"Motownphilly" is the debut single by American vocal harmony group

Boyz II Men Boyz II Men ( ) is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. Formed in 1985, they have been a trio composed of baritone Nathan Morris, tenor Wanya Morris, Wanyá Mo ...

, released in April 1991 by

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

as the first single from their debut album, '' Cooleyhighharmony'' (1991). Co-written and produced by

Dallas Austin Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, and film producer from Columbus, Georgia. Biography Early life During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfir ...

, the song was a success, peaking at number three on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Michael Bivins Michael Lamont Bivins (born August 10, 1968) is an American singer, rapper, manager, and producer, and a founding member of New Edition and Bell Biv DeVoe. Biography Bivins was born and still lives in Boston. He and his wife, Teasha, have four ...

, who co-wrote the song, provides a guest rap during the bridge. The song's title is a portmanteau of two of the group's main musical influences: 1960s Motown and 1970s

Philly soul Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia (TSOP), is a genre of late 1960s–1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush string and horn arrangements. The g ...

. The accompanying music video for the song was filmed in various locations in the group's hometown of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Two

new jack swing New jack swing, new jack, or swingbeat is a fusion genre of the rhythms and production techniques of hip hop and dance-pop, and the urban contemporary sound of R&B. Spearheaded by producers Teddy Riley, Bernard Belle, Jimmy Jam and Te ...

groups,

Another Bad Creation Another Bad Creation (sometimes called ABC for short) allmusic ((( Another Bad Creation > Overview ))) Retrieved November 7, 2007. Demetrius "Red" (b. September 23, 1979) and Marliss "Mark" (b. April 15, 1982) Pugh, as well as Adrian "G.A." (Gen ...

and Bell Biv DeVoe, are mentioned in the lyrics. They appear briefly in the video, as does Sudden Impact, a short-lived R&B group organized by Bivins. Additionally,

Questlove Ahmir K. Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thought ...

appears briefly as a drummer, due to his previous relationship with the group from high school.

Critical reception

Dele Fadele from ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' wrote, "Floating on a cloud through the chequered history of

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

, yet inherently modern,

are plotting the new musical map. From

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, this is East Coast style and sass in abundance, mixing and matching MFSB strings, House synth-bass, raps and the ghost of several songs rolled into one. Somewhere in the ever-shifting mix you learn their tale and, if I were Bell Biv DeVoe, I'd prepare to be usurped."

Track listings

* US vinyl, 12-inch :A1: "Motownphilly" (12-inch version) – 4:47 :A2: "Motownphilly" (LP version) – 3:52 :B: "Motownphilly" (instrumental) – 5:50 * US CD maxi # "Motownphilly" (12-inch version Edit) – 4:47 # "Motownphilly" (LP version) – 3:52 # "Motownphilly" (quiet storm) – 4:06 # "Motownphilly" (12-inch A) – 5:50 # "Motownphilly" (12-inch dub) – 4:08 * UK vinyl, 7-inch :A: "Motownphilly" (7-inch radio version) – 3:50 :B: "Motownphilly" (Philly instrumental) – 3:50 * UK vinyl, 12-inch :A: "Motownphilly" (12-inch extended club mix) – 5:35 :B1: "Motownphilly" (7-inch radio version) – 3:50 :B2: "Motownphilly" (Philly instrumental) – 3:50 :B3: "Motownphilly" (dub mix) – 4:08 * Germany CD maxi # "Motownphilly" (12-inch version) – 5:50 # "Motownphilly" (7-inch main) – 3:20 # "Motownphilly" (12-inch dub) – 4:09 # "Motownphilly" (quiet storm) – 4:06

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

"Motownphilly"
at

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{{Authority control 1990 songs 1991 debut singles Boyz II Men songs Motown singles New jack swing songs Songs about Philadelphia Song recordings produced by Dallas Austin Songs written by Dallas Austin Songs written by Michael Bivins Songs written by Nathan Morris Songs written by Shawn Stockman South Street