Adina Marie Howard (born November 14, 1973) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to fame during the mid-1990s with her debut album, '' Do You Wanna Ride?'' and her debut single, "

Freak like Me "Freak like Me" is a song by American R&B singer Adina Howard, released on January 25, 1995, by labels East West and Lola Waxx, as the debut single from her first album, '' Do You Wanna Ride?'' (1995). The song reached number two on the US '' ...

". Some of her other minor

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

include "What's Love Got to Do with It?" (with

Warren G Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and DJ who helped popularize West Coast hip hop during the 1990s.Steve Huey"Warren G: Biography" ''AllMusic.com'', Netaktion LLC, visited May 8, 2020. ...

), "(Freak) And U Know It", "Nasty Grind", "Freaks" (with

Play-N-Skillz Play-N-Skillz are a Latin/American record production/DJ group duo from Dallas, Texas, consisting of brothers Juan "Play" Salinas and Oscar "Skillz" Salinas. Their production has won several Grammys including the Grammy Award for Best Rap Perfor ...

and

Krayzie Bone Anthony Henderson (born June 17, 1973), better known as Krayzie Bone, is an American rapper. He is a member of the hip-hop group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. Career Solo After finding success with Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Krayzie Bone recorded his so ...

) and " T-Shirt & Panties" (with

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...

Early life

Adina Marie Howard was born on November 14, 1973, and raised in

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, by her mother with her three younger sisters. The family would later move to

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. One of her earliest role models was

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

, another Michigan native. In the mid-1990s, she gained the attention of manager-producer Livio Harris, who helped her record some demos and later land a deal with Max Gousse through Mecca Don/EastWest Records.

Career

1993–1996: ''Do You Wanna Ride?'' and the hit success of "Freak Like Me"

Her debut album '' Do You Wanna Ride?'', featuring the Platinum-certified hit single, "

", was released in 1995 and was certified Gold by the RIAA. Her follow-up singles included "My Up and Down" (#32 R&B, No. 68 Hot 100) and "It's All About You" (#58 R&B). In 1996, she collaborated with

for the '' Police Story 3: Super Cop'' soundtrack with the single "

What's Love Got to Do with It What's Love Got to Do with It may refer to: Related to Tina Turner * "What's Love Got to Do with It" (song), a 1984 song by Tina Turner; covered by Warren G, 1996 * ''What's Love Got to Do with It'' (1993 film), a 1993 biographical film about Turne ...

" which featured a sample of the

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

hit. The single was another hit for the two, peaking at No. 36 on the Hot 100, No. 32 on R&B, and No. 2 on the UK charts. The music video also featured

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...

in a cameo. Also that year, she collaborated on a track with

Somethin' for the People Somethin' for the People was a R&B group from Oakland, California, who scored several hits in the US in the late 1990s. They were best known for their 1997 hit single " My Love Is the Shhh!" featuring Trina & Tamara. History The group was f ...

titled "Damned If I Do" which appeared on the soundtrack for ''

A Thin Line Between Love and Hate ''A Thin Line Between Love and Hate'' is a 1996 American comedy thriller film starring and directed by Martin Lawrence in his feature film directorial debut. It tells the story of Darnell Wright (Lawrence), a ladies' man who finds himself st ...

'' as well as their self-titled debut album. She also recorded the track "For the Funk" for the ''Sunset Park'' soundtrack.

1997: ''Welcome to Fantasy Island'' and acting

In 1997, she prepared for the release of her second album, '' Welcome to Fantasy Island'' (originally titled ''Portrait of a Lady''). It garnered critical raves and a moderate hit with the lead single, "(Freak) And U Know It", but was shelved by

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

in 1997. The album was leaked to the internet a few years later and promotional copies sell for hundreds of dollars One of the shelved album's tracks, " T-Shirt & Panties" (a collaboration with

) ended up on a soundtrack the following year. It was originally slated for the soundtrack to his film ''

Booty Call ''Booty Call'' is a 1997 American buddy comedy film directed by Jeff Pollack, and written by J. Stanford Parker (credited as Bootsie) and Takashi Bufford. The film stars Tommy Davidson, Jamie Foxx, Vivica A. Fox, and Tamala Jones. Plot Rusho ...

