Dru Hill

Dru Hill Perform 'Classic' Set At New York's Apollo Theater

01 Apr 2010 16:21:00 EDT

'You get the opportunity to see all the different layers and see how Dru Hill has evolved into the group we are today,' Sisqo says.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK — On Wednesday night, Dru Hill returned to familiar terrain: the Apollo Theater in Harlem. The group won Amateur Night back in the mid-'90s, but this time the group came back as seasoned professionals.

Founders Sisqo, Nokio, Jazz and newcomer Antwuan "Tao" Simpson began with a medley of the group's greatest hits such as "Tell Me" and the remix of "Sleeping in My Bed," with Sisqo doing the moonwalk across the stage. Dru's set ended with a new song from their first album in eight years, InDRUpendence Day, due in May.

"I like a record that we had all done called 'Back to the Future,' " Sisqo told MTV News. "Basically, it's a classic format of Dru Hill, where Jazz would sing a verse and the group is doing the harmony. Then I sing a verse. But I think it really showcases Tao being in the group too. Jazz does his verse, I do my verse, Tao does his verse, then the group comes together.

" 'Back to the Future,' you get the opportunity to see all the different layers and see how Dru Hill has evolved into the group we are today," he continued. "Plus, I like the concept. Even some of the young kids listening to music ... may be listening to their parents who are saying music ain't what it used to be — nobody sings no more. 'Back to the Future' kind of metaphorically touches on that too. That's one of my favorites."

"I remember we used to ask each other, 'How many kids are we gon' have?' " Jazz sings. "I rememeber we used to make plans like, 'I cook the food, you cut the grass.' "

"Can we take it back to the way we were," the group joins in on the chorus. "Back to every single time you saw him, you saw her/ Even though we try to stay away/ My heart is still in yesterday/ Let's go back to you and me/ Like we s'pose to be/ Back to the future."

Are you looking forward to the new Dru Hill album? Let us know in the comments below!

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Dru Hill Rock The Apollo

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Dru Hill Welcomes New Member On InDRUpendence Day

30 Mar 2010 22:23:00 EDT

'It's a dream,' Antwuan 'Tao' Simpson says of joining the group.
By Shaheem Reid

Sisqo, Nokio and Jazz have remained the core of Dru Hill since the group debuted in 1996, but they have had other members. After their last LP, Dru World Order, they gained — and lost — new member Scola. Two years ago another one of the founders, Woody, came back to the group for a short time only to decide that singing secular music with his high school buddies wasn't a route he wanted to retread and he went back to gospel. In 2008, Antwuan "Tao" Simpson won a talent contest called "Dru Idol" to become the group's fourth member, with Sisqo comparing Tao's talent-show performance to Eminem's freestyle showing in "8 Mile." Sisqo, Jazz and Nokio agreed that Dru isn't the same with just three members.

"We tried it. We actually did an extensive tour," Nokio said about continuing as a trio. "We could do it if it came down to it and we ain't have a choice, but you get kinda used to having that extra person singing harmony. It's something you can't just get from being on the track.

"Our harmony is so intricate that in order to keep the integrity of what's going on the record and still perform for the fans, it's almost impossible to do with just three people," Sisqo explained. "Most of the time you have to have that three-part harmony structure while the other person is singing lead. Sometimes our harmony is so intricate, we might have to stop singing lead to make sure the integrity of the harmony is there. ... We didn't feel it was right to cheat the people out of that."

"It's a great addition Tao brings to the group," Jazz offered. "His register is a little higher than normally what's been presented in the Dru Hill sound. It's just hot, man. This record is crazy."

"People have been accepting me in the group. You get your haters here and there, but for the most part, it's a dream," Tao said.

The group's InDRUpendence Day is set for release this spring, prededed by the single "Love M.D."

"The sound for InDRUpendence Day is ... the foundation of it is what you're used to from us. It's the harmonies, the melodies ... we're singing about relationships," Nokio said. "As businessmen and writers and producers, we made sure we tried to incorporate what's going on now without becoming what's going on right now. We look for the different spin or the different aspect of relationships. Everything that people are used to from us are 'I love you, I love you, I love you.' But that's not reality all the time — not that you break up all the time, but you go through stuff."

The group's reality show "Platinum House" premieres May 20 on Centric.

