9.9 was an American R&B

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic iden ...

formed in the mid-1980s. The group consisted of members Margo Thunder, Leslie Jones (1962–2013), and Wanda Perry. The group formed in 1985 in Boston, Massachusetts. They signed to

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...

and released their first album ''9.9'' and the single "All of Me for All of You". The single reached #5 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart and #51 on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), ...

singles charts.

Formation and history

Thunder was signed by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

in the 1970s and recorded the single "Expressway to Your Heart". Perry, Thunder and Jones were all friends and students at Madison Park High School, a school in Roxbury, Massachusetts. The trio were all in the same music class in the school. As a trio, the members performed on street corners and at

Boston Common The Boston Common is a public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest city park in the United States. Boston Common consists of of land bounded by five major Boston streets: Tremont Street, Park Street, Beacon Street, Charl ...

. Eventually, they answered an advertisement in the ''

Boston Phoenix ''The Phoenix'' (stylized as ''The Phœnix'') was the name of several alternative weekly periodicals published in the United States by Phoenix Media/Communications Group of Boston, Massachusetts, including the now defunct ''Boston Phoenix'', '' ...

'' and began performing in clubs under the name Margo Thunder and Intrigue. Perry, Thunder and Jones were backing vocalists for

Joe Frazier Joseph William Frazier (January 12, 1944November 7, 2011) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1965 to 1981. Nicknamed "Smokin' Joe", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He was known for ...

. Eventually, their debut album ''9.9'' was released in Summer 1985. 9.9's album reached #79 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 and #15 on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...

chart. 9.9 released a second single titled "I Like the Way You Dance." The group performed on ''

Soul Train ''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. After airing locally on WCIU-TV in Chicago, Illinois, for a year, it aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featu ...

'', ''

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...

'', and ''Solid Gold''. They also provided backing vocals for a single with

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B singer and actress. She has been referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godmother of Soul". LaBelle began ...

titled "Shy". The group continued until 1987, when disputes over material, production and personal matters forced the group to disband. Leslie Jones died on July 5, 2013; she was survived by two children and four grandchildren. Wanda Perry is married with two children. She is also a minister and has recorded several gospel albums available on iTunes. Margo Thunder formed a female group named Lady Soul, which recorded a song and video for the ''

Sister Act ''Sister Act'' is a 1992 American musical crime comedy film directed by Emile Ardolino and written by Paul Rudnick (billed as Joseph Howard). It stars Whoopi Goldberg as a lounge singer forced to hide in a convent after being placed in a witn ...

'' soundtrack titled "If My Sisters in Trouble". Margo is recording as a solo act and released a single titled "Mistreated".

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:9.9 Musical groups established in 1985 RCA Records artists American girl groups Musical groups from Boston Musical groups disestablished in 1987