Roni Griffith
Encyclopedia
Roni Griffith is a former 1980s disco
musician
and model from Bloomington, Indiana
. She was one of the original Coconuts in the popular 1980s group
Kid Creole and the Coconuts
. They opened up for The B-52's
, Huey Lewis and the News
and appeared on SNL in 1981. Finding success as a musician the same year she appeared on SNL with Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Griffith decided to go solo
, signing a recording contract
with Vanguard Records
and producer
, Bobby Orlando
. By the end of 1982 she had a platinum
and gold record
for her hits
"(The Best Part Of) Breakin' Up
" and "Desire". "(The Best Part Of) Breakin' Up
" reached #63 in the UK Singles Chart
in July 1984. In addition, she was also featured in the first national Clariol commercial shot in 35 mm film for "Nice and Easy".
She resided in New York from the age of 19 until she was 23 years old, finding an amount of success within a short period of time. On the eve of her first music video
and her launch on the new music media outlet MTV
, Griffith decided to walk away from everything based on her morals and values as a Christian in the secular music industry.
In 1983, Griffith pursued a career as a Christian Contemporary artist. She appeared on The 700 Club
and was also featured numerous times in her hometown newspaper
, The Herald Times. In 2004, she released her second Christian Contemporary album
, entitled Only You.
After giving up her fame in the secular music industry and becoming a Christian Contemporary artist, in 1994 Griffith became a professional photographer
, opening up her talent production company 'Integrity Productions'. Griffith has been working as one of Indiana's most renowned photographers for over 10 years. She has worked with many companies in Indiana such as the Boy Scouts of America
, the Helen Wells Agency in addition to celebrity
clients.
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and model from Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the southern region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 80,405 at the 2010 census....
. She was one of the original Coconuts in the popular 1980s 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...
Kid Creole and the Coconuts
Kid Creole and the Coconuts
Kid Creole and the Coconuts is an American musical group created and led by August Darnell. Its music incorporates a variety of styles and influences, in particular "American and Latin American, South American, Caribbean, Trinidadian, Calloway" and conceptually inspired by the big band era...
. They opened up for The B-52's
The B-52's
The B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...
, Huey Lewis and the News
Huey Lewis and the News
Huey Lewis and the News is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually scoring a total of 19 top-ten singles across the Billboard Hot 100, Adult Contemporary and Mainstream Rock charts...
and appeared on SNL in 1981. Finding success as a musician the same year she appeared on SNL with Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Griffith decided to go solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
, signing a recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with Vanguard Records
Vanguard Records
Vanguard Records is a record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York. It started as a classical label, but is perhaps best known for its catalogue of recordings by a number of pivotal folk and blues artists from the 1960s; the Bach Guild was a subsidiary...
and 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...
, Bobby Orlando
Bobby Orlando
Robert Philip Orlando , also known as Bobby Orlando, is an American record producer, dance music artist, musician and songwriter.- Early life :...
. By the end of 1982 she had a platinum
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,...
and gold record
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,...
for her hits
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
"(The Best Part Of) Breakin' Up
(The Best Part Of) Breakin' Up
" Breaking Up" is a song written by Phil Spector, Pete Andreoli and Vince Poncia. It was first recorded by The Ronettes, produced by Phil Spector with Ronnie Spector on lead vocals and with backing vocals by Nedra Talley and Estelle Bennett...
" and "Desire". "(The Best Part Of) Breakin' Up
(The Best Part Of) Breakin' Up
" Breaking Up" is a song written by Phil Spector, Pete Andreoli and Vince Poncia. It was first recorded by The Ronettes, produced by Phil Spector with Ronnie Spector on lead vocals and with backing vocals by Nedra Talley and Estelle Bennett...
" reached #63 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 ...
in July 1984. In addition, she was also featured in the first national Clariol commercial shot in 35 mm film for "Nice and Easy".
She resided in New York from the age of 19 until she was 23 years old, finding an amount of success within a short period of time. On the eve of her first music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
and her launch on the new music media outlet MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, Griffith decided to walk away from everything based on her morals and values as a Christian in the secular music industry.
In 1983, Griffith pursued a career as a Christian Contemporary artist. She appeared on The 700 Club
The 700 Club
The 700 Club is the flagship news talk show of the Christian Broadcasting Network, airing in syndication throughout the United States and Canada. In production since 1966, it is currently hosted by Pat Robertson, Terry Meeuwsen, Kristi Watts, and Gordon P. Robertson, two of whom will host on any...
and was also featured numerous times in her hometown newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
, The Herald Times. In 2004, she released her second Christian Contemporary 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...
, entitled Only You.
After giving up her fame in the secular music industry and becoming a Christian Contemporary artist, in 1994 Griffith became a professional photographer
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
, opening up her talent production company 'Integrity Productions'. Griffith has been working as one of Indiana's most renowned photographers for over 10 years. She has worked with many companies in Indiana such as the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
, the Helen Wells Agency in addition to celebrity
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
clients.