MN8
Encyclopedia
MN8 were an R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...

 group
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...

 from the United Kingdom
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...

. They consisted of KG (co-founder, lead vocals), G-Man (co-founder, lead vocals), Kule T (lead vocals) and Dee Tails (rapper
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...

, choreographer and stylist
Wardrobe stylist
A wardrobe stylist is the job title of someone who selects the clothing for published editorial features, print or television advertising campaigns, music videos, concert performances, and any public appearances made by celebrities, models or other public figures...

).

Career

MN8's 1995 debut hit single
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...

, "I've Got A Little Something For You
I've Got A Little Something For You
"I've Got a Little Something for You" is British band MN8's highest-charting single written by American record producer and composer, Markantoney J. Taylor, better known by his stage name DJ Vintagefuture and produced by Dennis Charles and Ronnie Wilson. It was released in , peaking at #2 on the UK...

", credited as written by Dennis Ingoldsby and Mark Taylor
Mark Taylor (record producer)
Mark Taylor is a Grammy Award winning British record producer and songwriter. Having sold over 50 million records, he has produced and written for artists such as Cher, Enrique Iglesias, Britney Spears, Diana Ross, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Kylie Minogue, and Lady Gaga...

, became a success throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, Asia Pacific and the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Notably the song was one of P. Diddy's earliest Bad Boy Records
Bad Boy Records
Bad Boy Records is a record label founded in 1993 by producer/rapper/entrepreneur Sean "Diddy" Combs. Today it operates as a subsidiary of Warner Music Group, and is distributed by Atlantic Records.-Beginnings:...

 remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....

es. It was featured in the Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...

 film
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...

, Bad Boys
Bad Boys (1995 film)
Bad Boys is a 1995 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay in his directorial debut, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer...

. The song was also Columbia
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...

 UK's
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...

 first homegrown Top 10 record
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...

 in over a decade, held off the number 1 spot in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 by Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...

's "Think Twice" which topped the UK chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....

 for seven weeks. Nonetheless, MN8 finished the year ahead of Seal's "Kiss from a Rose
Kiss from a Rose
"Kiss from a Rose" is a song from Seal's second eponymous album Seal . The song was first released as a single in July 1994. Re-released in 1995, it was included on the Batman Forever film soundtrack, helping it top the charts in the U.S. and Australia. It took the 1996 Grammy Awards for both...

" as one of the biggest selling UK singles for the year. MN8 followed up with 6 more UK Top 30 hits including "If you Only Let Me In", "Baby Its You", "Tuff Act To Follow", "Dreaming", "Pathway To The Moon" and a cover of the Surface
Surface
In mathematics, specifically in topology, a surface is a two-dimensional topological manifold. The most familiar examples are those that arise as the boundaries of solid objects in ordinary three-dimensional Euclidean space R3 — for example, the surface of a ball...

 hit "Happy".

Their debut album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

, To The Next Levelreached number 13 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...

. To The Next Level included a contribution from Pamela Sheyne, who wrote the song "Baby It's You".(Source: M Magazine/ PRS MCPS, Issue 14, September 2004) Besides P Diddy and Sheyne, MN8 collaborated with the late Oji Pearce (Montell Jordan
Montell Jordan
Montell Jordan is a former American R&B singer-songwriter and record producer. Jordan became the main solo male artist on its Def Soul imprint until leaving the label in 2003. Of his live performances it is often regarded that he is a rock oriented musician, with Jordan even going as far as to...

's "This Is How We Do It
This Is How We Do It
"This Is How We Do It" is a 1995 song by American R&B singer Montell Jordan. This song, Jordan's first single, is representative of the new jack swing style popular at the time, featuring Jordan singing over an enhanced sample of Slick Rick's "Children's Story." "This is How We Do It" was...

"), Simon Climie
Simon Climie
Simon Climie is a songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK pop duo Climie Fisher, who had hits with "Love Changes " and "Rise to the Occasion"....

, Arthur Baker
Arthur Baker (musician)
Arthur Baker is an American record producer and DJ best known for his work with hip hop artists like Afrika Bambaataa, Planet Patrol, and the British group New Order.-Early career:...

