Fab Morvan
Encyclopedia
Fabrice "Fab" Morvan is a French singer-songwriter, dancer and model. He was half of the pop duo Milli Vanilli
, with Rob Pilatus
, selling multi-platinum albums around the world. However, he was later involved in one of the largest scandal
s in pop music history when it was revealed that neither he nor Pilatus
had sung on any of Milli Vanilli
's recordings. After the scandal, the group reformed as Rob & Fab
in the 1990s with limited success. Morvan had a solo comeback in the 2000s releasing his first solo album, Love Revolution.
r and model, and was influenced by funk, soul
, rap and pop music sounds. He met Rob Pilatus in a nightclub in Munich
. They decided to form a rock/soul group.
, who signed them as part of a musical act. Shortly after a trip to Turkey
, where they reputedly got the band's name from a local advertising slogan
, Milli Vanilli was born. Morvan and Pilatus served as the public faces for singers Charles Shaw
, John Davis, and Brad Howell, who Farian thought were talented musicians but lacked a marketable image.
The first Milli Vanilli album was Girl You Know It's True
. Despite critical pans, Milli Vanilli's fame continued to grow worldwide. The album had four hit singles: the title track, and the group's three #1 hits, "Girl I'm Gonna Miss You", "Baby Don't Forget My Number", and "Blame It on the Rain". Milli Vanilli won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist on 22 February 1990 for Girl You Know It's True.
Morvan and Pilatus were a frequent target of rumours and allegations of on-stage lip-synching and not having sung on the album. Shaw told a reporter the truth about Milli Vanilli, but later retracted his statement after Farian paid him to do so.
When Morvan and Pilatus pressured Farian to let them sing on the next album, Farian revealed to reporters on 15 November 1990 that Morvan and Pilatus had not actually sung on any of the records. Milli Vanilli's Grammy was withdrawn four days later. Arista Records
dropped the act from its roster and deleted their album and its masters from their catalog, making Girl You Know It's True the largest-selling album to ever be taken out of print. A court ruling in the United States allowed anyone who had bought the album to get a refund.
Farian would later attempt a failed comeback for the group without Morvan and Pilatus.
. They began to lip sync to an opera recording. An announcer asked as they were lip synching, "How long does the taste of Carefree sugarless gum last?" The record then began to skip and the announcer answers, "Until these guys sing for themselves."
They then moved to Los Angeles, where they released an eponymous album under the name Rob & Fab
. Despite positive reviews, the album failed due to financial constraints, poor promotion, and the scandal surrounding Milli Vanilli's lip-synching allegations.
Pilatus later served three months jail for assault, vandalism, and attempted robbery. He spent six months on drug rehabilitation before returning to Germany. He died of an overdose of prescription drugs at a hotel in Frankfurt
on 2 April 1998. It took a toll on Morvan because Morvan and Pilatus had become good friends.
and public speaker. In 1998, he was hired as a radio
DJ at famed L.A. radio station KIIS-FM
. During this time, he also performed at the station's sold-out 1999 Wango Tango
festival concert before 50,000 people at Dodger Stadium
.
In 2000, he was featured in a BBC documentary on Milli Vanilli, as well as a VH-1 Behind the Music
episode. Morvan then spent 2001 on tour, before performing in 2002 as the inaugural performer at the brand-new Velvet Lounge at the Hard Rock Café
Hotel in Orlando, Florida
.
In 2003, Morvan released his first solo album, Love Revolution, to critical acclaim and a favorable response, with Morvan producing, recording, writing and singing all the tracks. On 14 April 2011, Morvan released a new single, "Anytime", to digital outlets.
was developing a film based on the true story of Milli Vanilli's rise and fall in the music industry. Jeff Nathanson
, screenwriter from Catch Me If You Can
, will write and direct the film. Morvan will serve as a consultant, providing his and Pilatus' point of view.
On 26 March 2007, the Milli Vanilli Greatest Hits album was released.
Milli Vanilli
Milli Vanilli was a pop/dance music project formed by Frank Farian in Germany in 1988, visually fronted by Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus. The group's debut album achieved international success and earned them a Grammy Award for Best New Artist on Feb. 21, 1990. Milli Vanilli became one of the most...
, with Rob Pilatus
Rob Pilatus
Robert "Rob" Pilatus was a German-American model, dancer and singer. Pilatus was best known as half of the pop music duo Milli Vanilli.-Early life:...
