Brutha
Encyclopedia
Brutha was originally composed had 5 members, but the three older brothers, Anthony & Grady Harrell III, and Jared Overton left the group because they wanted to move on and do their own thing. Their show, Brothers to Brutha
, shows their transformation during and after they rose to fame. The brothers are signed to Def Jam Records, and their self-titled debut album "Brutha" was released in December 2008.
The group formed in 2002 and Brian Mcknight introduced them on the 2003 Soul Train
Holiday Special.
In 2007, their uncle Donny "Drano" Harrell, CEO of Goodfellas Entertainment, and Shakir Stewart, senior vice president of A&R at Island Def Jam, invited the group to Atlanta to do a filmed audition in front of Jermaine Dupri
and a range of producers. It resulted in a one-hour original special TV show called "Jermaine Dupri presents: Brutha", broadcast March 24 on Peachtree TV. The group caught the attention of Jermaine Dupri, who signed them to the Island Def Jam Music Group.
Because the group disbanded, the two brothers left decided to change their name from Brutha to Jake & Papa.
. Before hitting the "Big Time" they played graduation parties and bar mitzvahs.
Anthony "Ant" Harrell
Jared "JR" Overton
Sexy Cheyenne "Papa" Harrell
Sexy Jacob "Jake" Harrell
and formed the group Papa’s Results, being trained and taught by Grady Harrell II, who was then signed to MCA Records
prior to a prison term. The children appeared in his R&B hit single “Sticks and Stone” and did many local shows throughout California. The group lasted until Canela moved to Holland to follow her mother's musical career. They filled her spot with family friend Jeff Lee and changed their name to Serenade. The trio quickly gained notice. They appeared on episodes from Saved by the Bell: The New Class
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkYZihr4cMg in 1997 where Anthony played the regular role of Eric Little.The Nade split up. As a duet comprising the 2 Harrell brothers Grady and Anthony, they put down 2 independent albums, in 1999 and 2001. In 2002 they were joined by their brothers JR, Jake, and Papa and formed Brutha. The group was discovered by Brian Mcknight, who introduced them on the 2003 Soul Train Holiday Special. Along with their success, there has also been controversy in their family. Anthony Harrell also did the voice over singing for "Young Michael Jackson" played by Alex Burell in the 1992 TV mini series The Jacksons: An American Dream.
(died in 2008 of an apparent suicide), senior vice president of A&R at Island Def Jam, invited the group to Atlanta to do a filmed audition in front of Jermaine Dupri and a range of producers. It resulted in a one-hour original special TV show called "Jermaine Dupri presents : Brutha", broadcast March 24 on Peachtree TV.The group caught the attention of Jermaine Dupri
who signed them to the Island Def Jam Music Group.
As a hoax to boost dismal album sales, an alleged Presidential-elect Barack Obama aide had asked them to perform at the inauguration on January 20, 2009, after liking their acapellas on Youtube. This is not the only controversy surrounding the group. Questions regarding their true ages as well as the originality of their music have been hot topics among their fans as well as critics alike.
The brothers have released 2 mixtapes: Destination Short Stay & Destination Short Stay II
Brothers to Brutha
Brothers to Brutha is a reality show on BET that premiered November 18, 2008. It follows five brothers who have a record deal on Island Def Jam Music Group as the R&B group Brutha. The show aired Tuesday nights at 10:30pm. The First Season consisted of six episodes. A Second Season has been...
, shows their transformation during and after they rose to fame. The brothers are signed to Def Jam Records, and their self-titled debut album "Brutha" was released in December 2008.
The group formed in 2002 and Brian Mcknight introduced them on the 2003 Soul Train
Soul Train
Soul Train is an American musical variety show that aired in syndication from October 1971 to March 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists, although funk, jazz, disco, and gospel artists have also appeared.As a nod to Soul Trains...
Holiday Special.
In 2007, their uncle Donny "Drano" Harrell, CEO of Goodfellas Entertainment, and Shakir Stewart, senior vice president of A&R at Island Def Jam, invited the group to Atlanta to do a filmed audition in front of Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
and a range of producers. It resulted in a one-hour original special TV show called "Jermaine Dupri presents: Brutha", broadcast March 24 on Peachtree TV. The group caught the attention of Jermaine Dupri, who signed them to the Island Def Jam Music Group.
Because the group disbanded, the two brothers left decided to change their name from Brutha to Jake & Papa.