, Steve Silk Hurley, Connor Reeves, Blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...

 and Dalvin DeGrate
Dalvin DeGrate
Dalvin DeGrate is an R&B/soul musician, singer and rapper, one-quarter of the R&B group Jodeci. He is the younger brother of Jodeci founder DeVante Swing...

 (Jodeci
Jodeci
Jodeci is an American band, whose repertoire includes R&B, soul music, and new jack swing. The group consists of two pairs of brothers from Hampton, Virginia and Charlotte, North Carolina: Cedric & Joel Hailey and Donald & Dalvin DeGrate, all respectively known by their stage names: K-Ci & Jojo,...

).(Source: Smash Hits
Smash Hits
Smash Hits was a pop music based magazine, aimed at teenagers and young adults and originally published in the United Kingdom by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006 and was issued fortnightly for most of that time...

- June 1995)

MN8 toured alongside Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...

, Diana King
Diana King
Diana King is a reggae fusion singer-songwriter who specifically performed a mixture and fusion of R&B, reggae, pop and dancehall...

, Brownstone
Brownstone
Brownstone is a brown Triassic or Jurassic sandstone which was once a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States to refer to a terraced house clad in this material.-Types:-Apostle Island brownstone:...

, Spice Girls
Spice Girls
The Spice Girls were a British pop girl group formed in 1994. The group consisted of Victoria Beckham , Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm and Geri Halliwell. They were signed to Virgin Records and released their debut single, "Wannabe" in 1996, which hit number-one in more than 30...

, Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...

, Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...

, Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...

, Boyzone
Boyzone
Boyzone are an Irish boy band comprising Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating,Shane Lynch, and formerly Stephen Gately. Boyzone have 19 singles in the top 40 UK charts and 21 singles in the Ire charts. The group currently have 6 UK number one singles and 9 number one singles in Ireland with 12...

, East 17
East 17
East 17 are a pop boy band comprising Tony Mortimer, John Hendy and Terry Coldwell. Tony Mortimer is the group's frontman and primary songwriter. Formed in Walthamstow, London in 1991, the group have achieved eighteen Top 20 singles and four Top 10 albums, and were one of the UK's most popular boy...

, Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys
The Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys...

 and Ricky Martin
Ricky Martin
Enrique "Ricky" Martín Morales , better known as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican and Spanish pop singer and actor who achieved prominence, first as a member of the Latin boy band Menudo, then as a solo artist since 1991.During his career he has sold more than 60 million album copies worldwide...

. They also appeared at Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
The Smash Hits Poll Winners Party was an awards ceremony which ran from 1988 to 2005. Each award winner was voted by readers of the Smash Hits magazine. It ended with the closure of the magazine in February 2006....

, Midem
Midem
-MIDEM:Short for Marché International du Disque et de l'Edition Musicale, MIDEM is the world's largest music industry trade fair, which has been held annually at and around the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France, since 1967...

, Notting Hill Carnival
Notting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event which since 1964 has taken place on the streets of Notting Hill, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea , London, UK each August, over two days...

, Sweden's Water Festival and other European music festival
Music festival
A music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...

s.

In 1997 MN8 parted ways with Sony/Columbia & 1st Avenue. Once the deal had expired, MN8 partnered with the French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...

 concert promoter Gerard Drouot to tour France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 in 1997 and 1998. After their last show at the end of 1998, MN8 decided to take a break indefinitely to pursue other opportunities.

In an interview with Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....

on 13 April 2009, lead singer KG said of the split and any prospects of a reunion: "Around 1998 and 1999 we did our last European shows. We were at the end of our deal with Sony and weren't really sure what we wanted to do. We decided to take a break and think things through. Quite a lot's happened in the past few months actually. We're in tentative talks about maybe putting MN8 back together and doing a tour. The thing about MN8 is that we never did the sort of music we should have done. We had the right aesthetic but the potential to do so much more. If you look at the commercial side of R&B these days, we would have fitted in better. We were kind of ahead of our time in some ways." (Source: Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....

, Monday 13 April 2009).

Recently MN8 were referenced in the media in relation to upcoming boyband JLS:

"There hasn't been a British R&B boy band of any note since MN8" - wrote Simon Price (Source: The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...

