The Jets are a Tongan-American family band from Robbinsdale, a suburb of

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

, Minnesota. The Jets are composed of brothers and sisters LeRoy, Eddie, Eugene, Haini, Rudy, Kathi, Elizabeth, and Moana Wolfgramm, who perform pop, R&B, and

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance musi ...

. They started performing as a family band in 1977. The group enjoyed worldwide success in 1985–1990, performing three world tours, and producing five top-10 hits on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Background

The original band consisted of the eight oldest children of Maikeli "Mike" and Vaké Wolfgramm, who were originally from

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

. The family has 17 children: 15 by birth, and two, Eddie and Eugene, by adoption. The children attended Robbinsdale Cooper High School. The family are members of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

. The band initially called themselves Quasar after a now-defunct brand of television sets. They changed their name to the Jets, a name taken from the

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

song " Bennie and the Jets", on the suggestion of manager Don Powell. Member Eugene Wolfgramm died on April 15, 2024, at the age of 57.

Career

The original members of the Jets had a number of ''Billboard'' Hot 100 hits, five of which reached the top ten, including the 1986 single " Crush on You", which peaked at No. 3 in July 1986 (No. 5 UK, No. 4 US R&B, No. 4 US Dance). They are also known for the singles " You Got It All", " Cross My Broken Heart", " Rocket 2 U", and " Make It Real". " Sendin' All My Love", which peaked at No. 88 on the Hot 100, reached No. 1 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' dance chart. "You Got It All" and "Make It Real", both ballads featuring lead vocals by Elizabeth Wolfgramm, were No. 1 hits on the ''Billboard'' adult contemporary chart. The band was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

in 1988 for the song "Rocket 2 U" that featured lead vocals by Haini Wolfgramm. The Jets also performed the theme song for '' Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers'' in 1989. The group performed "

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written by American lawyer Francis Scott Key on September 14, 1814, after he witnessed the bombardment of Fort ...

" at the seventh game of the

1987 World Series The 1987 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1987 season. The 84th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Minnesota Twins and the Nati ...

, held in Minneapolis, and at Game 3 of the

1991 Stanley Cup Finals The 1991 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1990–91 season, and the culmination of the 1991 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested by the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Minnesota North Stars. I ...

in suburban Bloomington. The band also performed at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and the

2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 (; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; ; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), were an international wi ...

Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt ...

Recent appearances

*On October 10, 2009, seven of the original band members reunited to perform at the Mega 80s & 90s Music Festival in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

along with fellow MCA recording artists Ready for the World, the Cover Girls, and

En Vogue En Vogue is an American vocal girl group whose original lineup consisted of singers Terry Ellis, Dawn Robinson, Cindy Herron, and Maxine Jones. Formed in Oakland, California, in 1989, En Vogue reached No. 2 on the US Hot 100 with the singl ...

. *On April 9, 2010, all of the original members except Eugene performed at the State Theatre in Minneapolis. It was billed as their 25th-anniversary reunion show. *In 2015, the band celebrated its 30th anniversary with performances in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

and

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

, Philippines. *In July 2015 in

Orem, Utah Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Utah, Provo, Lindon, Utah, Lindon, and Vineyard, Utah, Vineyard and is approximately south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the pri ...

, the Jets performed a hometown concert with

Debbie Gibson Deborah Ann Gibson (born August 31, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She released her debut album ''Out of the Blue (Debbie Gibson album), Out of the Blue'' (1987) at age 16, writing and largely producing the material. The a ...

. *The Jets were featured on the TV One music documentary ''Unsung'' on March 17, 2019. *In 2021, the original drummer Rudy went on to produce a documentary called "The Jets: Making It Real" with the help of director Kels Goodman, who also produced the YouTube sensation "Will it Blend".

Line-up

The Jets' original lineup consisted of eight of the siblings. *LeRoy Wolfgramm (born July 19, 1965) –

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

*Eddie Wolfgramm (né Lavatai) (born August 14, 1966) – vocals,

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (whi ...

, assorted

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

, additional keyboards *Eugene Wolfgramm (né Hunt) (born September 24, 1967; died April 15, 2024) – vocals, assorted percussion,

alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgians, Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in the key of E♭ ( ...

