*Before Somethin’ For The People became known for their voices, the trio were in hot demand for their sound.
Los Angeles-based Curtis “Sauce” Wilson, Jeff “Fuzzy” Young and Rochad “Cat Daddy” Holiday started out as a successful production outfit, working with the likes of Brandy, En Vogue and UNV while simultaneously shopping their own demos. Their big break came when producers Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy asked them to write a song for their artist Samuelle (of “So You Like What You See” fame). That led to a contract with Capitol Records in 1993 … but their album “Somethin’ For the People” was somethin’ the people largely ignored.
They switched to Warner Bros records in 1996, and this time, gave the people what they wanted. In our Radioscope report that aired 27 years ago today, the group talked about the Warner Bros reissue of their debut album, which included their Capitol-released single “You Want This Party Started.”
The song fizzled at Capitol, and Somethin’ For The People wouldn’t score a Billboard hit until the following year with the release of “This Time It’s Personal,” their 1997 sophomore album featuring the crossover single “My Love is the Shhh!” With an assist from R&B group Trina & Tamara, and a sample from The New Birth track “It’s Been A Long Time,” the song reached No. 4 on Billboard’s Hot 100, No. 2 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and No.1 on Rhythmic Top 40.
Of course, “Shhh!” hadn’t happened yet when we caught up with the group in the summer of 96. Their Capitol-released first single “You Want This Party Started” never made it to any party, and Warner Bros had chosen “With You,” another track off their re-released debut album, to try and jumpstart the talented trio that they believed in.
Listen to their Radioscope segment below, airdate Aug. 3, 1996:
The single “With You” off of the group’s self-titled debut album also failed to connect with audiences, but the people certainly responded the following year when “My Love is the Shhh!’ went platinum, and led to a third and final album, “Issues,” in 2000, which featured the less successful track, “B*tch With No Man.”
After the group’s 90s heyday, Sauce and Cat Daddy continued to write and produce songs for other artists, including Eric Benét, Heather Headley, Javier, Ne-Yo, Musiq Soulchild, Eminem, Drake and Ariana Grande. Sadly, Fuzzy died from an apparent heart attack in 2011.
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