, Sunday 8 November 2009).

"Another Level and Blue achieved maximum exposure with a low-level interracial mix, but both Damage and MN8, the last all-black British boy bands, dipped at the crucial pop moment where success turns to phenomenon" - wrote Paul Flynn. (Source The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

, 20 July 2009).

In media

  • MN8 appeared on The Childliners record The Gift Of Christmas alongside the Backstreet Boys
    Backstreet Boys
    The Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys...

    , Boyzone
    Boyzone
    Boyzone are an Irish boy band comprising Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating,Shane Lynch, and formerly Stephen Gately. Boyzone have 19 singles in the top 40 UK charts and 21 singles in the Ire charts. The group currently have 6 UK number one singles and 9 number one singles in Ireland with 12...

    , East 17
    East 17
    East 17 are a pop boy band comprising Tony Mortimer, John Hendy and Terry Coldwell. Tony Mortimer is the group's frontman and primary songwriter. Formed in Walthamstow, London in 1991, the group have achieved eighteen Top 20 singles and four Top 10 albums, and were one of the UK's most popular boy...

    , Peter Andre
    Peter André
    Peter James Andrea , better known by the stage name as Peter Andre, is an English-born Australian musician, singer-songwriter, television personality and businessman. As a recording artist, he has achieving four top 10 UK albums and ten top 10 singles.-Early life:Andre was born at Northwick Park...

     and Dannii Minogue
    Dannii Minogue
    Danielle Jane "Dannii" Minogue is an Australian singer-songwriter, actress, television personality, radio personality, fashion designer and model...

    .
  • MN8 hosted Top Of The Pops
    Top of the Pops
    Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...

     on '14 March 1996'.
  • They achieved support from Hip Hop Connection
    Hip Hop Connection
    Hip Hop Connection is the longest running monthly periodical devoted entirely to hip hop culture. HHC has earned international recognition and was described by Chuck D as "the best magazine in the world".-History:...

    ("Talk is high of MN8" - December 1994 issue), Touch (Source: "Showing the way for British R&B artists" - October 1994 issue) and The Guardian
    The Guardian
    The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

    ("They're Brilliant" - Source: 25 October 1994).

Studio albums

Title Details Peak chart positions Certifications
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...


(sales threshold)
UK
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...


AUS
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...


NL
MegaCharts
MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top...


NZ
SWI
Swiss Music Charts
The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75...


To the Next Level
  • Release date: 1 August 1995
  • Label: Columbia Records
    Columbia Records
    Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...

  • Formats: CD
    Compact Disc
    The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

    , cassette
    Compact Cassette
    The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...

13 25 50 46 27
  • UK
    British Phonographic Industry
    The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...

    : Silver
  • Freaky
  • Release date: 1996
  • Label: Columbia Records
  • Formats: CD, cassette
  • 114
    "—" denotes releases that did not chart

    Singles

    Year Single Peak chart positions Certifications
    Music recording sales certification
    Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...


    (sales threshold)
    Album
    UK
    UK Singles Chart
    The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...


    AUS
    ARIA Charts
    The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...


    FRA
    Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique
    The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...


    NL
    MegaCharts
    MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top...


    NOR
    VG-lista
    VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by...


    NZ
    SWE
    Sverigetopplistan
    Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association ....


    SWI
    Swiss Music Charts
    The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75...


    1995 "I've Got a Little Something for You
    I've Got A Little Something For You
    "I've Got a Little Something for You" is British band MN8's highest-charting single written by American record producer and composer, Markantoney J. Taylor, better known by his stage name DJ Vintagefuture and produced by Dennis Charles and Ronnie Wilson. It was released in , peaking at #2 on the UK...

    "
    2 7 3 13 6 3 9 10
    • FRA: Gold
    • UK
      British Phonographic Industry
      The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...

      : Silver
    To the Next Level
    "If You Only Let Me In" 6 30 23 18 3
    "Happy" 8 11
    "Baby It's You" 22 34
    1996 "Pathway to the Moon" 25
    "Tuff Act to Follow" 15 43 Freaky
    "Dreaming" 21
    1997 "Baby I Surrender"
    "—" denotes releases that did not chart

    External links

    The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
     
    x
    OK