-founder and co-lead singer’s death comes after a long illness. His specific cause of death has not yet been revealed.
At Indiana University, brothers Kevon and Melvin Edmonds teamed with college mate Keith Mitchell to form After 7 and played local gigs in the Bloomington area. Meanwhile, the Edmonds’ older brother, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, became part of the funk group the Deele, and ultimately joined with bandmate L.A. Reid to become the top songwriting and production team in modern music. Together LA and Babyface worked with Boyz II Men, Toni Braxton, Whitney Houston and dozens of other top acts, while Babyface also forged a successful solo singing career.
In 1988 Babyface and Reid entered into an artist development agreement with Virgin Records and approached After 7 about signing with the label. With some trepidation the trio, by then in their 30s, signed, and the resulting self-titled debut recording became a smash on both Soul and Pop radio, yielding three hits, including the chart topper “Ready or Not.” After 7 went on to become a consistent, if understated, charting act, scoring moderate hits with “Nights Like This” (from The Five Heartbeats soundtrack) and a nice cover of “Baby I’m For Real” before landing a major crossover hit in 1995 when Babyface returned to the production and songwriting helm with the wonderful midtempo number “Til You Do Me Right.”
While the group continued to score gold albums, by 1996 they were in their 40s and were considered an “adult” act. Their relationship with Virgin soured and, shockingly, After 7 members found themselves unsigned. Babyface brought brothers Melvin and Kevon together with K-Ci and JoJo to form the one song group Milestone, which landed in the top 10 with the exquisite “I Care About You” for the Soul Food soundtrack. But After 7 soon split, with Melvin (who had had some friction with the other two group members) taking a job as a truck driver and Keith working construction.
WE REMEMBER: After 7's Melvin Edmonds Passes Away
@stomachlines @O.T.I.S. @Deacon Frye @Paradise
Last edited:
