Dionne Farris (born December 4, 1969) is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, she began singing in elementary school and competed in pageants as a teenager. In the early 1990s, she was featured on the

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

group

Arrested Development ''Arrested Development'' is an American satire, satirical television sitcom created by Mitchell Hurwitz. It follows the Bluths, a formerly wealthy, dysfunctional family and is presented in a Serial (radio and television), serialized format, inco ...

's hit single "

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

" (1992). Farris found success with the release of her debut album, '' Wild Seed – Wild Flower'' (1994) on

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

. The album featured the US top ten single, " I Know" (1995). The music video earned Farris the Billboard Music Video Awards Best Pop/Rock New Artist Clip of the Year. She was also nominated for the

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...

in 1996 .

Early life

Farris was born in

Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a City (New Jersey), city in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Nicknamed "The Queen City",

, the daughter of Larraine (Wall) and Richard Farris, both of whom had musical talents and aspirations, and named Dionne for their favorite singer

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick ( ; born Marie Dionne Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. During her career, Warwick has won many awards, including six Grammy Awards. She has been inducted into the Hollywood Wa ...

. Farris was raised in

Bordentown, New Jersey Bordentown is a City (New Jersey), city in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 3,993, an increase of 69 (+1.8%) from the 2010 United ...

by her single mother, whose side of the family introduced her to the musical acts that shaped and influenced her. Farris was a huge fan of

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...

as a child – one of Farris’ fonder memories was attending a Ross concert in New York City at the age of eight, being lifted by her uncle onstage, and getting kissed by Ross. Farris began taking dance lessons at the age of three at Irene Parker Dance Studio in Hamilton Township, New Jersey. She danced ballet, jazz, tap, and toe for 10 years, opting at 13 to sing instead. She sang in her high school's choir. After graduating from Bordentown Regional High in 1987, Farris attended Mercer County Community College, where she studied photography. Farris entered into the Miss Hemisphere Pageant regional competitions, directly after high school and won her first and only pageant as 1987's Miss Hemisphere's Adult Talent, singing

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...

's "

Saving All My Love for You "Saving All My Love for You" is a song written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin, originally recorded by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. for their album ''Marilyn & Billy'' (1978). American singer Whitney Houston recorded it for her self-ti ...

" in Miami, Florida. She joined a band known as 2.0 and later as Breaking Ground. They began performing on the Manhattan's club circuit, and looked to sign a record deal. Farris decided to move to Atlanta with her then boyfriend Donald "Rasa Don" Jones (one of the early members of Arrested Development), where her father lived. After a short time, Farris met with Atlanta producer

Jermaine Dupri Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper and record producer. Raised in Atlanta, Georgia as the son of Columbia Records executive Michael Mauldin, he began his career in music at the age of nine. He discovered th ...

and began writing songs for Atlanta-based acts such as

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

and singing backgrounds for acts such as Xscape, and

El Debarge Eldra "El" Patrick DeBarge (born June 4, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. He was the focal point and primary lead singer of the DeBarge family, family group DeBarge. Popular songs led by El DeBarge include "Time Will Reveal ...

. She signed a management contract with Michael Mauldin's (father of Dupri) company as a solo artist, but later became a member of a girl group they were producing, known as Onyx.

Career

Arrested Development

Farris and the musical group

were signed to the same management company. The group wanted a female singer for their '' 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days in the Life Of...'' album and Farris agreed to sing with the group although she was not an official member. Farris sang on three songs with the group: "Fishin' 4 Religion", "Give a Man a Fish" and "

". Farris performed "Tennessee" with Arrested Development on the 1992

MTV Movie Awards The MTV Movie & TV Awards is a film and television awards show previously presented annually on MTV. It began as the MTV Movie Awards in 1992, when its 1992 MTV Movie Awards, first edition was held, and adopted its current name in 2017, beginnin ...

and ''

The Arsenio Hall Show ''The Arsenio Hall Show'' is an American syndicated late-night talk show created by and starring comedian Arsenio Hall. There have been two different incarnations of ''The Arsenio Hall Show''. The original series premiered on January 3, 1989 ...

'' as well as being invited on the group's first national tour. After the success of "Tennessee", she began to receive media attention alongside the group , and Duff Marlo offered Farris a record deal, contingent upon

Speech Speech is the use of the human voice as a medium for language. Spoken language combines vowel and consonant sounds to form units of meaning like words, which belong to a language's lexicon. There are many different intentional speech acts, suc ...

producing the project, but she rejected the offer in search of a deal where she would have artistic control. Farris began experiencing personal and business conflicts with Arrested Development's group leader, despite the success of "Tennessee" (the group's first and biggest hit in 1992). Farris was never an official member of the group, and she and the group parted ways in September 1992 before a show at the Fox Theater in Atlanta, Georgia after having an argument with group leader Speech and co-leader Headliner.

''Wild Seed – Wild Flower''

Farris reached out to Milton Davis and David Harris and began a collaboration. A demo sent to

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

was first reviewed by Bobby Colomby, then by

Randy Jackson Randall Darius Jackson (born June 23, 1956) is an American record executive, television presenter and musician, best known as a judge on ''American Idol'' from 2002 to 2013. Jackson began his career in the 1980s as a session musician playing b ...

(who became known as a judge on ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...

''). Jackson signed Farris to a deal at

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

. Her debut album, '' Wild Seed – Wild Flower'' (1994), featured the 1995 single " I Know", which reached number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and was nominated for the

in 1996. In the UK Singles Chart, "I Know" peaked (after a re-release) at No. 41 in May 1995. ''Wild Seed – Wild Flower'' reached No. 57 on the ''Billboard'' 200

chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphics, graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can repres ...