'' but it eventually ended up on the soundtrack to the 1998 feature film ''

Woo Woo, or variants, may refer to: People * Wu (surname), and several variants and other transliterations ** Wu (surname 伍) ** Wu (surname 武) ** Ng (name): 吳, 伍 * Hu (surname), also pronounced Woo * Woo (Korean surname) * Woo (Korean give ...

''. It was released promotionally as a single, and the remix featured

Cam'ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), known Mononym, mononymously as Cam'ron, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in the early 1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed with Lance Rivera, Lance "Un" Rivera's Lance Rivera, Untertainment, a ...

and

Charli Baltimore Tiffany Lane (born August 16, 1974), better known by her stage name Charli Baltimore, is an American rapper, and television personality. Her stage name is taken from Geena Davis's character in the film '' The Long Kiss Goodnight''. Career Ch ...

. Also this year, she collaborated with Cydal on a track titled "Chocolate (Cuties & Condoms)" which was released as a single for the ''

Bulletproof Bulletproofing is the process of making an object capable of stopping a bullet or similar high velocity projectiles (e.g. shrapnel). The term bullet resistance is often preferred because few, if any, practical materials provide complete protecti ...

'' soundtrack. The track was also included on their debut album ''Cydalwayz'' the following year. During this time, she made her feature film debut in the independent film ''

High Freakquency ''High Freakquency'' is a 1998 comedy directed by Tony Singletary about life at an urban radio station. The film's tagline is ''Where Comedy Is In Heavy Rotation''. Synopsis 24-7 Radio finds itself at the top of the charts, yet all is not well ...

'', starring

Deon Richmond Deon Richmond (born April 2, 1978) is an American actor from New York City who is best known for his recurring roles as Rudy Huxtable's friend Kenny (nicknamed "Bud") on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby Show'' and Jordan Bennett on the ABC/The WB sitco ...

and

John Witherspoon John Witherspoon (February 5, 1723 – November 15, 1794) was a Scottish-American Presbyterian minister, educator, farmer, slaveholder, and a Founding Father of the United States. Witherspoon embraced the concepts of Scottish common sense real ...

. In 2002, she filmed her second movie role, in the still-unreleased ''Casanova's Demise'' for director

Tigre Hill Tigre Hill is a filmmaker known for tackling controversial subjects. He is perhaps best known for his first documentary, ''The Shame of a City''. Background Tigre Hill was born in Pittsburgh and raised in the western Philadelphia neighborhood of W ...

. Also this year, she collaborated with the Hip-Hop group PYG'z and Yuck Mouth on the track "Been Around the World" for the former's debut album.

1998–2005: New label and ''The Second Coming''

By 2004, Howard released her third album '' The Second Coming'' on Rufftown Records. A

video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...

was made for the first single, "Nasty Grind",

Mark Rezyka Mark Rezyka (born 11 June 1959 in Montreal, Canada) was best known as a top director of Heavy metal music, heavy metal music videos in the 1980s and 1990s. With partners Marcelo Epstein and Dominic Orlando, he founded Pendulum Productions in 1982, ...

Directed the video and the music video was produced by Jack Edward Sawyers. The video featured Adina topless covering herself while she sang. The video played on

BET Black Entertainment Television (BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting Black American audiences. It is the flagship channel of the BET Media Group, a subsidiary of Paramount Global's CBS Entertainment Group. Originally launched ...

during early morning hours. The album sold poorly due to lack of promotion and only managed to gather 40,000 copies on store shelves and she was later sued by the label. A second single, "(Outside) The Club" was slated to be released, along with a remix album ''The Second Coming: Remixed & UnCut'' but both were canceled following her departure from the label. Later that year, she collaborated with

and

for the track "Freaks" which sampled her hit single "Freak Like Me". The single appeared on the

album ''The Process'' and became a hit, peaking at No. 52 R&B and No. 69 on the Hot 100 (her first-charting single in 7 years). She released an official mixtape album (with DJ RIP) featuring new songs, remixes, and unreleased tracks titled ''Let You Hit'' through SoundJewelz.com on August 5, 2005.

2006–2007: ''Private Show''

In 2006, she announced that the single "Phone Sex" was going to be released, but the following year, the song "L.O.V.A." was released digitally as her lead single. Additionally, a song titled "Hips" was announced to be her second single. Her fourth album, '' Private Show'' was delayed many times by Arsenal Records, almost to the point of being shelved. However, it was released on June 26, 2007, along with a promotional single, "Picture This". As of 2008, the album has sold 4,000+ copies. Following the album's release, a remixes EP for "My Hips" (appears as "Hips" on her album) was released on iTunes & other digital services in December. A third official single, "Tease" was slated to be released, but as Howard parted ways with the label shortly after the album's release, it was cancelled. In 2008, she appeared in the short film ''Poke the Sleeping Bear'' which won the Grand Jury Award at the 2008 Solstice Film Festival. On September 25, 2009, a UK compilation ''Independent Soul Divas 2'' was released on Lola Waxx Records. This compilation album featured "What Do I Do", a song recorded by Howard in 2008. The album version is different than the version that was originally included on Howard's MySpace page.

2008–2014: Culinary school, marriage and documentary

In 2011, she started work on her Culinary Arts degree, a cookbook, a new album and a restaurant in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. She graduated from the Le Cordon Bleu with an Associates in Culinary Arts in October 2012. In 2012, Howard released two buzz singles online: "2 Close" and "Ooh Wee". She collaborated with rapper Ruffa on the track "I Want You" for his ''Coming to America'' album which was released on July 31, 2012. On January 16, 2013, Howard wrote on her Twitter account that her new single "Better Than Ever" would be released soon. She premiered a snippet of the single on January 28 on her official YouTube page. A longer version premiered on March 6 on the mixtape ''DJ Jump Off's R&B Madness Volume 4''. Additionally, she signed a new record deal with Monarchy Records in April 2013. She also filmed an episode of TV One's ''Life After'' in April, and it is set to premiere during the Fall 2013 season on October 2. In July, she announced that she will be releasing an EP next, ahead of her forthcoming fifth studio album. On September 10, 2013, she released her new single "Switch" which is the lead single off her fifth studio album ''The Switch Up''. It received positive reviews, and won "Best Dance/Club Single of the Year" at the 2013 UB Honors, which was voted by the public. On December 3, 2013, it was announced that Howard would be the resident chef on Wednesday nights at Michael's Cafe and Supper Club in Phoenix, Arizona. She completed her run at the end of December. In June 2014, it was announced that Howard had landed the lead role of April in Derrell Lawrence's touring stage play "Do You Trust Your Best Friend?" and is set to make her stage debut in October in Washington, DC. She later confirmed that her role had been changed to Olivia in the play. She announced in November 2014 that she signed a new label deal with SMG/Sony Red in addition to news of a new single "Bad 4 Me" set for release in December. Howard is also set to appear on

Centric Centric may refer to: * BET Her, an American cable channel known as Centric from 2009 until 2017 * Centric Multimedia, Greek company also known as Centric and Centric Holdings S.A * Centric (magazine), free student magazine of the University of ...

's new docu-series "Being" in early 2015. She released a cover of

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer, songwriter, musician, and businesswoman. With over 30 million records sold worldwide, she was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix ...

's "Love is a Losing Game" in January 2015 to media outlets. A documentary, ''Adina Howard 20: A Story of Sexual Liberation'' was released on May 6, 2015.

2015–2018: ''Resurrection'' and TV/film projects

In June, she announced that her single "Bad 4 Me" will make its premiere on a San Diego, CA radio station on June 5, ahead of her appearance at the Urban Network Digital "Back To Basics 2" Music Summit that weekend. It was released to digital outlets on August 14, 2015. She was also working on her next album now titled ''#IHeartAdinaHoward'' (originally titled ''The Switch Up''). She was featured on

Pitbull Pit bull is an umbrella term for several types of dog believed to have descended from bull and terriers. In the United States, the term is usually considered to include the American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, American B ...

