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JUNE 3, 1998
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ENTERTAINMENT
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Homegrown JAZZ
( )ncc upon a tim e in A m erica, in tw o distant locales,
gorgeous twin baby girls w ere born. San D iego was the
site o f the m om entous birth o f M arie and M ichelle
H arris, w hile Selm a, A labam a w as the birthplace-o f
T onya and I arnica Johnson: As the fates w ould have it.
these tour young princesses all possessed outstanding
vocal talents, w hich w ould have their paths cross when
they got a little older. A nd so begins the tale o f RCA
R ecords vocal quartet Elusion, w hose debut album .
Ihink A bout It!!!, prom ises to bring a special m agic to
the m u sic arena.
E lusion adds a scintillating expressiveness and pas­
sion to their m usic, as dem onstrated on their fu st single,
the sw aying "R eality ." flic song pulsates with the
ladies' strong vocals and punchy delivery. “ W c feel that
song, like the rest o f the album , reflects w hat Elusion is
really about - m eaningful lyrics, tight production and
giving all-the-w ay-live perform ances from the heart
and soul," enthuses Tam ica.
A tlanta is the kingdom w here R C A 's senior vice
president o f Black M usic A & R , K evin Evans, ventured
to. and cam e upon this unique vocal collective, m an­
aged by M arc H aw thorne. H e put "tw o and tw o to ­
g ether” and the four added up to m agic m ore dynam ic
than M erlin's.
Elusion evolv ed in 1996, when Atlanta-based identical
twins Tonya andTam ica coined that nam e fortheirsisteraet,
to signify the "Optical Illusion" that they represented. I he
name “doubled' in meaning when they teamed up w ith San
Diego natives Michelle and Marie. Regarding the saga of
the mirror image quartet’s fateful formation, Marie relates,
"well, Michelle and I where in Los Angeles working with
Tina Antoine, also a friend o f producer John Howcott
(H.O.P. Productions), who was working with Tonya and
Tam ica.” Michelle adds, “ Tina and John arranged for us to
exchange photos with Tonya and Tamica, and alter talking
with them for hours over the phone, w e knew right then that
w e had to be down with them ." Surely, it was an unconven­
tional way to form a group, but nevertheless, Michelle and
Marie moved to Atlanta, and in with Tonya and I arnica.
Now closer than quads, Elusion isa tine, tierce, foursome to
be reckoned with
Saturday 4-5 p.m.
Features the music of local musicians,
interviews and live music
from the studio.
In the coming weeks, host Mary Burlingame
will be interviewing folks like...
Rebecca Kilgore, Glen Moore and
Gary Hobbs.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE * GRESHAM
Clark -Sheard
Saturday, June 6
5:00pm
New Beginnings Christian Center
Tickets $20
O n S a le N O W !
A v a ila b le a t NBCC B o o k s t o r e
o r c a ll N a n c y S m ith a t 7 3 5 - 4 6 0 4
7600 NE GLISAN • PORTLAND, OR 97213
(5 0 3) 256-6050
H e’s the Real T hing...R C A Records vocalist T yrese com es bubbling onto
the m usic scene, equipped with stunning good looks, a killer voice and h e ’s
fully prepared for the release o f his dynam ic, self-titled debut album .
Y o u ’ll place the face, as a result o f T y rese’s w orldw ide exposure in the
dram atic C oca-C ola television com m ercial, in w hich he boards a bus, w earing
headphones, and sits dow n to sing. The tim e is right to ad d his distinctive voice
to this mix. The nineteen-year-old T yrese began his singing career at the age
o f 14, doing num erous local talent show s and events. T hough his mass
recognition began via television, music was alw ays his first love. H aving
grow n up in W atts, a section o f South C entral Los A ngeles, and encountering
trem endous obstacles, w hich w ould have stym ied a less determ ined youth,
T yrese m ade m usic his escape, finding peace and serenity in it. His focus and
perseverance kept him on the right track, to pursue his ultim ate goal o f a m usic
career.
T he anticipated result is “T yrese," T y re se’s outstanding self-titled debut
LP. The album glow s with stellar tracks, w hich brilliantly show case T y re se’s
strong, m ature-beyond-his-yeais vocals. It features the brilliant uptem po first
single, “ N obody Else,’’ in addition to songs o f special note: T he snappy,
dram atic “ L ately;” the soulful, breezy “N o th in ’ Like a Jo n es,” “ Y ou G et
Y ours,” w hich sam ples the A shford and Sim pson hit “Street C o m er,” sm ooth
ballad “ I C a n ’t G o O n.”
T yrese is a m ulti-faceted artist—he is also a songw riter, m usician, actor and
model. His w riting skills are apparent on his debut album! On the thespian
front, h e ’s m ade guest appearances on television show s “ M artin” and “ H ang­
ing w ith Mr. C ooper” and his m odeling has him currently featured in the
T om m y HilTiger ads, both in print and on television.
Tyrese
Fortiani» (iDbacrtier
AND
J 'P s Custom Picture ‘Jraining and (jadery
AND
S tu d io 1 4
Invite you and a guest to any regular showing of 'I dot The Hook lip' Pick Your
( omplimentry Tickets at J P's or Studio 14.
The Five Fingers o f Funk
Finally, the second release from T he Five Fingers o f Funk, the hardest w orking
band in O regon hip hop. In a scene w here “do it y o u rs e lf’ is the code o f operation,
The Fingers have taken it a few steps further leading the pack in show attendance,
regional coverage and independent sales.
T he key to the appeal o f T he Five Fingers is their live show : A unique presentation
o f traditional hip hop through the use o f live instrum ents. N ot o nly do they have one
o f the N orthw est's finest djs (DJ Chill Blend) but they also boast a dog-tight three
piece horn section and a rapper/frontm an ( Pete M iser) w ho never lets the energy stop.
All this sits on top o fa rock solid rhythm section that led one local m usic critic to write,
“if you c a n ’t get dow n to this you m us, be dead!”
W ith the only nine piece hip hop band in the N orthw est it’s no surprise that The
Fingers spend m ore tim e on the road than at home. T heir region has quickly stretched
from the Pacific coast to the Rockies and from B.C. to the bay w ith sw eaty sold ou,
show s everyw here in between.
The Fingers crew includes (but is not lim ited to):
Pete M iser V ocals
T albott G uthrie Drum s
Allan Redd Bass
Mark Ricker K eyboards
Todd Sm ith C ongas/Pcrcussion
Ted H ille Alto Saxophone
C ur, Bieker Trom bone
Josh Prew itt T rum pet
D.J. Chill Blend T urntables
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