"The reality show is basically about us starting over and coming back together and hashing out some of the things people may have been thinking over the years," Nokio explained. "Just getting ready to come back out here do what we do. It was really waking up 5 in the morning, camera in your face, all day long. From day to day we didn't know what was going to happen. It wasn't scripted."

"Life goes on and we just filmed it," Sisqo said.

Are you excited to hear new music from Dru Hill? Will you watch their "Platinum House" show? Let us know in the comments!

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Dru Hill

Sisqo Accused Of Shooting At Car, Resisting Arrest

15 Sep 2003 17:50:00 EDT

R&B singer allegedly fired at vehicle driven by his neighbor's brother.
By Joseph Patel

R&B singer Sisqó was arrested early Saturday morning along with his girlfriend after allegedly firing shots at a car parked outside a neighbor's house.

Police detained the renowned thong connoisseur and Dru Hill member, whose real name is Mark Andrews, at his home in the Baltimore suburb of Randallstown and charged him with five criminal acts, including first-degree assault, resisting arrest and reckless endangerment. His girlfriend, Tera Thomas, was also arrested and charged with second-degree assault and resisting arrest.

According to the police report, Sisqó's neighbor's brother called in a complaint around 3:30 a.m., saying he was waiting in his car for family members to come out when he heard a gunshot. The man told police that after his wife and a friend rushed into the car, he drove off as Sisqó fired more shots at his fleeing vehicle. Police believe three shots were fired.

After arriving at the singer's house to question him, police said they found empty shell casings from a .9 mm pistol. Sisqó allowed officers into his house and denied firing any shots. He said he owned such a gun but that he carried it for protection because he had been receiving death threats. Officers said they found the gun and a magazine clip on his kitchen counter and it appeared to have been recently fired.

Sisqó and Thomas then resisted arrest, cursing at the officers and repeating claims that they had been receiving death threats. Both were taken to Baltimore County jail and booked. Sisqó was released Sunday after posting bail of $175,000. No court date has been set.

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Reunited Dru Hill Hitting The Road With LL In June

12 May 2003 19:05:00 EDT

Trek kicks off in Baltimore and runs through an August 22 show in Detroit.
By Jon Wiederhorn

Sisqó is removing his thong and rejoining his Dru Hill bandmates on the road for the first time in five years.

Dru Hill will embark on a U.S. tour with LL Cool J beginning June 7 in their hometown of Baltimore. Dates are scheduled through an August 22 show in Detroit.

The lineup with feature original members Sisqó, Nokio, Jazz and Woody, plus Scola, who joined the group early last year.

Dru Hill's third album, Dru World Order, came out in November and has gone gold (see "Dru Hill Getting Ready To Make Girls Scream Again"). LL Cool J's 10th album, 10, dropped in October (see "LL Cool J: Dimepiece).

LL Cool J and Dru Hill tour dates, according to their publicist:

6/7 - Baltimore, MD @ Camden Yards
6/8 - Norfolk, VA @ Convocation Center
6/12 - Cleveland, OH @ Nautica Stage
6/13 - Detroit, MI @ Fox Theater
6/14 - Merryville, IN @ Star Plaza Theatre
6/15 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Station Square
6/20 - New York, NY @ Beacon Theater
6/21 - Fayetteville, AR @ Crown Coliseum
6/22 - Charlotte, NC @ Paramount's Carowinds
6/24 - Minneapolis, MN @ Target Theater
6/25 - Green Bay, WI @ Oneida Casino
6/26 - Muskegon, MI @ TBA
6/27 - Milwaukee, WI @ TBA
6/29 - Philadelphia, PA @ TBA
7/19 - Norfolk, VA @ TBA
8/14 - New Orleans, LA @ TBA
8/22 - Detroit, MI @ TBA

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For The Record: Quick News On Justin Timberlake, J. Lo, Alicia Keys, Joey Ramone, Dru Hill, Paul Westerberg & More

18 Feb 2003 17:16:00 EST

By MTV News staff report

Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" video will debut on MTV's "Making the Video" on Thursday. Francis Lawrence, who helmed the singer's Britney revenge fantasy a.k.a. the "Cry Me a River" clip, again called the shots. "Cry Me a River," meanwhile, will be released Tuesday (February 18) as a limited-edition maxi CD, with remixes by Junior Vasquez, Basement Jaxx and Dirty Vegas. ... Another round of presenters has been announced for the now very imminent Grammy Awards. The aforementioned J.T. will hit the stage on Sunday to hand out a gramophone, as will last year's Grammy gobbler Alicia Keys, Aretha Franklin, Raphael Saadiq, Peter Gabriel, Rod Stewart and more. ...

The American International Toy Fair is holding court in New York this week, and among the new collectibles with a rock bent is an 11-inch figure of the late punk icon Joey Ramone. The figure, expected to be in stores in spring, portrays the singer in his trademark motorcycle jacket, and features removable sunglasses and a mic stand. ...

Freeway got some hometown love from fellow Philadelphia native Ms. Jade last week when she came down to Free's video shoot for his next single, "Alright." Shot by Terry Heller in the City of Brotherly Love, the clip centers around occupants of a forlorn community. Glenn Lewis also makes a cameo. ... The 17th Annual Soul Train Music Awards has added Jennifer Lopez, a reunited Dru Hill, Chris Rock and actor Orlando Jones to its list of presenters. They join previously announced performers Mariah Carey, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah and Justin Timberlake at the ceremony, which will be telecast live in syndication March 1 at 8 p.m. ET. ...

Lifehouse will embark on a North American tour, beginning March 13 in Arlington, Texas. Not only does the trek mark the band's first since the release of their second album, Stanley Climbfall, it's also their first Stateside jaunt with former Calling guitarist Sean Woolstenhulme, brother of Lifehouse drummer Rick, as a permanent band fixture. ...

The 2003 Bonnaroo Music Festival has chosen the newly crowned Dead, Widespread Panic, James Brown and the Allman Brothers Band, as well as hipster rockers Sonic Youth, Tortoise, and Smokey & Miho (guitarist Smokey Hormel and Cibo Matto's Miho Hatori) to take the stage at the three-day festival, which expects more than 60 acts in all. Bonnaroo takes place June 13 in Manchester, Tennessee. ... Former Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg is working on his second album for Vagrant Records. The follow-up to last year's Mono/Stereo double LP is slated to surface in late summer. ...

02.14.03

A Mark, a Mission, a Brand, a Scar, the third album by Dashboard Confessional, is being recorded in a Florida studio with producer Gil Norton (Foo Fighters, Pixies). The follow-up to 2001's The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most is expected to arrive in late spring. ...

While any of the witchy women of the WB's "Charmed" can carry the title of heartbreaker, the guest star of the April 6 episode practically put the word on the map. Pat Benatar will perform her 1979 hit "Heartbreaker" at Piper's club, P3. ...

Australian authorities have discovered 500 stolen reel-to-reel masters of recordings believed to be original studio sessions for Abbey Road and The Beatles. The February 14 raid in Sydney was part of a police investigation that last month uncovered tapes in London and Amsterdam of the sessions that eventually became Let It Be. Those tapes were stolen from Abbey Road Studios over 30 years ago. ... Jewel has revealed on her official Web site that her next album will be dominated by dance music. The singer says she's experimenting with R&B rhythms and electronic music and tells fans to expect "fierce grooves and dance beats and futuristic keyboard and retro '80s synth sounds." She also divulges that the as-yet-untitled album will be produced by Lester Mendez, whom she credits for co-writing most of the new songs as well. ...

Mogwai, in the midst of working on their fourth album, have put their drummer's pacemaker up for sale on eBay. The high bidder, whose cash will be donated to the British Heart Foundation, also gets Martin Bulloch's European pacemaker I.D. card, his hospital wristband, the Japanese version of Mogwai's My Father My King and a vinyl test-pressing of the band's Rock Action. ... Almost two years after his split with the mathematically inclined noisecore band, former Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist Dimitri Minikakis has reemerged with Tokyo, who are currently completing demo recordings and will make their live debut April 6 at the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia. ...

Following the premiere of the first untitled video from their third album, ( ), at last month's Sundance Film Festival, Icelandic sound-sculpters Sigur Ros will embark on a North American tour that kicks off with a sold-out March 15 show in Boston. The 18-date outing winds down April 8 in Oakland, California. ... Former member of Powell Peralta's legendary Bones Brigade pro-skate team, Tommy Guerrero, is putting the finishing touches on his second album, Soul Food Taqueria. The follow-up to 2000's A Little Bit of Something displays elements of anti-folk, hip-hop, jazz, blues and funk, among other elements, and is expected to drop in May. ...

