Birthplace of New Jack Swing Burns Down

As some of you may already know, the place where New Jack Swing was born burned to the ground in a suspicious fire in Virginia Beach early this morning. Riley abandoned Future Records Recording Studios when he defaulted on his mortgage loan. The building an its outdated equipment was put up for auction but no one met the $500,000 initial bid.

So I’m having a conversation today with my photographer Freddy O about the legendary producer Teddy Riley and New Jack Swing. I’m telling him about Redhead Kingpin and dude is silent.

I’m like, “Fred, you’ve heard of New Jack Swing, right?” He says, “Nope.” Oh my God, does this generation know anything about our musical history? Has an entire generation of kids been lost to BET and MTV?

I mean, even when I was in high school I knew who all the Jazz greats were like Coltraine Shirley Bassey,

According to Wikipedia, the term “New Jack Swing” was coined by writer-filmmaker Barry Michael Cooper (screenwriter for the films New Jack City, Above The Rim, and Sugar Hill. But Teddy Riley brought the new sound to the masses with groups like Guy, Tony, Toni, Tone; Wrecks-N-Effect and Redhead Kingpin, among others.

Check out some of the videos from the New Jack Swing era after the break!

WRECKS-N-EFFECTS & TEDDY RILEY – NEW JACK SWING

WRECKS-N-EFFECT – RUMP SHAKER

TODAY – GIRL I GOT MY EYES ON YOU

REDHEAD KINGPIN – DO THE RIGHT THING

REDHEAD KINGPIN – PUMP IT HOTTIE

GUY – YOU CAN CALL ME CRAZY

heartbreaker

I was born in 80 and did a dance to New Jack Swing in the fourth grade…lol
ThatCarmen

Now that was music!!! Thank you Sandra! I got these private equity “W” folks in here listening to my music! (just heard a door slam) yyyooouuuu ccaaannn ccallll mmeee cccrrraaazzzzaaaaa!!!!! damn i miss this kind of music.
ThatCarmen

and remember when the video chicks looked like regular girls and not injected infections? the chicks looked God made instead of man made… pump it hottie!
MOCHAMOMMY

Sandra, this lost generation thinks soulja boi is a legend. nowadays, screw album sales, u become a platinum artist by selling ringtones….
PAGESINADIARY

i dont think any one cares about this one
karaz

Is Freddy O a teenager, the nineties wasn’t that long ago… or am I trying to hold onto my fading youth?
Anna

“burned to the ground in a suspicious fire in Virginia Beach early this morning. Riley abandoned Future Records Recording Studios when he defaulted on his mortgage loan. The building an its outdated equipment was put up for auction but no one met the $500,000 initial bid.”
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Ppl are really trippin’ in this lacking econmy. So much “alleged arson” going on.
brwnsugga4you

man…the new jack was the sh*t…how old is freddy o???
http://myspace.com/mullatos SnootyPooty1

This kids today dont have any music culture.. Sandy you brought back some good ole memories for me. Thanks. I am stil jamming lets chill. shhh I am telling my age
ckarinwhite

I went to a New jack Swing concert at the Civic Center about a year ago, and had a blast!..
pointhimout

redhead kingpin, awh yes, the memories. wreckx-n-effect, guy, etc. this generation busy crankin it and shakin that laffy taffy.
http://www.myspace.com/eastpointvet eastpointvet

wow just makes me wonder how on top of the world teddy riley was at this point and how possible he could fall all the way off into obscurity. i know snoop dogg is trying to resurrect him though because he did a number of beats on snoops last album but damn he had to blow a lot of money
http://www.myspace.com/reddymond_45 The Black Katie Couric

I used to work at the studio back in the Summer of 2000 answering the phones on the weekend!!!

