Perri Arlette Reid (née McKissack; August 29, 1964), known professionally as Pebbles, is an American

singer-songwriter A singer-songwriter is a musician who writes, composes, and performs their own musical material, including lyrics and melodies. In the United States, the category is built on the folk- acoustic tradition with a guitar, although this role has ...

, businesswoman, pastor, and record producer and executive. She is known for her hits during the late 1980s and early 1990s such as "

Girlfriend A girlfriend is a woman who is a friend, acquaintance or partner to the speaker, usually a female companion with whom one is platonically, romantically, or sexually involved. In a romantic context, this normally signifies a committed r ...

" (1987), " Mercedes Boy" (1988), " Giving You the Benefit" (1990), " Love Makes Things Happen" (1990) and "

Backyard A backyard, or back yard (known in the United Kingdom as a back garden or just garden), is a Yard (land), yard at the back of a house, common in suburban developments in the Western world. It is typically a residential garden located at the ...

" (1991). In addition to a recording career, Reid helped develop the

contemporary R&B Contemporary R&B (or simply R&B) is a popular music Music genre, genre, originating from African Americans, African-American musicians in the 1980s that combines rhythm and blues with elements of Pop music, pop, Soul music, soul, funk, Hip-hop, ...

group

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 ...

. She is now an

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

-based minister, known as Sister Perri.

Early life

Reid was born Perri Arlette McKissack on August 29, 1964, one of four siblings to two parents of mixed European-American (white)/African-American (black) ancestry. Reid's parents divorced when she was around six years old. Her mother raised Reid and her siblings on the income of a waitress and housekeeper.

Career

Reid got her start at age 16 in 1980 as a

backing vocalist A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are u ...

for the percussionist/band leader Bill Summers and the funk band

Con Funk Shun Con Funk Shun (formerly known as Project Soul) is an American R&B and funk band from Vallejo, California, formed in 1969. They were influenced by funk progenitors James Brown and Sly and the Family Stone. Signed to Mercury Records in 1976, the ...

. Reid co-wrote one of Con Funk Shun's singles, "Body Lovers". A local musician gave Reid a production deal which fell through several months later when she became pregnant with her daughter. While working at an

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, real estate office she met contractor George L. Smith, who she later married. Smith bankrolled Pebbles with $80,000 for a demo tape and video for " Mercedes Boy". The demo and video led to a contract with MCA. She recorded several hit singles on her own during the late 1980s and early 1990s, including "

", composed by L.A. Reid and

Babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

(1987), " Mercedes Boy", composed by herself (1988), " Take Your Time", composed by

Danny Sembello Daniel Bud Sembello (January 15, 1963 – August 15, 2015) was an American songwriter, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. He produced recordings by artists including George Benson and Pebbles, and he had his compositions recorded by Cha ...

Donnell Spencer Donnell Spencer Jr. is a session musician, drummer and award-winning composer. He has worked with or toured with Patti Austin, Anita Baker, El De Barge, Chaka Khan, and Jody Watley. He has been associated musically with mainstream films ''Runnin ...

and Louil Silas Jr. (1988), "Do Me Right", composed by Michael Cooper, Gerald Lamar and Louil Silas (1988) " Giving You the Benefit", composed by L.A. Reid and Babyface (1990), " Love Makes Things Happen", composed by Babyface and L.A. Reid (1990), and "

", composed by L.A. Reid, Babyface and Salt (1991).''MusicVF''.com
Pebbles Top Songs, Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography
/ref> Reid's cousin is R&B singer

Cherrelle Cheryl Anne Norton (born October 13, 1958), better known by her stage name Cherrelle, is an American R&B singer and songwriter who gained fame in the mid-1980s. Her signature hits include " I Didn't Mean to Turn You On", "Where Do I Run To", " ...

who was featured, along with

Johnny Gill Johnny Gill Jr. (born May 22, 1966) is an American singer and songwriter. He is the sixth and final member of the R&B/ pop group New Edition and was also a member of the supergroup called LSG, with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat. Gill has rel ...

, on her 1991 hit song, "Always". Meanwhile, by the time she began scoring her first solo successes, she and Smith had split. In July 1989, Pebbles formed the

-based production company Pebbitone and founded her own record label, Savvy Records. Pebbitone managed

, which was signed with her then husband

L.A. Reid Antonio Marquis "L.A." Reid (born June 7, 1956) is an American record executive, A&R representative, and record producer who served as president and CEO of Arista Records from 2000 to 2004, as well as chairman and CEO of the Island Def Jam Mus ...

's record label

LaFace Records LaFace Records was an American record label based in Atlanta, Georgia, that operated as a unit of Sony Music Entertainment from 2008 to 2011 and was historically a part of Bertelsmann Music Group from 1989 to 2004. It was most active and achiev ...

. When TLC filed for bankruptcy in 1995, due to Pebbles' alleged mismanagement regarding their funds, the ensuing conflict damaged Pebbles' marriage. She divorced Reid, and Pebbitone sued LaFace for $10 million. In 1997, Pebbles underwent a religious conversion. Under her new stage name "Sister Perri", she founded Women of God Changing Lives (WOGCL) Ministries. As an ordained minister, she now preaches and ministers through song. In 2008, after a thirteen-year music hiatus, Reid released her fourth album and debut gospel album, ''Prophetic Flows Vol I & II'', which peaked at #12 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 ...

'' Gospel Album Chart. In February 2011, she was named the executive producer/host of

Essence Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...

's national R&B search.

Personal life

Pebbles has been married five times and has three children. Pebbles gave birth to a daughter, Ashley Victoria Winzer, in January 1982. Her first marriage was to her daughter's father from 1982 until 1983. Her second marriage was to

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

contractor George L. Smith from 1983 until 1987, and made their home in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. In July 1989, Pebbles married

. They had one son named Aaron, born in 1990. Reid and Pebbles later divorced in 1996. In 2000, Pebbles married former

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player

Otis Nixon Otis Junior Nixon (born January 9, 1959) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1983), Cleveland Indians (1984–87), Montreal Expos (1988–90), Atlanta Bra ...

. They divorced in 2004. Pebbles married her fifth husband Excel Sharieff, an administrative law judge, in 2012.

Discography

* '' Pebbles'' (1987) * ''

Always Always may refer to: Film and television * ''Always'', a 1985 film directed by Henry Jaglom * ''Always'' (1989 film), a 1989 romantic comedy-drama directed by Steven Spielberg * ''Always'' (2011 film), a 2011 South Korean film, also known as ''O ...

'' (1990) * ''

Straight from My Heart ''Straight from My Heart'' is the third studio album by American singer Pebbles. It was released on September 12, 1995, on MCA Records. The album features the top 40 R&B hit, "Are You Ready?". Critical reception AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas E ...

'' (1995) * ''Prophetic Flows Vol I & II'' (2008)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pebbles Living people 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers American dance musicians New jack swing musicians American contemporary R&B singers Singers from Oakland, California MCA Records artists American freestyle musicians 1964 births 21st-century American women singers 21st-century American singers 21st-century African-American women singers