The Ones are an American
electronic dance music group. Their 2001
hit
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...
single "
Flawless" peaked within the top ten of the charts in Belgium and the United Kingdom.
The
trio consisted of three male
vocalists Paul Alexander, JoJo Americo, and
Nashom Wooden, who met while working at the
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
boutique
Patricia Field. Each of them has a background in performing,
DJing, and being stylists within the underground New York
club and
fashion
Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fash ...
scenes.
Their debut single, "Flawless", was inspired by
the 1999 film, which Nashom appeared in alongside
Robert De Niro
Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
. It was first released on the New York based A Touch of Class Recordings label, and was popular among New York DJs even before its official release. In 2004, "Flawless" was
sampled and had
lyrics
Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a " libretto" and their writer, ...
added to it by British singer and former
Wham! frontman
George Michael for his song "
Flawless (Go to the City)
"Flawless (Go to the City)" is a song co-written and performed by British singer George Michael and released by Sony BMG on 28 June 2004. It samples " Flawless" (2001), originally recorded by the electronic music band the Ones, which in turn sam ...
". Michael's version peaked at number eight on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
in July 2004, almost three years after the original had peaked at number seven on the chart.
The group released a follow up single, "Superstar", which reached number 45 in the same country.
In November 2006, they released "Ultramodern", with a
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...
and clips available on A Touch of Class's website. The Ones signed to Peacebisquit management in 2007. They tweaked their look and sound and released a 2008 single, "When We Get Together", with a video clip featuring cameos from the
Scissor Sisters,
Debbie Harry,
Jody Watley,
Fischerspooner,
Ultra Naté,
Peppermint
Peppermint (''Mentha'' × ''piperita'') is a hybrid species of mint, a cross between watermint and spearmint. Indigenous to Europe and the Middle East, the plant is now widely spread and cultivated in many regions of the world.Euro+Med Plantb ...
,
Cazwell
Luke Caswell, known mononomously as Cazwell, is an American rapper, record producer and songwriter. He has released the three studio albums '' Get Into It'' in 2006, ''Watch My Mouth'' in 2009 and ''Hard 2 B Fresh'' in 2014, along with videos and ...
,
Colton Ford
Glenn Soukesian, known professionally as Colton Ford, is an American singer, actor, and former pornographic actor. As of May 2007, he resides in New York City.
Career
Adult pornographic career
Colton Ford appeared in a dozen gay adult celebrate ...
, and many others.
Nomi Ruiz collaborated with the Ones on their single "Let's Celebrate!" from their fourth album ''Blast from the Past''.
In August 2013,
Cher
Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...
released the video "A Woman's World" and almost immediately fans of the Ones complained of similarities to the Ones' video "Face & Body" which was released months earlier the same year. The band saw the comparison more as a compliment than controversy.
Nashom Wooden died on March 23, 2020, after reportedly contracting
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
.
Discography
Singles
References
External links
A Touch of Class official site*
Discography on Discogs
Electronic music groups from New York (state)
{{US-electronic-band-stub