Just thought I will throw that out there!!!!
NC_NYer

I know people like to COMPLAIN about the kids today “not having any music culture” – but what are WE (the older folks) doing about it? (Just like Soulja Boy said in his response to Ice-T)

I remember my parents (especially my dad) playing records in the house over the weekends. That’s how I learned about Patti Labelle, Earth, Wind & Fire, Evelyn “Champagne” King, Rufus & Chaka Khan, Atlantic Starr, Skyy, Luther Vandross, Maze, The O’Jays, Ohio Players, One Way, L.T.D., The Isley Brothers, Rick James, The Temptations, The Whispers, Teddy Pendergrass, The Gap Band, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Shalamar, Patrice Rushen and so many others. Even if I didn’t know the names, I knew the music. I would sit for hours, flipping through the vinyl, looking at the album covers – go back and look – that ish was CRAZY!

Maybe the way our parents played us Soul and R&B records for us as we were growing up, maybe WE should have been playing that AND the early, classic hip-hop and R&B that we grew up on, so that we don’t get disgusted when someone asks, “Who is Audio Two?” or “What the hell is a ‘Kid & Play’?” Acts like Boyz II Men, Jodeci, Tony! Toni! Tone!, New Edition & Bell Biv Devoe, Soul II Soul & Michel’le, Sade & Jody Watley, Keith Sweat, Stepanie Mills, Regina Belle, Cherrelle, Loose Ends, Angela Winbush and so many others….

I think part of the issue is, WE kept on listening to the new stuff as well. I’ve seen many parents riding in their car listening to 50 Cent or Jay-Z right along with the kids. So of course, the kids are thinking that’s the only music….I mean, that’s cool, becuase Hip Hop continually grows and changes, but if it’s “our” music, then WE are responsible for handing down that history, instead of COMPLAINING that “today’s kids don’t know anything.”

I think we are beginning to see hip-hops first REAL GENERATION GAP. What we need to do is STUDY how other music genres handled this situation. How did Rock music survive so long to this day? How & why did Disco die? Is Hip Hop headed the same way, or will it always be around? Did Chuck Berry & Elvis Presley go crazy when The Beatles came out? And did they go crazy when Pink Floyd & Led Zepplin came out? I wish a REPUTABLE magazine like Rolling Stone or Billboard would do an in-depth article on this very issue.
MAJAHINEVERYWAY

Thanks Sandra for taking me back girl. Let’s not forget that Keith Sweat was also a part of the New Jack Swing too thanks to Teddy.
teecee

i wonder how many brothaz still got that electric blue suit from that area. lol no i dont have mine now. lol the kids of today dont care about music history. they dont care about anything other than beyonce and lil wayne. its so sad.

for all the kids who dont remember, or never been to a block parties. they use to have rump shaker contest for the chics. lol some of you kids might ask yo moms which one she won especially if you are like 22 and shes like 36. lolololol
hellava10

Sshyyttt, I’m gonna pull out my black biker shorts and patent leather shoes and go OFF! Mocha—-I dare you to play Sugar Hill in park….I’m about to pass out…..I got too excited in a short amount of time. I’ll wear my Cross Colors to work tomorrow just to prove a point.
Anna

Kids are sponges. You put any music on and they will remember it and sing it before they know how to spell Shaniquia. LOL.
Parents are the ones who are the first influences. Don’t let your kids miss out on great music. Being biracial I had all types of music from Elivs, Dolly Parton to The Blues, Jazz and way way ole school. I continued that with my kids and they introduce me to new school rap. Rap in my day was “Double Dutch Bus”.
Anti-believer

I would fine this very suspicious when this been on market for quite some time
http://myspace.com/akiey5 akiey

Pitiful that it had to go down like that. It probably would have been a historic building 20 yrs from now.

Good selection of videos and music here. Took me back to my early 20s when life was oh so good & music even better!

Everytime I see Redhead Kingpin I see a T.I with a flatop. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re actually related, lol!
blkdiamonn

Dayum…I did not know that there was a genre of music called “New Jack Swing”. I am old enough to remember those days and I totally missed that memo but, I guess it makes sense, all those guys did have similar sounds and styles…hmmmmm!!
brdnbutta

wow sandra
i was born in 81 and definitely know that sound was new jack swing. heck most people’s songs even mentioned the term, lol. how old is freddy o… maybe he just didn’t know that the particular sound had a name, lol

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