NEW YORK (Top40 Charts/ Island Records) - Hot on the heels of their two Soul
Train Music Awards nominations this week, the Isley Brothers featuring
Ronald Isley aka 'Mr. Biggs' are about to give back the love to their fans, as they announce their headlining winter-spring 2007 U.S. performance dates. The tour will open on March 14th at Prince's 3121 Club (the Hotel Rio) in Las Vegas, and will wrap up at the Tower Theatre in Philadelphia on April 28th. (Please see complete itinerary below.)
The Isley Brothers featuring Ronald Isley aka 'Mr. Biggs' earned the first of their two Soul Train Music Awards nominations for Best R&B/Soul Album by a Group, Band or Duo for BABY MAKIN' MUSIC, their first album for Def Jam's Def Soul Recordings, which hit No 1 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and No 5 on the pop side. "Just Came Here to Chill," which rose to No 25 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, was nominated for Best R&B Soul Single by a Group, Band or Duo. The 21st annual Soul Train Music Awards will be announced March 10th at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, and the show will air in syndication during the week of March 17th.
BABY MAKIN' MUSIC (released May 2006) took its title from the impending birth of Ronald O'Kelly Isley, Jr. in December 2006, to Mr. and Mrs. Ron & Kandy Isley – who shared background vocals on the album's opening cut "You're My Star." (Written and produced by Tim Kelley and Bob Robinson, the track features brother Ernie Isley on acoustic guitar, and contains samples from Gladys Knight & The Pips' "Makings Of You," a Curtis Mayfield tune). The new album also contains Ron and Kandy's wedding song, "You Help Me Write This Song," written (with Ron) and produced by Troy Taylor and Ezekiel "Zeke" Lewis.
There are many other notable collaborations on BABY MAKIN' MUSIC. Taylor and Lewis wrote (with Ron) and produced "Heaven Hooked Us Up" for the album, with Ernie on guitars. Taylor collaborated with Gordon Chambers (and co-writer Ron) on "Just Came Here To Chill." The team of Kelley and Robinson wrote and produced a second track, "Pretty Woman." Manuel L. Seal, Jr. produced, arranged and composed three tracks: "Show Me," "Give It To You" and "Beautiful." Special guest Jermaine Dupri co-wrote and produced a pair: "Gotta Be With You" and "Forever Mackin'."
BABY MAKIN' MUSIC marked the long-awaited return to center-stage for Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductees the Isley Brothers featuring Ron Isley aka 'Mr. Biggs.' The album followed up the May 2003 release of the Isley Brothers' Body Kiss (Dreamworks), an RIAA gold No 1 Pop/ No 1 R&B collaboration with younger brother Ernie. Produced (and mostly written) by R. Kelly, the album featured Ron's alter ego 'Mr. Biggs' on the pop/R&B crossover hit, "What Would You Do?" Mr. Biggs was first introduced on the Isley Brothers' album Eternal (Dreamworks, 2001) featuring the pop/R&B crossover hit, "Contagious," also written and produced by R. Kelly.
Isley Meets Bacharach (Dreamworks, November 2003) featured Ron in a full program of the songwriter's hits, produced, arranged and conducted by Burt Bacharach. At the 2003 American Music Awards, the Isley Brothers won for Favorite Band, Duo or Group. The following year, the Isley Brothers, who were formed in Cincinnati in 1955, received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual BET Awards gala. To date (since "Shout" in 1959), the Isley Brothers have seven No 1 R&B hits to their credit, and five top 10 pop hits.
1996 brought the Isleys to Island Records for the first time, on Mission To Please. Contributing as producers and (co-)writers were Babyface, R. Kelly and Keith Sweat, three of the many artists whose lives and music were inspired by the Isley Brothers. The group now comprises Ronald and Ernie, an accomplished songwriter, guitarist and vocalist in his own right. From Mission To Please to Eternal to Body Kiss to Isley Meets Bacharach – the saga continues, as BABY MAKIN' MUSIC celebrated the return of the Isley Brothers to the Island Def Jam Music Group.
ISLEY BROTHERS U.S. TOUR
Mar. 14 Las Vegas, NV Prince's 3121 Club
15 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theatre
16 San Diego, CA 4th & B's- TBA
17 Fresno, CA Warner Theater
18 Long Beach, CA The Vault
20 Denver, CO Paramount Theater- TBA
21 Oklahoma City, OK City Beach- TBA
22 Tulsa, OK The Brady Theatre- TBA
23 Dallas, TX The Nokia
24 Houston, TX The Verizon
25 Shreveport, LA Municipal Auditorium
28 New Orleans, LA House Of Blues
29 Jacksonville, FL Convention Center- TBA
30 Tampa, FL Convention Center- TBA
31 Orlando, FL House Of Blues
Apr. 1 Myrtle Beach House Of Blues
5 Minneapolis, MN Municipal Auditorium- TBA
6 Merryville, IN Star Plaza
7 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theater – TBA
8 Detroit, MI The Fox Theater
12 Red Bank, NJ Count Basie Theater- TBA
13 New York, NY TBA
14 Hartford, CT Civic Center – TBA
15 Newark, NJ PAC
20 Cleveland, OH House Of Blues
21 Cincinnati, OH The Music Hall
26 Pittsburgh, PA Benedum Center- TBA
27 Atlantic City, NJ The Borgata
28 Philadelphia, PA The Tower Theater
