Press
What Happened to . . . Color Me Badd?
[2002, I think]
One year they were sexing us up and the next, well, there just wasn't a lot of hookin' up going on. Regardless, the Northwest Classen quartet aren't sitting back waiting for VH1's One Hit Wonders to call.
Admit it. You're in the shower and all of a sudden, that tune pops into your head and you start crooning "I Wanna Sex You Up." OK, so maybe it's just me. But regardless of your take on Color Me Badd's 1991 groundbreaking chart hit, its combination of R&B and hip-hop provided one of the catchiest and controversial (for the time) hooks ever recorded.
Initially, some radio stations wouldn't play it, leading to a "sanitized" version ["I Wanna Love You Up"] released in parts of Asia and to some U.S. stations.
The original recording took the foursome from nowhere to the crest of the pop charts, where they stayed through two No. 1 hits, appearances on television shows and movie soundtracks, and triple-platinum status for their debut album C.M.B.
Despite never reaching similar heights with their follow-up efforts, the group formed by four Oklahoma City Northwest Classen High School buddies stayed afloat through turbulent times in the mid-'90s before finally ending their association in 1998.
The group began as an a capella doo-wop act in the Classen halls, holding impromptu audition sessions for every major act that appeared in concert in the Oklahoma City area. At the urging of Kool and the Gang leader, Robert "Kool" Bell, the four teenagers —- Bryan Abrams, Sam Watters, Mark Calderon and Kevin "K.T." Thornton —-moved to New York City to hopefully find their fame and fortune.
Instead, the group found hard times, slept on the floor of their one-bedroom apartment for two years, and wondered if their "big break" would ever come. It did when "I Wanna Sex You Up" was included on the soundtrack of the equally controversial movie New Jack City. Suddenly, the group had blown up and didn't even have an entire album of material for release. They rushed into the studio and hurriedly put together C.M.B., which spawned back-to-back No. 1 hits "I Adore Mi Amor" and "All 4 Love," making unlikely megastars out of the multi-racial grouping of Midwestern kids.
The group sometimes was criticized for its "bubble gum" appeal, but there was no denying the uniqueness of the quartet.
Appearances on the television series Beverly Hills 90210, songs on the soundtrack of the Wayans brothers film Mo' Money, collaborations with Boyz II Men and Paula Abdul and even an appearance on an album with Disney characters followed during the whirlwind of hype surrounding Color Me Badd. But by the mid-'90s their popularity declined.
Even though the group had another top 10 hit in 1996 with "The Earth, The Sun, The Rain," they could never recapture the magic, and called it quits in 1998.
"At the time, we had been together 14 years and had just run out of steam," says Watters, who is now a much in-demand songwriter and producer. "The phenomenal success of that first album just put expectations beyond realistic. We hung in there for three albums, but finally, we all had different roads to travel."
After the breakup, Abrams released a solo effort and re-formed the band, with Calderon's brother, Ernie, replacing Watters, for some occasional gigs, but Color Me Badd has never returned to the studio. According to his official Web site, Abrams is reportedly set for a new recording and tour in early 2003, with a new band dubbed DRS (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels).
Abrams, Mark Calderon and Thornton also reunited for an appearance at the 2001 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame ceremonies, where the band was inducted. Watters was regrettably unable to attend because he was in the studio producing a recording for European [<-- she's American!] sensation Anastacia.
Watters has given up the spotlight to work behind the scenes, writing and producing No. 1 hits for Jessica Simpson ("I Wanna Love You Forever") and Anastacia ("I'm Outta Love") with his collaborator, Louis Biancaniello. He also wrote the Celine Dion hit "I Surrender," covered by American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson.
"I think we proved to kids in the Midwest and places like Oklahoma City that, with a little luck, you can get to the coast and have a chance to get your music heard," says Watters.