Calvin Richardson: Making Real Music

Moving forward, how'd you get a chance to start your career with Country Boy?

Well Country Boy, I was a solo singer from the beginning. But like I said, I put a group together because I felt more comfortable being around my family. My brother and my cousin and it was a close friend. When that didn't work out, it was easy for me to make my transition to a solo. I met Heavy D when we was recording the Undacova's album. He just got the position at Uptown after Andre Harrell left and he offered me a solo deal and I went from there.

I was looking up on Country Boy and it didn't seem to reach the success commercially that it should have. Do you associate that with just the way the market plays our or what do you associate as the cause?

I don't think it was because of the market. It was just because of the marketing of the album. The label didn't put any money behind it. They just put it out there. They didn't do real set-up for the album. They put the album out at the time that they put it out because they didn't have anything else to put out. They weren't planning on putting my album out that early, but they had a space there so they just put it out. There was no marketing budget for it so they just threw it against the wall to see if it stuck. If it stick it stick, and if it didn't stick it didn't, and unfortunately it didn't. Not many things would if you didn't do the proper set-up you know?

I feel like your second album, 2:35PM improved on that and did a lot better commercially. What do you think helped that? Was it the marketing or change in style or what?

My style didn't really change. I got a little more up-tempo and I had a little more hands on. I think what it really was, was the album evolved into a little more Calvin Richardson. The first album, Country Boy, Universal was all up in the mix. I worked with thousands of producers it seemed like. I only got a chance to write on several different songs. Though I put me on every song I sang.

With 2:35, I was able to get in the studio by myself and do my thing. A lot of stuff that Raphael Saadiq got the credit for producing on the album, I produced those songs myself. Raphael heard them and he said lets work on this together and do this over. So he got credit for it. A lot of the material on their came from me. At the same time, they did put a lot more marketing into it and more strategy that was about Calvin Richardson. They didn't have that at Universal, it was just something to put out. Universal was going through a lot of changes in their infrastructure. They fired Heavy D and the album got lost and just landed there.

Calvin Richardson has been in the game for a long time and has released three solo efforts to date.

Bringing it back to the present, you recently released your latest album, When Love Comes. What do you have for the future?

I'm gonna come with another album. Probably for the year, I'll come up with a new album. This deal with Shanachie was a one album deal. And they're a much, much smaller label than I've ever been on. It's independent. Hollywood records is independent so to speak but they've got a lot of money because it's Disney. This record, I'm sure I won't see the sales that I saw with 2:35PM you know what I mean. But I wanted to put another record out, to reconnect with my fans. Let them know it is out there so they'd become aware. Because there's not a lot of marketing to let people know that it is there.

I appreciate people like yourself, getting these interviews and getting it out there making people aware. But I can't stop there. I'm gonna put another album out soon.

I know between the albums you've had so far, 4 years between the first two and 5 years now. So you're hoping to speed up the process now?

Like I said, this one came out May 27. Before May 27 comes around again, there'll be another album that people can get. I'm gonna try to continue in that way. Try to make up for that lost time. The longer you stay away, the harder it is for you to come back. But that's the nature of the business. This time, I'm gonna do it in a more timely manner. I already have another album ready to come out.

Typically what we do is, because we're centered around 90s R&B music, I like to have everyone we talk to identify their favorite tracks from the era. So what are some of your favorite 90s R&B songs?

In the 90s, I think I was a huge fan of K-Ci & JoJo, well, Jodeci. So I was a huge fan of those albums. Diary of a Mad Band, "Freakin You", "Forever My Lady."

We have a big debate going on between people's favorites between Boyz II Men and Jodeci. So can I put you down as a Jodeci fan?

Hands down, hands down, it's Jodeci.

Thanks a lot for your time Calvin.

No problem man, it was good talking to you!

Those who want to keep up to date on Calvin Richardson's activities can check out his MySpace or visit his web site.