Last week, I got the chance to chat with an iconic talent in music history, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, who's been churning out the jams for nearly four decades and has 11 Grammys to his credit (the last for his duet collab with Toni Braxton, Love, Marriage & Divorce), not to mention numerous No. 1 R&B charters, both as the featured artist and the writer-producer behind them. I've been a huge fan for years and have followed his career pretty closely, so it was a particular pleasure to pick his brain... Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds hits Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg on Sat., July 25, 8 p.m.; tickets are $32.50, $42.50, $52.50 and$72.50. Click here for more info. Timothy Boyson: You've been a staple of R&B music for decades. Who are the artists that inspired and influenced you most when you were getting started?
Babyface: Stevie Wonder to Jackson 5, Temptations, a lot of Motown. The Motown movement was probably a big thing for me. As I got older, I got into The Beatles and James Taylor, in terms of listening to a different kinds of music, not just R&B, but pop music as well, folk music. I'd say the biggest influence was probably Jackson 5. Being from Indiana, and knowing that this group that came from my state, it felt like you could touch it.
I have to ask this next question because of your Indiana roots — are you a sports fan? Do you like basketball?
I'm a Pacers supporter. I don't follow all sports, and when football season is going, it's not like I jump onto the Colts bandwagon. I've always been a Pacers fans, and a fan of other teams as well. I always push for the Pacers and hope they pull it out. I actually had a cousin that played for the Pacers ABA team back in 1967.
You were at the forefront of New Jack Swing after breaking off with The Deele to start your solo career. Can you tell me a little about the era? What made it so special?
When New Jack Swing happened, I kind of like to credit the opening of that to Teddy Riley. He actually came up with the song I think changed the game for all of us, and made us start looking at programming a little differently — Keith Sweat's “I Want Her.”
That was the record that changed the game. We weren’t trying to copy it, but we were certainly trying to, at least, get into the feel of how that swing was. And then came a time when it started becoming competitive, to a certain extent. You know, who was trying to get hits on the top of the charts. We were friendly competitors, we wouldn’t be negative on people. We were just trying to figure out how to stay in the game. So, I don’t know that we ever felt like we were the forefront guys and trying to make changes, we were just trying to make songs, throughout it all. If it had a beat, then great, but, it wasn’t so much about a “movement” as it was to try to find great artists and record our great artists and have some good copyrights.
I must admit, “Whip Appeal” still gets heavy play in my house. It’s probably my favorite song by you. It’s one of my favorites in the R&B genre, period. Is there a song that you look back on & say “Damn, I out-did myself!”? A track that stands out to you more that others?
I don’t know… I look back on, say, the Tender Lover album, and it was made about 26 years, and what I appreciate most about it is the feeling, the honesty of the feeling, the whole innocence of love, of wanting for love. So, I like that feeling that it gives you. I don’t know that it was the best produced or anything like that, but I can tell you that it certainly gave you a real feeling, and because of that, I think that’s why it survives the test of time. Anytime you can really deliver emotions, and they stay on the record, then it translates and lives on in people’s hearts.
I couldn't agree more. You touched on something that is sometimes lost; the heartfelt, earnest lyrics and passion that comes through. Are there any certain songs you like performing live more than others?
No, but I think there are certain songs that are more popular than others, so, you know, you definitely do those. I enjoy playing them; some people get tired of playing their songs the way they are, and sometimes you switch up the arrangements a little bit, but for the most part, I like to perform them like they were written so I enjoy doing them. It is about keeping it as close to the original, so people can actually sing along with you.
Your duets album with Toni Braxton, Love, Marriage & Divorce, was a huge success, and marked your 11th Grammy. It has also seven years between your last solo album and this one. Why the long delay?
Not really feeling like there was a place in what was happening on the radio, not wanting to jump on any trend or anything, if it wasn’t honest.
I didn’t want to do any kind of record if it wasn’t going to be honest. So when the idea came up to do the record with Toni, it made sense. I talked her into doing an album with me, and I made it an easier thing for her, I said “Let’s just do it as a duet, and we’ll both do it together, so that we're both doing something different, and you don’t have to worry about your last record or anything like that, we’re doing something new." We had to write about something that was going to be passionate and heartfelt, so Toni was very happy to talk about Love, Marriage & Divorce. That’s what made that record happen. In doing that record, it kind of opened up the door for this new record I’m working on, that I’m basically done with, and even for Toni to start working on a new record herself. It was kind of a plan, let’s me and Toni do a record first, and then jump to our own things.
What can fans expect from your forthcoming solo album?
I like to call it “unapologetic R&B.”, so it’s not trying to stay on any trend. It’s just really “feel-good” music, and is honest, and that’s the best thing that comes off. So far, people I have played it for in early listening are very excited about it, and I feel great about it, too. By the end of the summer we’ll probably put out a single, and hopefully by November or so, we’ll have the album out.
Tampa Bay’s excited to see you here. You’ve been touring for seven months, you’re winding down… How's the road been so far — is it “business as usual” for you at this point because you’ve been doing this for a long time?
It’s been fine, I mean, it’s been in & out, so I’ve kind of been doing the “weekend warrior” thing, where you go out & hit the weekend, hit few days and come back, so I’ve been able to have a life as well as be on the road. You’re right, this is kind of towards the end, because now I’m getting ready to gear up and get ready for our tour next year, to go out and support this new record, so it will be a whole new show and a whole new beginning. When we do this show that we’re doing now, it’s fun, it’s a lot of music, I do go through a medley of songs that I wrote and produced for different people, so it’s always a fun show.
Any artists or groups that you still want to work with, or somebody you haven’t worked with, yet, that you'd like to get into the studio?
I’ve kind of been fortunate enough to hit my “bucket list” pretty much, but I’m always interested in new things that pop up. There are certain people that I’m working with, but I just won’t mention them here, because sometimes it works out, and sometimes it doesn’t. I’m staying busy all the time, and working with a number of different artists.
You produced & wrote much of Arianna Grande’s debut album. What was that experience like? Why her? What piqued your interest?
Babyface: I think she’s a great singer, and speaking of passion, she’s got great passion. I love her as a person; she’s just a great little girl, to me. That’s always fun when you find a new artist that can really blow your mind… It’s not easy to find these days.