's single "FREE.K", which sampled her hit single "Freak Like Me". Her "Being" interview originally filmed back in 2014, premiered on December 9, 2015, under their new series "Designed For". In March 2016, she was featured on the new single "Freak" by R3hab and Quintino, who sampled her single "Freak Like Me". In May 2016, she previewed four new songs ("Love Jones", "Come Over", "Nasty" and "Run It") from ''

Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions involving the same person or deity returning to another body. The disappearance of a body is anothe ...

'' on her

Periscope A periscope is an instrument for observation over, around or through an object, obstacle or condition that prevents direct line-of-sight observation from an observer's current position. In its simplest form, it consists of an outer case with ...

account, in addition to doing a mini-concert for her fans. In June 2016, she announced she'll be playing the role of Candice in the new stage musical ''For All My Girls'' alongside April Nixon,

Monifah Monifa Carter (born January 28, 1972), also known as Monifah, is an American R&B singer. She is best known for her association with the late rapper Heavy D and her music from the mid-1990s, including "I Miss You (Come Back Home)", "You" and " ...

and Marlain Angelides premiering in New York on June 27. In July, one of her new promotional photos went viral, in which she released a sneak peek into her album for her fans the following weekend. A year after its release, the album's lead single "Bad 4 Me" was featured on

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

and garnered renewed interest and radio airplay. In November, she announced the ''Resurrection'' album will be released on March 17, 2017. On December 6, 2016, she released a ''Resurrection'' mixtape with DJ Daz-One on AudioMack. A few days earlier, her vocals were sampled once again on the DJ Luke Nasty track "Adina (Freaks)" produced by Djay Cas. On January 25, 2017, she shot a music video for the track "Blasphemy" in California. It premiered on March 20, 2017. On March 17, 2017, an EP containing previously unreleased/released material was released through Famous Records Corp / Echo International called ''Freaky''. While many of the song titles were variations on the word "freak" they were actually renamed tracks from previous releases. "(Gonna Make You) Freaky" was previously released as "It's On Tonight" from her ''Let You Hit'' mixtape, "Time to Freak" is rumored to actually be called "Too Sexy" or "Mirror Mirror", "Freak Like Me (Remix) (Re-Recorded Version)" was an actual previously released remix on her 1995 hit single, and "Stay Freaky" was a previously leaked duet with Estevan called "Rough Ridin". Her fourth studio album ''

'' was released on April 14, 2017. Due to some issues with

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

and other digital services, Howard decided to release the album for free (on her SoundCloud) for 24 hours beginning at 12 pm PST. A week later, the album was finally released on all digital services. In November, she released a short tour film titled ''Adina Howard: Resurrection Tour Atlanta'' which premiered on digital services. Later that month, she received two UB Honors nominations in the Best Artist Return Single (for "Blasphemy" with King Gas) and Best Independent R&B Album Release (for ''Resurrection''). In December, she further received two more award nominations, at the MCP Music Awards for Best Deep Cut of the Year ("Radiation" (with

Tech N9ne Aaron Dontez Yates (born November 8, 1971), better known by his stage name Tech N9ne (pronounced "tech nine"), is an American rapper and singer. In 1999, he and business partner Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music. He has sold ...

)) and Best Comeback of the Year (for "Blasphemy" with King Gas). In January 2018, she did an interview with the online radio show ''Tha Council Radio'' and announced she was in the works of co-writing a self-help book tentatively called ''Adina Howard: Real Raw'' with a therapist. She also announced a new film role in the independent film ''The Relaxer'', which was to premiere at the 2018

SXSW South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

Festival in March. Additionally, she confirmed she was working with producer-rapper King Gas again on a new album tentatively titled ''Diary of a Desperate Housewife''.