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New Releases: Jennifer Lopez, Snoop Dogg, Sum 41, Kelly Osbourne, Busta Rhymes, System Of A Down & More

26 Nov 2002 07:53:00 EST

By Abbey Goodman

In the unlikely event that you've missed the Jennifer Lopez media blitz of the past few weeks, you might be interested in knowing that she's got a new album out this week. This is Me ...Then covers the ground we've come to expect from J. Lo — danceable songs about the Bronx, love, and her being the same girl she's always been.

Snoop Dogg, on the other hand, has changed some over the years. On his latest album, he tells how he Paid Tha Cost to Be Da Boss.

Does This Look Infected? the follow-up to Sum 41's All Killer No Filler, trades in the bubblegum skate punk for more serious, though still rousing, songs from the boys.

As promised by drummer ?uestlove, the Roots' fifth studio album Phrenology is the Philadelphia hip-hop group's shortest, fastest, most aggressive record to date.

Coinciding with the Osbournes season premiere, firecracker Kelly unveils her debut album, Shut Up, while Busta Rhymes and System of a Down roll out It Ain't Safe No More and Steal This Album, respectively.

Finally, the "Paid in Full" soundtrack, featuring Cam'ron, Jay-Z and Beanie Sigel, shares shelf space with the previously hard to find Twoism EP by the Boards of Canada and a new release by Tupac Shakur, proving that even in his posthumous career, he's seen Better Dayz than his competition.

Out Tuesday, November 26:

2Pac - Better Dayz (2 CDs, Interscope)
Read: "New Tupac Tracks Roll Out On Another Posthumous Double Album"
Buy Now: Better Dayz (Interscope Records)
Paula Abdul - Greatest Hits (Simply the Best)
Buy Now: Greatest Hits (Simply The Best)
All About Eve - Fairy Light Nights Two (United States)
Artisokka - A Hiding Place in the Arbor (Shelflife)
Atari Teenage Riot - Redefine the Enemy (Digital Hardcore)
Baby - The Birdman (Cash Money/Universal)
Read: "Cash Money's Baby Makes Video Plans With P. Diddy, Toni Braxton"
Bad Brains - I & I Survived (Reggae Lounge)
Chet Baker - Almost Blue (West Wind)
Jeff Beck - Hi-Ho Silver Lining (Go)
Beyond the Sixth Seal - Earth & Sphere (Lifeforce)
Boards of Canada - Twoism (EP, Warp)
Buy Now: Twoism (Warp)
Bodacious D.F. - Bodacious D.F. (Acadia)
Brown Power - Bad Blood (Brown Power)
Jeff Buckley - Grace EPs Box Set (5 CDs, Sony)
Buy Now: The Grace EPs (Columbia)
Busta Rhymes - It Ain't Safe No More (J Records)
Read: "Busta Borrows From Gilligan, Encourages Wildin' Out On New LP"
Buy Now: It Ain't Safe (J Records)
Canned Heat - Live in Oz (United States)
Ray Charles - Don't Put All Your Dreams in One Basket (Planet Media)
Charlotte Church - Prelude: The Best of Charlotte Church (Sony)
Cloven Hoof - Cloven Hoof (Castle)
Colorsound - Colorsound (United States)
DJ Hell - Electronic Body House Music (React)
Drag the River - Live at the Starlight (Mars Motors)
Dream Street - The Biggest Fan (Sony)
DRI - Dirty Rotten CD (Beer City)
The Dropscience - Dies Tonight (Happy Couples Never)
Dru Hill - Dru World Order (Def Soul/Def Jam)
Read: "Dru Hill Wow NYC Crowd, Ready Fans For Dru World Order"
Buy Now: Dru World Order (Def Soul)
Bob Dylan & the Rolling Thunder Revue -- Bob Dylan Live 1975 (3 CDs, Sony)
Erase the Grey - 27 Days (EP, Universal)
Evergreen Terrace - Burned Alive by Time (Eulogy)
Five - Hemophiliac Dream (EP, Tortuga)
Flickerstick - Causing a Catastrophe Live (What Are Records)
Green Pajamas - Northern Gothic (Camera Obscura)
Grootna - Grootna (Acadia)
Tracii Guns - Killing Machine (Big Eye)
Richie Hawtin & Sven Vath - The Sound of the Third Season (novamute)
Heartscarved - Epilogue (Tribunal)
Hipp-E & Halo - Fabric 07 (Fabric)
Holding on - Question What You Live for (Bridge Nine)
Hope and Suicide - Razorblade Smile (EP, Ides of March)
Icons of Filth - Nostradamnedus (Go Kart)
Syleena Johnson - Chapter 2: The Voice (Jive)
K-Ci & JoJo - Emotional (MCA)
Read: "K-Ci & JoJo Talk New LP, Explain Pants-Dropping Incident"
Buy Now: Emotional (MCA)
Khaled - Ya Taleb (Mondo Melodia)
Kool G Rap - The Giacana Story (Koch)
Read: "Kool G Rap LP Finally On The Way, Capone-N-Noreaga, Michael Stipe Included"
Buy Now: The Giacana Story (Koch)
Long Tall Shorty - Bird in the Hand (Acid Jazz)
Jennifer Lopez - This Is Me ... Then (Epic)
Read: "J. Lo Sets Release Date For LP After Song Leaks Out"
Buy Now: This Is Me ... Then (Epic)
Dave Martone - Demon's Dream (Lion Music)
Paul McCartney - Back in the U.S. Live 2002 (2 CDs, MPL/Capitol)
Buy Now: Back in the U.S. Live 2002 (EMI)
Tim McGraw - Tim McGraw & the Dancehall Doctors (Curb)
Kathleen Mock - Kathleen Mock (The Orchard)
Mock Orange - First EP (Dead Droid)
Mr. Boogie - Big Man (Familia)
No Warning - Ill Blood (Bridge Nine)
Kelly Osbourne - Shut Up (Sony)
Read: "Kelly Osbourne Says 'Shut Up' And Dance On Upcoming LP"
Buy Now: Shut Up (Epic)
Primal Scream - Evil Heat (Epic)
Buy Now: Evil Heat (Epic)
Promise - Believer (Indecision)
Raised Fist - Dedication (Burning Heart)
Ramallah - But a Whimper (Bridge Nine)
Red Flag - Codebreaker T133 (Plan B)
Don Rich - Come Back to Me (Jin)
The Roots - Phrenology (MCA)
Read: "?uestlove Talks New Roots, Common LPs?uestlove Talks New Roots, Common LPs"
Buy Now: Phrenology (MCA)
Roots Manuva - Badmeaningood Volume 2 (Ultimate Dilemma)
Royce Da 5' 9" - Rock City (Game/Koch)
Read: "Royce Da 5'9" Emerges Out Of Eminem's Shadow With Rock City "
Buy Now: Rock City (Game/Koch)
Schizoid - All Things are Connected (Digital Hardcore)
Scissorfight - Potential New Agent for Unconventional Warfare (Tortuga)
Shadowkeep - Chaos Theory (LMP)
Sharp Things - Here Comes the Sharp Things (The Orchard)
Smashing Pumpkins - Earphoria (Virgin)
Will Smith - Greatest Hits (Sony)
Buy Now: Greatest Hits (Sony)
Snoop Dogg - Paid Tha Cost to Be Da Boss (Priority)
Read: "Snoop Quotes Pootie Tang And Cheers: 'Pimp, Pimp Hooray!' "
Buy Now: Paid Tha Cost to Be Da Boss (Sony)
Solo Project - Bend/Break (Rise)
Space Tribe - Heart Beat (EFA-CAR)
The Stanley Brothers - Echoes of Clinch Mountain (Country Stars)
Star of Ash - Ilter Viator (Voices of Wonder)
Star Queen - Faithbringer (Lion Music)
Alice Stuart - All the Good Times (Arhoolie)
Sum 41 - Does This Look Infected? (Island)
Read: "Sum 41 Sober Up On Does This Look Infected?"
Buy Now: Does This Look Infected? (Island)
System of a Down - Steal this Album (Sony)
Read: "From-The-Vault System Songs Have New Political Relevancy"
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Dru Hill Wow NYC Crowd, Ready Fans For Dru World Order

21 Nov 2002 15:21:00 EST

Group unveils new tracks, additional member at mini-concert.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK — "Hulk Hogan was here and I missed him?" Dru Hill's disappointed Woody asked groupmate Nokio Wednesday, while the group prepared for a mini-concert at the World, owned by the Hulkster's employers WWE.

