Good morning POU Family! This week’s theme will have us jamming to some great artists of the 90’s.
Today’s group is Blaque.
Blaque was an American girl group that charted from 1999 to 2004. Outside of the United States they are known as Blaque Ivory. Their debut album Blaque sold more than 1 million copies and was certified Platinum. The group’s debut included the Gold-selling single “808”, the international hit “Bring It All to Me”, and a third single, “I Do”. The group went on hiatus from 2002 until 2007, releasing three less successful singles, “Can’t Get It Back”, “Ugly”, and “I’m Good”, the latter appearing in the film Honey.
In 1999, Billboard named Blaque the 4th Best New Artist of the year, with “Bring It All to Me” landing at number 30 on the 2000 Year End Chart. Blaque worked on two albums in the mid-to-late 2000s but did not release them. The group attempted a comeback in 2012, but ultimately failed due to Natina Reed’s accidental death.
Natina Reed and Shamari Fears both moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and met while in high school. Reed formed Blaque while Fears formed another group called Intrigue. Intrigue won a recording contract with Elektra Records, and Fears met up with Brandi Williams at a talent show while a member of that group. Fears left Intrigue to join up with Reed in Blaque and Williams joined the group shortly thereafter. Reed met Ronald Lopes while singing jingles to earn extra cash and he introduced her to his sister Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes of TLC. Lisa Lopes signed the group to her production company, Left Eye Productions.
Blaque has said that their name means “Believing in Life and Achieving a Quest for Unity in Everything”.