*Haini Wolfgramm (born January 25, 1968) – vocals,

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

*Rudy Wolfgramm (born March 1, 1969) – vocals,

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

, percussion,

choreography Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

*Kathi Wolfgramm (born September 6, 1970) – vocals, keyboards, additional percussion *Elizabeth Wolfgramm (born August 19, 1972) – vocals, additional keyboards and percussion *Moana Wolfgramm (born October 13, 1973) – vocals, additional keyboards and percussion

Spin-off

In 1988, Eugene Wolfgramm (who reverted to his birth name of Eugene Hunt) and Joe Pasquale formed the duo Boys Club, which recorded for

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

. Boys Club released the song "I Remember Holding You", which reached No. 8 on the Hot 100. Eugene later reunited for the album '' The Best of the Jets'' (1990), but he and other siblings (Eddie, Elizabeth, Kathi) eventually left the band in succession. The band was also featured on the soundtrack for ''

The Disney Afternoon The Disney Afternoon (later known internally as the Disney-Kellogg Alliance when unbranded), sometimes abbreviated as TDA, was a created-for- syndication two-hour programming block of animated television series. It was produced by Walt Disney T ...

'', on which they performed the '' Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers'' theme song. They also appeared on the soundtracks for ''Burglar'' (1987) ("Tough Guys"), ''

Beverly Hills Cop II ''Beverly Hills Cop II'' is a 1987 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Tony Scott, written by Larry Ferguson and Warren Skaaren, and starring Eddie Murphy. It is the sequel to the 1984 film '' Beverly Hills Cop'' and the second ...

'' (1987) ("Cross My Broken Heart"), '' The Karate Kid Part III'' ("Under Any Moon"), and '' The Family Man'' (2000) ("La La Means I Love You").

Influence

American pop singer

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

recorded a new version of "You Got It All" in 1997, which appears on international editions of her 2000 album '' Oops!... I Did It Again''. Musical artists Arnee Hidalgo, Pinay, and MYMP have also covered the song. "Crush on You" is featured as the base sample for the

French house French house (also referred to as French touch, filter house, or tekfunk) is a style of house music devised by French musicians in the 1990s. It is a form of Eurodisco and a popular strand of the late 1990s and 2000s European dance music s ...

anthem "Intro" by

Alan Braxe Alain Quême (), known professionally as Alan Braxe (born 9 July 1971), is a French electronic musician. He is most widely known for his collaborative work with the musicians Fred Falke and Kris Menace, and for being part of the musical trio St ...

and

Fred Falke Frédérick Falke (; born 7 January 1973) is a French house and dance music producer and DJ. Biography Falke started out as a bass player before moving to production work. His first record, a collaboration with Alan Braxe named ''Intro'', whi ...

(2000). Pop singer

Aaron Carter Aaron Charles Carter (December 7, 1987November 5, 2022) was an American singer and rapper. He came to fame as a teen pop singer in the late 1990s, establishing himself as a star among preteen and teenage audiences during the first years of th ...

included "Crush on You" on his first album, which became a top-10 single in Australia, Germany, and the United Kingdom in 1997. Singer Nayobe recorded a version of "Make It Real" that became a hit in Latin America. Exposé recorded a version of "The Same Love" on their 1992 self-titled album. More recently, the UK electronic music act

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

sampled "Crush on You" on their 2011 track of the same name.

The Jets and the Jets Original Family Band

As of 2022, there are two touring groups of Jets, which include original members: *The Jets: Elizabeth, Eddie, Kathi, Moana *The Jets Original Family Band: Haini, LeRoy, Rudy

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

Compilation albums

Singles

Tours

* 1985–1986: The Jets World Tour * 1986: Christmas with The Jets World Tour * 1987–1988: Magic World Tour * 1989: Believe World Tour * 2015: The Jets - 30th Anniversary Concert

References

External Links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jets, The American dance music groups American contemporary R&B musical groups American people of Tongan descent Child musical groups Family musical groups Sibling musical groups Teen pop groups Musical groups from Minnesota Latter Day Saints from Minnesota American freestyle music groups MCA Records artists American electronic music groups 1985 establishments in Minnesota Musical groups from the Twin Cities