"Kurt Angle was here too," Dru's newest member Scola chimed in, only adding to Woody's gloom over not seeing his grappling heroes. "I thought he was my size, but he's big as hell."

While the guys were downstairs getting their faces airbrushed on their jean suits and laying out their red leather outfits, some of the Baltimore collective's friends and peers were filtering into the venue, all anxious to see the group Dru the damn thang.

"I'm coming out here to support my people, Dru Hill, and see them do their thing," video director Little X (Usher, Mystikal) said. "I have no expectations. I have a clean slate. I'm ready to be blown away." Eve and DJ Clue were among the others who came out to support the group.

In addition to seeing one of Dru's first performances in four years, people also turned out for the release of Def Jam's charity LP Red Star Sounds, Vol. 2, featuring tracks by many of the label's artists, including Dru Hill. "Rehearsals have been just us in there tightening up everything," Nokio said, still sitting in the World's backstage area with his harmonizing brethren. "We've done a couple of shows thus far and we've had a chance to see what we've been doing right and see stuff we wanna tighten up."

"If you've ever seen the movie 'The Five Deadly Venoms,' how they had to go away and train and come back, it was similar to that." Sisqó elaborated.

Last month, the group described its new LP, Dru World Order (see "Dru Hill Getting Ready To Make Girls Scream Again") as anything but a comeback effort. "This a continuation; it's the evolution of a band," Nokio insisted.

To evolve, Dru felt they had to go back their essence, with the album's first single "I Should Be."

" 'I Should Be' ain't our best record that we got, it was like the one that was going to raise the bar for everything coming after that, whether it be us or anybody else," Nokio explained of the release. "It was just that classic Dru Hill sound that you love."

"We've been gone for a minute, three or four years, and it's basically a double meaning," Sisqó added. "[We're] telling any girl that's with some dude that ain't really treating her like she deserve to be treated, he don't love her. She need to come to the Dragon. 'Come to Nok. Come to Jazz. Come to Wood. Come to Sco.' That's on one side. Then on the other side, it's kind of like we stepping in on the R&B group tip, saying, 'We should be your boyfriends, we the ones that you should come to.' "

Dru had no problem attracting the ladies as they came onstage, opening with the uptempo "On Me" from Dru World Order. There was talk of N.O.R.E., who guests on the song, making a surprise appearance, but he was nowhere to be seen. Besides, with a fifth member added to the group, there wasn't too much room.

"It's cool to have a new element onstage, mainly because it gives all of our fans something fresh to look at, even though they glad to see us," Sisqó determined earlier in the night. "Vocally, it's amazing. Sometimes we're singing onstage and we get confused whether we're singing or they're playing back a recording or something. It's given us a lot more stage presence."

"I'm going to be honest, man; I feel like I'm right where I belong," said Scola, who's been friends with everyone in Dru for years. "I've been doing [music] for a minute. I had certain deals, and the game is political. Things ain't go the way they supposed to, but I think it's definitely meant for me to be here."

Woody is equally elated to be down. One of the group's founders, he left to pursue a career in gospel, but decided to come back to the fold.

"Basically, to be in Dru Hill is a gift," Woody said. "But at the same time, I wanted to give back to the creator for giving me the opportunity to record the music with Dru Hill. That's what I feel like my gospel project was, just me giving back saying 'Thank you, God, for giving me the opportunity and the voice to record and be a recording artist.'

"With that said, I'm now moving back with the formula," he continued. "Sometimes you gotta come back to basics, come back to what made you who you are. Dru Hill is definitely what made me, as well as all of us sitting here. We just want everyone to know that we all acknowledge that this is the basis of everything we've done in our careers."

Before ending their set with "I Should Be," Dru dug into their catalog for star-making songs like the remix of "Sleeping in My Bed," and the night's most rousing performance, the sleeper hit "Beauty."

Besides doing much of the producing themselves on Dru World Order, due November 26, the group hit the studio with the likes of Warryn Campbell, the Neptunes, and Kwame, the man who made it cool to wear polka dots back in the day.

Dru Hill embark on a tour of small venues February 5.

