Carolyn Griffey is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 female soul

Soul music

Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...

 vocalist, and member of the soul funk

Funk

Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...

 group Shalamar

Shalamar

Shalamar was an American music group, primarily of the 1970s and 1980s, that was originally a disco-driven vehicle created by Soul Train booking agent Dick Griffey and show creator Don Cornelius. They went on to be an influential dance trio, masterminded by Soul Train producer Don Cornelius...

. She is the daughter of Carrie Lucas

Carrie Lucas

Carrie Lucas, is an American female R&B musician, born in Carmel, California. In 1976 she was signed to Soul Train Records. Lucas made six albums over seven years with Soul Train and Solar Records.-Career:...

 and Solar Records

SOLAR Records

S.O.L.A.R. Records was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with Soul Train television show host and creator Don Cornelius.-Company history:In 1975, Soul Train Records was founded by Dick Griffey and...

 boss Dick Griffey

Dick Griffey

Richard Gilbert "Dick" Griffey was an American record producer and promoter who founded SOLAR Records, an acronym for "Sound of Los Angeles Records", which played a major role in developing a funk-oriented blend of disco, R&B and soul music during the 1970s and 1980s...

, who worked with Don Cornelius

Don Cornelius

Donald Cortez "Don" Cornelius is an American television show host and producer who is best known as the creator of the nationally syndicated dance/music franchise Soul Train, which he hosted from 1971-1993...

 in the television program

Television program

A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...

, Soul Train

Soul Train

Soul Train is an American musical variety show that aired in syndication from October 1971 to March 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists, although funk, jazz, disco, and gospel artists have also appeared.As a nod to Soul Trains...

.

Griffey grew up around The Whispers

The Whispers

The Whispers are a long-established R&B-dance vocal group from Los Angeles, California, with a consistent track record of hit records dating back to the late 1960s.-Career:...

, Shalamar

Shalamar

Shalamar was an American music group, primarily of the 1970s and 1980s, that was originally a disco-driven vehicle created by Soul Train booking agent Dick Griffey and show creator Don Cornelius. They went on to be an influential dance trio, masterminded by Soul Train producer Don Cornelius...

, Midnight Star

Midnight Star

Midnight Star is an R&B and electro-funk group that had a string of R&B hits in the 1980s.-Band history:The group was formed in 1976 at Kentucky State University by trumpeter Reggie Calloway, vocalist Belinda Lipscomb, guitarist/vocalist Melvin Gentry, bassist Kenneth Gant, multi-instrumentalist...

, Dynasty

Dynasty (band)

Dynasty was an American R&B band, based in Los Angeles, California, created by producer and SOLAR Records label head Dick Griffey and Leon Sylvers III. The band was known for their dance/pop numbers during the late 1970s and 1980s...

, Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

, Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye

Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....

 and James Brown

James Brown

James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...

, who all appeared on Soul Train or who were signed to Solar Records.

In 1990 she was signed to Sony Records as part of the New Jack Swing

New jack swing

New jack swing or swingbeat is a fusion genre spearheaded by Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle which became extremely popular from the late-1980s into the mid-1990s. Its influence, along with hip-hop, seeped into pop culture and was the definitive sound of the inventive Black New York club scene...

 duo

Duet (music)

A duet is a musical composition for two performers. In classical music, the term is most often used for a composition for two singers or pianists; with other instruments, the word duo is also often used. A piece performed by two pianists performing together on the same piano is referred to as...

 called 'Absolute'. This group released one album, For All Seasons, in 1990. Their singles

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 included "Cheap Shot" and "Gotta Lambada" (from the movie

Film

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

 soundtrack

Soundtrack

A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...

 of Lambada

Lambada (film)

Lambada is a 1990 dramatic movie starring J. Eddie Peck, Melora Hardin, Ricky Paull Goldin, Dennis Burkley, and Keene Curtis. Lambada was written and directed by Joel Silberg....

.)

She is currently a member of Shalamar, and appeared on ITV’s Hit Me, Baby, One More Time in 2005, and has been touring the world with the Howard Hewett

Howard Hewett

Howard Hewett is an American R&B and gospel singer and former lead vocalist of the R&B group Shalamar.Raised in Akron, Ohio, Hewett moved to Los Angeles. He would eventually meet Soul Train dancer and future first wife Rainey Riley-Cunningham, then a secretary of the show's creator and original...

 and Jeffrey Daniel

Jeffrey Daniel

Jeffrey Daniel is an American dancer, singer-songwriter and choreographer, most notable for being a member of the R&B vocal group Shalamar. In Nigeria he is best known as an Idol series judge...

. She also retains ownership of the group name 'Shalamar' as a registered trademark.

She also sings with the Andre Crouch Gospel Choir, who are known for their work on Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror

Man in the Mirror

"Man in the Mirror" is a song recorded by Michael Jackson and written and composed by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett. It peaked at number one in the United States when released as a single in January 1988 off his seventh solo album, Bad. It is one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed songs and...

", "Keep the Faith" and "Will You Be There

Will You Be There

"Will You Be There" is a song by Michael Jackson which was released in 1993. The song is the eighth single from the 1991 album Dangerous. The song also appeared on the soundtrack to the film Free Willy, of which it is the main theme....

".

Griffey currently resides in Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....

 with her partner the Grammy Award

Grammy Award

A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...

 nominated record producer

Record producer

A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

 and songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

, Kurt 'KC' Clayton and their children.

In October 2009, Griffey performed with Hewett and Daniel in Shalamar at London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

's O2 Arena

The O2 (London)

The O2, visually typeset in branding as The O2, is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, piazzas, bars and restaurants...

. This prompted a return for a tour in the UK

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

in April 2010.