The Brothers and their childhood
The five brothers in the band are Grady Harrell III, Cheyenne Harrell (Papa), Jacob Harrell (Jake), Jared Overton (J.R), and Anthony Harrell(Ant). Four of the brothers' father is Grady Harrell Jr., a singer from Los Angeles who made his mark in music and encouraged his sons to follow in his footsteps, while Jared "J.R." Overton has a different father but the same mother as 2 of his brothers making him unrelated to Cheyenne Harrell and Jacob Harrell. Their father was a disciplinarian. He taught them how to sing, while the boys' uncle Donny (Drano) Harrell furthered their music careers. The boys, however, had different mothers. Papa and Jacob's mother is named Kierra. The mother of Jared, Anthony, and Grady Jr. is Nancy Lynn. Papa and Jacob were not raised by their father, as he had been convicted of fraud and was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison. The boys were raised on the music of their inspirations, which ranged from Sam Cooke to Stevie WonderStevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
. Before hitting the "Big Time" they played graduation parties and bar mitzvahs.
Brothers
Grady Harrell IIIAnthony "Ant" Harrell
Jared "JR" Overton
Sexy Cheyenne "Papa" Harrell
Sexy Jacob "Jake" Harrell
Brutha Growing up
The Harrell brothers came to the entertainment world at a young age out of a four-generations musical family. At 5 and 6 years old, Anthony Harrell and Grady Harrell III hooked up with their first cousin Canela CoxCanela Cox
Canela is an American R&B singer and songwriter. She is best known in the mixtape circuit for her DJ Clue-remixed song, "Sponsor", and for co-writing Anastacia's worldwide top 20 hit, "Why'd You Lie to Me". She once recorded an album in 2001, however it was shelved after her label folded.-Early...
and formed the group Papa’s Results, being trained and taught by Grady Harrell II, who was then signed to MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
prior to a prison term. The children appeared in his R&B hit single “Sticks and Stone” and did many local shows throughout California. The group lasted until Canela moved to Holland to follow her mother's musical career. They filled her spot with family friend Jeff Lee and changed their name to Serenade. The trio quickly gained notice. They appeared on episodes from Saved by the Bell: The New Class
Saved by the Bell: The New Class
Saved by the Bell: The New Class is a spin-off of the Saved by the Bell series which ran from September 11, 1993 to January 8, 2000. The series lasted for seven seasons on NBC as a part of the network's TNBC Saturday morning line-up. It was the fourth incarnation of the franchise...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkYZihr4cMg in 1997 where Anthony played the regular role of Eric Little.The Nade split up. As a duet comprising the 2 Harrell brothers Grady and Anthony, they put down 2 independent albums, in 1999 and 2001. In 2002 they were joined by their brothers JR, Jake, and Papa and formed Brutha. The group was discovered by Brian Mcknight, who introduced them on the 2003 Soul Train Holiday Special. Along with their success, there has also been controversy in their family. Anthony Harrell also did the voice over singing for "Young Michael Jackson" played by Alex Burell in the 1992 TV mini series The Jacksons: An American Dream.
Making success
In 2008, their uncle Donny "Drano" Harrell, CEO of Goodfellas Entertainment, and the late Shakir StewartShakir Stewart
Shakir Stewart , a native of Oakland, California, was a US record executive in a number of companies, the latest being Def Jam...
(died in 2008 of an apparent suicide), senior vice president of A&R at Island Def Jam, invited the group to Atlanta to do a filmed audition in front of Jermaine Dupri and a range of producers. It resulted in a one-hour original special TV show called "Jermaine Dupri presents : Brutha", broadcast March 24 on Peachtree TV.The group caught the attention of Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
who signed them to the Island Def Jam Music Group.
As a hoax to boost dismal album sales, an alleged Presidential-elect Barack Obama aide had asked them to perform at the inauguration on January 20, 2009, after liking their acapellas on Youtube. This is not the only controversy surrounding the group. Questions regarding their true ages as well as the originality of their music have been hot topics among their fans as well as critics alike.
Albums
| Year | Information | Chart positions | Sales and certifications | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
U.S. R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
BCA Billboard Comprehensive Albums Billboard Comprehensive Albums was established in 2003 and was a weekly albums chart produced by Billboard magazine that ranked the biggest selling albums in the United States regardless of the product's age or method of sales.... |
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| 2008 | Brutha Brutha (album) -Chart:...
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Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... : TBA |
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| 2011 | Vacancy Studio album A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or... |
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Singles
| Year | Song | Chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US R&B Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
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| 2008 | "I Can't Hear the Music" (featuring Fabolous Fabolous John David Jackson , better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper of African American and Dominican descent. He grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. Part of his early popularity arose from his hit single "Can't Deny It" in 2001, from his debut... ) |
— | 51 | Brutha Brutha (album) -Chart:... |
| "She's Gone" | — | 103 | ||
| 2010 | "One Day on This Earth" | — | 94 | Vacancy |
| "Can't Get Enough" | — | 50 | ||
| 2011 | "High Is Coming Down" | — | — |
The brothers have released 2 mixtapes: Destination Short Stay & Destination Short Stay II
External links
- Official site
- [ Brutha] on Allmusic
- BET Shows - Brothers to Brutha
- Def Jam label website
- Press release
- ArtistDirect interview