, selling multi-platinum albums around the world. However, he was later involved in one of the largest scandal
Scandal
A scandal is a widely publicized allegation or set of allegations that damages the reputation of an institution, individual or creed...
s in pop music history when it was revealed that neither he nor Pilatus
Rob Pilatus
Robert "Rob" Pilatus was a German-American model, dancer and singer. Pilatus was best known as half of the pop music duo Milli Vanilli.-Early life:...
had sung on any of Milli Vanilli
Milli Vanilli
Milli Vanilli was a pop/dance music project formed by Frank Farian in Germany in 1988, visually fronted by Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus. The group's debut album achieved international success and earned them a Grammy Award for Best New Artist on Feb. 21, 1990. Milli Vanilli became one of the most...
's recordings. After the scandal, the group reformed as Rob & Fab
Rob & Fab
Rob & Fab was a US pop and dance music project formed and fronted by Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan in 1990 after their participation in the commercially very successful but ill-fated Milli Vanilli band project....
in the 1990s with limited success. Morvan had a solo comeback in the 2000s releasing his first solo album, Love Revolution.
Early years
Morvan was born in 1966 in Paris. He lived in Miami as a child, but moved with his mother to Paris. At 18, he moved again to Germany, where he was a break danceBreak Dance
Break Dance is a Commodore 64 computer game that relies on players making dancing moves that resemble the classic game Simon says.-Gameplay:...
r and model, and was influenced by funk, 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...
, rap and pop music sounds. He met Rob Pilatus in a nightclub in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
. They decided to form a rock/soul group.
Milli Vanilli
Morvan and Pilatus were noticed by music producer Frank FarianFrank Farian
Frank Farian , is a German record producer and songwriter. He started out as a trained cook before moving into the music industry...
, who signed them as part of a musical act. Shortly after a trip to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, where they reputedly got the band's name from a local advertising slogan
Slogan
A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a political, commercial, religious and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose. The word slogan is derived from slogorn which was an Anglicisation of the Scottish Gaelic sluagh-ghairm . Slogans vary from the written and the...
, Milli Vanilli was born. Morvan and Pilatus served as the public faces for singers Charles Shaw
Charles Shaw (singer)
Charles Shaw is a rapper and singer who, in 1988, performed on recordings credited to Milli Vanilli.Shaw, a US Army veteran, was reportedly paid $6,000 to perform the rap on Milli Vanilli's hit "Girl You Know It’s True"...
, John Davis, and Brad Howell, who Farian thought were talented musicians but lacked a marketable image.
The first Milli Vanilli album was Girl You Know It's True
Girl You Know It's True
Girl You Know It's True is a 1989 album that was the U.S. debut of pop group Milli Vanilli.In 1989, the majority of songs from Milli Vanilli's Europe-only release All or Nothing were repackaged and retitled Girl You Know It's True...
. Despite critical pans, Milli Vanilli's fame continued to grow worldwide. The album had four hit singles: the title track, and the group's three #1 hits, "Girl I'm Gonna Miss You", "Baby Don't Forget My Number", and "Blame It on the Rain". Milli Vanilli won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist on 22 February 1990 for Girl You Know It's True.
Morvan and Pilatus were a frequent target of rumours and allegations of on-stage lip-synching and not having sung on the album. Shaw told a reporter the truth about Milli Vanilli, but later retracted his statement after Farian paid him to do so.
When Morvan and Pilatus pressured Farian to let them sing on the next album, Farian revealed to reporters on 15 November 1990 that Morvan and Pilatus had not actually sung on any of the records. Milli Vanilli's Grammy was withdrawn four days later. Arista Records
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
dropped the act from its roster and deleted their album and its masters from their catalog, making Girl You Know It's True the largest-selling album to ever be taken out of print. A court ruling in the United States allowed anyone who had bought the album to get a refund.
Farian would later attempt a failed comeback for the group without Morvan and Pilatus.
Aftermath
Months later, Morvan and Pilatus parodied the scandal in a commercial for Carefree sugarless gumChewing gum
Chewing gum is a type of gum traditionally made of chicle, a natural latex product, or synthetic rubber known as polyisobutylene. For economical and quality reasons, many modern chewing gums use rubber instead of chicle...
. They began to lip sync to an opera recording. An announcer asked as they were lip synching, "How long does the taste of Carefree sugarless gum last?" The record then began to skip and the announcer answers, "Until these guys sing for themselves."
They then moved to Los Angeles, where they released an eponymous album under the name Rob & Fab
Rob & Fab
Rob & Fab was a US pop and dance music project formed and fronted by Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan in 1990 after their participation in the commercially very successful but ill-fated Milli Vanilli band project....
. Despite positive reviews, the album failed due to financial constraints, poor promotion, and the scandal surrounding Milli Vanilli's lip-synching allegations.
