Babyface and Sanchez to perform in Tortola’s ‘A Night of Love’

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – AMERICAN crooner Kenneth ‘Babyface’ Edmonds and Jamaican reggae artiste Kevin Anthony ‘Sanchez’ Jackson will be performing at Tortola’s ‘A Night of Love’ slated for the Festival Grounds on January 15.

According to a press release, the concert is being organised by Sea Productions headed by local entrepreneur Stuart Donovan. 

Donovan stated that they wanted to do something different for the people of the Territory after a hectic Christmas season. “It will be a stimulating way to unwind. So the dynamic pair of Babyface and Sanchez is the perfect remedy,” Donovan said. 

He also said that part of the evening’s proceeds would be donated to the Tourist Board Historical Site Restoration Project, and that Sea Productions’ mission is to bring quality entertainment and partner with the Tourist Board in revitalising their history through music. Babyface and his management team are also expected to host a workshop on January 14, according to Donovan. 

“The aim is to give aspiring BVI artistes inside information on the music industry, song writing, demo production and overall music productions,” he said. 

Babyface is an American R&B and Pop singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, record producer, film producer, and entrepreneur. He has worked with many successful performers in contemporary music including Whitney Houston on ‘I’m Your Baby Tonight,’ which was his first number one Top 40 hit in the US. 

He also wrote and produced Boyz II Men's ‘End of the Road’ and ‘I'll Make Love To You’, both of which established records for the longest stay at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Babyface co-wrote, co-produced and provided backing vocals on Madonna's 1995 seven-week number one hit ‘Take a Bow,’ and shared billing with Eric Clapton on the chart-topping Grammy winner ‘Change the World’ from the ‘Phenomenon’ soundtrack. 

He wrote and produced the number one hit ‘Exhale (Shoop Shoop)’ for Whitney Houston, as well as the rest of the critically acclaimed 10 million selling ‘Waiting to Exhale’ soundtrack in 1995, which spawned additional hits for Whitney Houston, Brandy and Mary J. Blige. Babyface has also produced and written music for Beyoncé, Diana Ross, Toni Braxton, Michael Jackson, Paula Abdul, Pebbles, Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston, Brandy, Mary J. Blige, Tamia, Janet Jackson, 3T, Sisqo, Dru Hill, Fall Out Boy, Céline Dion, Mariah Carey, Vanessa L. Williams, En Vogue, Eric Clapton, Madonna, Kristinia DeBarge, Aretha Franklin, Japanese singer Ken Hirai, P!nk, Marc Nelson and Phil Collins. He received three consecutive Grammy Awards for Producer of the Year in 1995–1997. 

In 1989, he co-founded LaFace Records with L.A Reid and two of the label's early artistes - Toni Braxton and TLC. Braxton's 1993 debut album sold over eight million copies and earned her the 1994 Grammy Award Best New Artiste while TLC's first two albums on LaFace - 1992's ‘Ooooooohhh...on the TLC Tip’ and 1994's ‘CrazySexyCool’ - combined to sell more than 15 million copies in the US. ‘CrazySexyCool’ won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best R&B album. 

As a singer, Babyface’s change-of-pace acoustic guitar ballad ‘When Can I See You Again’ won him his first Grammy as a performer for Best Male R&B Vocals. In 1996 his guest-laden album, ‘The Day’, spawned another top 10 Pop/R&B hit in ‘Every Time I Close My Eyes’, which solidified the singer’s crossover credentials once and for all by winning a Grammy for Record of the Year as producer of Eric Clapton's ‘Change the World’. 

Some of his other singles include ‘Love Saw It’, ‘It's No Crime’, ‘Love Makes Things Happen’, ‘Give U My Heart’, ‘For the Cool in You’, ‘Never Keeping Secrets’, ‘And Our Feelings’, ‘When Can I See You’ and ‘This Is for the Lover in You’. Meanwhile, Sanchez is one of the all-time favorite singer/performer who is said to transform his audience into a mass choir at his live performances. 

He epitomises elegance and style, and his selection of songs range from soulful R&B to hardcore dancehall, reggae, balanced with religiously calming cuts that enhance the spiritual vibes of his act. His first hit, the Winston Riley-produced ‘Loneliness’, recorded in 1988, is still one of his biggest hits. In that same year he was voted ‘Singer of the Year’, ‘Best Up and Coming’ and ‘Best New Artiste’ by Rockers and Bins awards respectively. 

‘Loneliness’ was also voted ‘Song of the Year’, and this led him to his first appearance at Reggae Sunsplash. Since ‘Loneliness’, Sanchez has scored with big hits including ‘Wild Sanchez’, ‘Love Mi Lover Bad’ (a combination with DJ Florigan), ‘Fall In Love’, ‘If I Ever Fall In Love Again’, ‘Pretty Girl’, ‘One In A Million’, ‘Hello’, ‘Amazing Grace’, and ‘Frenzy’.