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

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Dru Hill Getting Ready To Make Girls Scream Again

15 Aug 2002 07:52:00 EDT

Nokio discusses reunion disc, Dru World Order, due November 12.
By Shaheem Reid

NEW YORK — While B2K were driving adolescent girls into a tizzy across town at Madison Square Garden, Tamir "Nokio" Ruffin was sitting in Soundtrack Studios, remembering the days when his name used to roll off girls' lips with the frequency that the names Omarion, J-Boog, Lil' Fizz and Raz-B do today.

"It was crazy," Nokio said with a laugh after devouring a takeout seafood dinner. "This girl came running up to me yesterday for a hug and said, 'I was loving you way before I was loving B2K.' "

But there are no screaming girls at Soundtrack. The main room is temporarily submerged in silence.

"I can't believe we actually have an album coming out," Nokio said of the Dru Hill reunion disc, Dru World Order, due November 12. And not only are Nokio, Sisqó, Jazz and the gospel-singing Woody all back in the fold for their first LP since 1998's Enter the Dru, the guys have a new addition.

"His name is Scola, and he's been with us since day one," Nokio said. "He's the guy whose songs we were listening to in Baltimore, like, 'Yo, we need to make songs like that.' We was like, 'Yo, you our boy and you been here.'... We seen him coming up for so long, going from not being in the right situations, you just want to see everybody come up. Especially being from Baltimore. There aren't a lot of opportunities down there. You gonna see his face on the album cover, the girls are going to be screaming for [him]. He just brings a different element that we didn't have before."

Nokio said the original members first got back together during a Dru family tragedy, when Woody's mom died and the four of them performed at her funeral.

"We went up to the pulpit to sing a song together, and that was the first time everybody had the chance to look at each other like, 'Yo, I miss you, dog. What's up, man? What you been doing?' The communication was there, and it kept getting stronger and stronger. One day me and Sisqó were on the phone talking about doing a remix to one of the songs on his last album and that conversation turned into, 'Yo, we just need to go make an album — let's stop playing. I went down to his crib for eight months.' "

The duo called the rest of their squad in October and started writing. By the end of December, they had recorded a large chunk of their songs.

"My man is itching to get onstage bad," Nokio said of Sisqó, who has cut his cornrows down to a Caesar and is wearing his natural black hair color. "His voice is like it never was before, he's just ready to go. Ready to be at where we were in the beginning."

Dru Hill have indeed taken it back to their roots for their still-untitled first single, due in September.

"I should be your boyfriend/ 'Cause you know he's lying/ It might seem like I'm hating/ But I'm just relating," they harmonize over a mid-tempo track that's pampered with funk and strings.

"After we listened to it, the harmony, what we was saying, it was that Dru Hill record that reminded you of why you like Dru Hill," Nokio said. "It was good to be able to sit back and debate about it like, 'I don't know what record we gonna put out because we got so many records' rather than 'That is the only record we have. Let's put it out right now.' "

N.O.R.E. makes a guest appearance on the club banger "On Me," while Nokio himself is the star of a ballad he refers to as "the baby father anthem."

"I wrote that song on Christmas Eve that just passed," recalled Nokio, who sings, "While you're in bed with another man, I just want to talk to my child" on the track. "That was the first Christmas I [didn't] have no girl. Wasn't nobody there, wasn't nothing happening. I was like, 'Why I ain't got no girl? This ain't like me.' It made me think about all of the stuff I had done over the years to different girls."

"I called Scola up and started singing the first two lines," Nokio said, "and he was like, 'I don't know what you're going through, man, but keep going through it.' You'll listen to the album and a lot of it is girls, relationships and everything, ... but the undertone is you could see everything we went though. All the pain. All the nights we were sitting around not knowing what was going to happen. ... Dealing with the fans, 'Y'all ain't never coming back.' We put that all into the record."

Besides the Dru Hill album, which he produced most of, Nokio is staying busy with his A&R consultant gig at Def Jam, where he is overseeing projects by 3rd Storee and Lovher. He also has his own N-tity management and production companies, where he'll soon be laying tracks for DMX and Scarface.

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Sisqó Will Return In June

21 Mar 2001 19:38:00 EST

First single from second solo LP is 'Last Night,' due to hit radio April 24.
By Shaheem Reid

Sisqó's been playing the role of homebody lately — he's been hard at work in his L.A. home studio. The fruits of his labor will be heard when his second solo effort, Return of the Dragon, hits stores on June 12.