2019–present: ''Mind Reader'' and more ventures

The new year brought her some high-profile releases. Her profile on TV One's hit "Unsung" series premiered on March 10, 2019. Later that month, her film ''Relaxer'' (directed by Joel Potrykus) was released to theaters on March 22, 2019, through Oscilloscope Labs. It garnered critical praise, receiving a 72% positive score on Rotten Tomatoes. In May, she announced a new single with Mothers Favorite Child called "Freak" after collaborating with them for her acoustic performances for her TV One episode. She appeared in the documentary ''A Fatherless America'' from media personality and filmmaker Tommy Sotomayor which was released in June 2019. With her promotion for a Detroit performance with

Montell Jordan Montell Du'Sean Jordan (born December 3, 1968) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and producer. Best known for his 1995 single " This Is How We Do It", and " Get It On Tonite", Jordan was the primary male solo artist on Def Jam's Def Soul ...

in July, she discussed a new single in the works called "Lifeline" in addition to a book and a motivational speaking career. In a cover story interview with Consciousness Magazine, she announced hopes for a second quarter release for the single. At the beginning of 2020, her new dance single "Mind Reader" with Opolopo was announced, and released on January 17. After a few weeks, the song ended up hitting #1 on the TraxSource charts as well as #2 on the Dutch FREAK31 music chart. In an interview with R&B Junkie celebrating the 25th anniversary of her debut album, she discussed starting a Houston, TX residency set to begin in May. She also joined Katrina Walker's new theatrical stage play "Miss Dee's Kitchen" which was set to premiere April 3 but was postponed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In December, she received another nomination at the UB Honors in the Best Dance/Club Single of the Year category for her single "Mind Reader." In January 2021, it was announced that her previously shelved album '' Welcome to Fantasy Island'' will be finally released in the United States on February 19 thru Rhino Records. She released a new single titled "Keep Lookin" on April 23, 2022 to streaming and digital services. A remix featuring

Trina Katrina Laverne Kearse (née Taylor; born December 3, 1974), is an American rapper. She rose to prominence in the late 1990s for her collaborations with Trick Daddy on the singles " Nann Nigga", " Shut Up", and " Take It to da House". In 2000, ...

was released in July. Howard began filming a new film, the drama “False Profits” with director Jamezz Hampton in November. In July 2023, Howard released her first wine “Indelible” in a collaboration with Ramona Ranch Winery along with the announcement of her new upcoming single “Liquor.” She recorded a new song titled "Time Will Tell" for her film "False Profits" with the film premiering on January 7th 2025, along with a music video on February 20th. On May 4th, 2025, she premiered a new single "I Overstand" exclusively on her website.

Personal life

She divorced Sherman Jordan in 2017. On the March 10, 2019 episode of TV One's "Unsung," Howard revealed to having an affair with Boyz II Men's

Wanya Morris Wanyá Jermaine Morris ( ) (born July 29, 1973) is an American singer, best known as a member of the Contemporary R&B, R&B group Boyz II Men. He competed on the Dancing with the Stars (American season 22), twenty-second season of ''Dancing wit ...

, who was dating singer

Brandy Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured ...

, at the time. Despite the advice of Atlantic Records Label Executive (and Howard's boss)

Sylvia Rhone Sylvia Rhone (born March 11, 1952) is an American record company executive. Since 2019, she is the Chairman and CEO, chair and CEO of Epic Records, a label owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Rhone served previously in senior positions at Vested ...

to focus on her career, Howard conducted an interview with then-DJ

Wendy Williams Wendy Williams Hunter (; born July 18, 1964) is an American former broadcaster, media personality, and writer. Prior to television, Williams was a radio DJ and host and quickly became known in New York City as a shock jock. She gained notori ...

, in which she insulted both Rhone and Brandy. Rhone eventually stalled Howard's release of her second album indefinitely.

Discography

;Studio albums * '' Do You Wanna Ride?'' (1995) * '' The Second Coming'' (2004) * '' Private Show'' (2007) * ''

'' (2017) * '' Welcome to Fantasy Island'' (2021)

Filmography

Film

Television

Music Video

Documentary

Stage

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Adina 1973 births Living people 21st-century African-American people American women chefs American chefs 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers American hip-hop singers American film actresses American women restaurateurs American restaurateurs American women hip-hop musicians American contemporary R&B singers American soul musicians Businesspeople from Grand Rapids, Michigan Musicians from Grand Rapids, Michigan Actresses from Grand Rapids, Michigan Singers from Michigan 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century American actresses East West Records artists