Pilatus later served three months jail for assault, vandalism, and attempted robbery. He spent six months on drug rehabilitation before returning to Germany. He died of an overdose of prescription drugs at a hotel in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
on 2 April 1998. It took a toll on Morvan because Morvan and Pilatus had become good friends.
Solo comeback
Morvan spent the several years as a session musicianSession musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
and public speaker. In 1998, he was hired as a radio
Radio programming
Radio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....
DJ at famed L.A. radio station KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM is a Los Angeles, California, USA-based radio station with a partial Top 40 musical format. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications. KIIS is also simulcasted on KVVS in Rosamond, at 105.5 MHz...
. During this time, he also performed at the station's sold-out 1999 Wango Tango
Wango Tango
Wango Tango is an annual day-long concert produced on by local Los Angeles radio station KIIS-FM. The concert series has been staged at various venues around southern California including Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Verizon Wireless...
festival concert before 50,000 people at Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...
.
In 2000, he was featured in a BBC documentary on Milli Vanilli, as well as a VH-1 Behind the Music
Behind the Music
Behind the Music is a television series on VH1. It originally ran from 1997 to 2006, before it was stopped and only aired new episodes sporadically. The series places its generality on documentation of musical artists or groups who are interviewed and profiled, and discuss how their careers became...
episode. Morvan then spent 2001 on tour, before performing in 2002 as the inaugural performer at the brand-new Velvet Lounge at the Hard Rock Café
Hard Rock Cafe
Hard Rock Cafe is a chain of theme restaurants founded in 1971 by Americans Peter Morton & Isaac Tigrett. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 2006, Hard Rock was sold to the Seminole Tribe of Florida, and...
Hotel in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
.
In 2003, Morvan released his first solo album, Love Revolution, to critical acclaim and a favorable response, with Morvan producing, recording, writing and singing all the tracks. On 14 April 2011, Morvan released a new single, "Anytime", to digital outlets.
Film and Milli Vanilli Greatest Hits album
On 14 February 2007, it was announced that Universal PicturesUniversal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
was developing a film based on the true story of Milli Vanilli's rise and fall in the music industry. Jeff Nathanson
Jeff Nathanson
Jeff Nathanson is an American film writer, film producer, and director.He is best known for his work on the Rush Hour series, Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal, and The Last Shot, and has also co-written a story draft for the film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull with George Lucas...
, screenwriter from Catch Me If You Can
Catch Me If You Can
Catch Me If You Can is a 2002 American biographical comedy-drama film based on the life of Frank Abagnale Jr., who, before his 19th birthday, successfully performed cons worth millions of dollars by posing as a Pan American World Airways pilot, a Georgia doctor, and a Louisiana parish prosecutor...
, will write and direct the film. Morvan will serve as a consultant, providing his and Pilatus' point of view.
On 26 March 2007, the Milli Vanilli Greatest Hits album was released.
Milli Vanilli
- All or NothingAll or Nothing (Milli Vanilli album)All or Nothing was the debut album by the dance pop duo Milli Vanilli, released only in Europe on the BMG label in November 1988. In 1989, it was repackaged and retitled Girl You Know It's True for release in the United States on the Arista label, with several of the original album tracks replaced...
(1988) - All or Nothing (remix album)All or Nothing (remix album)All or Nothing is the worldwide, non-American version of Girl You Know It's True, released in 1989, as the original album, All or Nothing, was released in Europe in November 1988....
(1989) - Girl You Know It's TrueGirl You Know It's TrueGirl You Know It's True is a 1989 album that was the U.S. debut of pop group Milli Vanilli.In 1989, the majority of songs from Milli Vanilli's Europe-only release All or Nothing were repackaged and retitled Girl You Know It's True...
(1989) - The Remix AlbumThe Remix Album (Milli Vanilli)-Personnel:* Charles Shaw — vocals, backing vocals* John Davis — vocals, backing vocals* Brad Howell — vocals* Jodie Rocco — vocals* Linda Rocco — vocals* Frank Farian — producer...
(1990) - The Hits That Shook The World (1990) (Album Promo)
- Back and in Attack (1998) (Album studio)
- Greatest HitsGreatest Hits (Milli Vanilli album)Greatest Hits is a greatest hits compilation by German pop duo Milli Vanilli. The album artwork of Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan despite the 1990 scandal that confirmed neither actually sang vocals on the tracks; a sticker included as part of the packaging credits Pilatus and Morvan with "visual...
(2007)
Solo
- Love Revolution (2003)
- Anytime (Single, 14 April 2011)