"Last Night" will be Return's first single, which should hit airwaves on April 24. A track titled "Infatuated" was originally planned to be the first offering from the LP.

Some of Sisqó's houseguests/album collaborators include Teddy Riley, Warren Campbell and Al West; the latter two worked on his 1999 solo debut, Unleash the Dragon, which has sold over 4 million copies to date, according to SoundScan.

The performer's singing protégés, LovHer, also contribute to two tracks: "Privacy" and "Dreams" (see "Sisqó Creates 'New Sound Again'").

Although a third album with his group Dru Hill has yet to be scheduled (see "Dru Hill Album Back On, Sisqó Says"), the Baltimore natives reunited for one song on Return, a mid-tempo track called "Without You." Don't expect to hear too many slowed-down tracks, however. While the album contains some ballads and mid-tempo offerings, a spokesperson for the now-cornrowed singer said that this time around, Sisqó picked up the pace and focused on more upbeat, dancefloor-friendly songs. "I basically created a new sound again," the singer said in December. "I can't even explain it."

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Shaggy, O-Town, Dream Hoop It Up For All-Star Weekend

06 Feb 2001 18:42:00 EST

Sisqó, Jessica Simpson, Mya, Lil' Bow Wow performing at NBA events February 8 to 11.
By Joe D'Angelo

NBA players aren't the only ones planning to jam this weekend, as Shaggy, Dream, O-Town, Sisqó, Jessica Simpson and Harry Connick Jr. are among the artists lined up to take part in the events surrounding the 50th annual NBA All-Star Game in Washington, D.C.

Pop patriot Simpson will perform the national anthem prior to tip-off at Sunday's game at the MCI Center, while Deborah Cox will sing Canada's national anthem at the event.

Retro crooner Harry Connick Jr. will lead the game's halftime extravaganza as both featured performer and creative director. With a 15-piece big band in tow, Connick will perform a musical arrangement honoring All-Star MVPs from the past 50 years, including Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Julius "Dr. J" Irving, Walt "Clyde" Frazier, Bill Russell and Oscar Robertson.

At the previous night's flashy skills competitions, R&B songstress Mya will do the "Star-Spangled" honors, while Chantal Kreviazuk is slated to sing "O, Canada." Prior to the on-court action, O-Town will get the party started on Thursday with an engagement at the newly christened "Club NBA" as part of the eight-year-old NBA All-Star Jam Session, held this year at the Washington Convention Center.

Other artists scheduled to perform under the Club NBA banner include the Transitions and VP-215 (Thursday); Avant and Dave Hollister (Friday); Jagged Edge, Lil' Bow Wow, Lil' Zane and Dream (Saturday); and Silkk the Shocker, De la Soul and Shaggy (Sunday).

Aside from the music, the Jam Session invites fans to practice their slam-dunk skills, launch jump shots from a trampoline, play bungee basketball and test their trivia skills, among other activities.

On Friday, the spotlight will be on basketball star and part-time rapper Shaquille O'Neal when he's roasted at D.C.'s National Museum of Women in the Arts. Participating in the Dean Martin-inspired event will be Queen Latifah and Adam Sandler, among others, according to a spokesperson for the event. Kelly Price will perform and Gerald Levert, Treach of Naughty by Nature, Jermaine Dupri, MC Lyte, Mystikal, Ludacris, and omnipresent producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis are scheduled to be on hand for the verbal Shaq attack, and a portion of the proceeds from ticket sales will be dispersed among five charities.

Mya, Simpson, Dream, O-Town and Sisqó will do double-time with performances at the fifth annual NBA TeamUp Celebration, taking place at Constitution Hall on Saturday. The event honors the work of teen volunteers who have collectively donated more than one million hours of community service through the NBA's TeamUp program. Others attending the celebration include Queen Latifah, Aaron Carter, MTV personalities Carson Daly and Ananda Lewis, NBA stars Vince Carter, Steve Francis and Tracy McGrady, and WNBA hoopsters Chamique Holdsclaw and Nikki McCray.

The TeamUp Celebration will be broadcast live beginning at 12 p.m. (ET) on NBC, TNT, BET, Nickelodeon and NBA.com TV; the All-Star Game hits the airwaves at 6 p.m. (ET) Sunday on NBC.

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