. ''

Radio & Records ''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...

'' magazine ranked "I Know" as the number-one most played song on mainstream Top 40/CHR radio stations for 1995 and spent 10 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart (April 1 – June 3, 1995). On April 8, 1995, she was the musical guest on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'', performing "I Know" and a roots acoustic rendition of the

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

song " Blackbird."

Soundtracks

In 1995, her version of Billy Taylor's " I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free" appeared on the soundtrack to the documentary ''The Promised Land''. It appeared again as the opening song to the film ''

Ghosts of Mississippi ''Ghosts of Mississippi'' is a 1996 American biographical courtroom drama film directed by Rob Reiner and starring Alec Baldwin, Whoopi Goldberg, and James Woods. The film is based on the 1994 trial of Byron De La Beckwith, a white suprema ...

'', about the true story of the 1994 trial of

Byron De La Beckwith Byron De La Beckwith Jr. (November 9, 1920 – January 21, 2001) was an American white supremacist and member of the Ku Klux Klan who murdered civil rights leader Medgar Evers on June 12, 1963 in Jackson, Mississippi. In 1964, he was tried tw ...

, the white supremacist accused of the 1963 assassination of

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...

activist

Medgar Evers Medgar Wiley Evers (; July 2, 1925June 12, 1963) was an American civil rights activist and soldier who was the NAACP's first field secretary in Mississippi. Evers, a United States Army veteran who served in World War II, was engaged in efforts ...

. Farris' soundtrack work continued for the movie '' The Truth About Cats & Dogs'', in which she contributed a version of the

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

classic " For Once in My Life" as the closing song and the movie ''

The First Wives Club ''The First Wives Club'' is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Hugh Wilson, based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Olivia Goldsmith. The film stars Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, and Diane Keaton as three divorcées who seek retributi ...

'' with a rendition of

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He is known for having several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), "Use Me ( ...

' "Heartbreak Road". Her single "Hopeless" (written by

Van Hunt Van Hunt Jr. (born March 8, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He released his debut album, '' Van Hunt'', in 2004, and a follow-up, '' On the Jungle Floor'', in 2006, both on Capitol Records. He w ...

) appears on the '' Love Jones''

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

(1997).

''For Truth If Not Love''

Farris recorded a second album ''For Truth if Not Love'' but she experienced creative differences with the label she was signed to,

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

, and the album went unreleased by Columbia. A contract dispute between Farris and the label followed and the label subsequently released Farris. The album was released approximately twelve years later in 2007, issued on

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 ...

Independent releases

Farris released her official follow-up album ''Signs of Life'' in (2011), named Top 10 soul albums of 2011, a

mixtape In the modern music industry, a mixtape is a musical project, typically with looser constraints than that of an album or extended play. Unlike the traditional album or extended play, mixtapes are labeled as laid-back projects that allow artists mo ...

''Lady Dy, the Mixtape Pt 1'' (2011) and a live

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

album ''Dionne Get Your Gunn: Featuring the

Russell Gunn Russell Gunn (born October 20, 1971, in Chicago) is an American contemporary jazz trumpeter. He grew up in East St. Louis, Illinois playing trumpet. As a kid his musical interest was hip hop, with LL Cool J being his first music idol. His project ...

Quartet with Dionne Farris'' (2012) via

PledgeMusic PledgeMusic was an online direct-to-fan music platform, launched in August 2009. It was started to facilitate musicians looking to pre-sell, market, and distribute projects, such as recordings and concerts. It bore similarities to other artist pa ...

crowd funding on her own record label, Free & Clear Records.

Personal life

Farris has a daughter, rapper Baby Tate, whose father is former Follow for Now member David Ryan Harris.

Discography

Albums

* '' Wild Seed – Wild Flower'' (1994), Columbia * ''For Truth If Not Love'' (2007), Music World * ''Signs of Life'', (2011), Free & Clear Records * ''Dionne Get Your Gunn'' (2013), Free & Clear Records *'' DionneDionne'' (2014), Free & Clear Records

Mixtapes

*''Lady Dy, The Mixtape pt. 1'' (2011), Free & Clear Records

Singles

*" I Know" (1995), Sony *"Don't Ever Touch Me Again" (1995), Sony *"Passion" (1996), Sony *"Food for Thought" (1996), Sony

romo Romantic Modernism, more commonly known as Romo, was a musical and nightclubbing movement, of glam/style pop lineage, in the UK circa 1995–1997, centred on the twin homes of Camden-based clubnight Club Skinny and its West End clone Arcad ...

*"For Once in My Life" (1996), '' The Truth About Cats & Dogs'' (movie soundtrack) *"Hopeless" (1997), Sony

Soundtracks

*''The Promised Land'' (1994), Columbia *'' The Truth About Cats & Dogs'' (1996), A&M *'' First Wives Club'' (1996), Work Group *''

'' (1996), Sony *'' Love Jones'' (1997), Sony

References

External links

Dionne Farris Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farris, Dionne 1969 births Living people 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century African-American women singers 21st-century American women singers African-American rock singers Alternative hip-hop musicians American contemporary R&B singers American pop rock singers American soul singers American women jazz singers American jazz singers American women pop singers Arrested Development (group) members Columbia Records artists Musicians from Plainfield, New Jersey People from Bordentown, New Jersey Singer-songwriters from New Jersey