The group only lasted for one album.Īlso in 1999, he collaborated with rapper Q-Tip on the single " Get Involved", from the animated television series The PJs. He recorded the self-titled album with Dawn Robinson ( En Vogue) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad ( A Tribe Called Quest). In 1999, Saadiq's next big project became the R&B supergroup Lucy Pearl. However, after the 1996 album entitled House of Music failed to duplicate the group's previous success, Tony! Toni! Toné! went their separate ways in 1997.ġ999–2004: Lucy Pearl and first string of solo albums Tony! Toni! Toné! would become major R&B superstars throughout the late 1980s and 1990s. In 1995, Saadiq produced and performed on Otis & Shug's debut album, We Can Do Whatever. In 1995, Saadiq had his biggest solo hit to date, when " Ask of You", featured on the Higher Learning Soundtrack peaked at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B chart. As he confirmed by telling noted R&B writer Pete Lewis of the award-winning 'Blues & Soul' in May 2009, "I just wanted to have my own identity!" His change of surname led many to speculate that he had converted to Islam at that point in reality, Saadiq is not a Muslim, but rather just liked the way "Saadiq" sounded and changed his last name simply to distinguish himself from and avoid potential confusion with his brother, Dwayne Wiggins. In the mid-1990s, he adopted the last name Saadiq, which means "man of his word" in Arabic.
That was my university." Career 1987–1999: Tony! Toni! Toné! and The Ummah Īs far back as his work with Tony! Toni! Toné!, Raphael Saadiq has been a singer of doubt, of psychic wounds, of romance undergoing a test.Īfter returning to Oakland from touring with Prince, Saadiq began his professional career as the lead vocalist and bassist in the rhythm and blues and dance trio Tony! Toni! Toné! He used the name Raphael Wiggins while in Tony! Toni! Toné!, along with his brother Dwayne Wiggins, and his cousin Timothy Christian. We were in huge venues with the biggest sound systems in the world all these roadies throwin' me basses, and a bunch of models hangin' round Prince to party. He says of the experience, "Next thing I was in Tokyo, in a stadium, singin' Erotic City. At the audition, he chose the name "Raphael", and had difficulty remembering to respond to the name when he heard that he got the part to play bass in the band. In 1984, shortly before his 18th birthday, Saadiq heard about tryouts in San Francisco for Sheila E.'s backing band on Prince's Parade Tour. At the age of 12, he joined a group called "The Gospel Humminbirds". He has been playing the bass guitar since the age of six, and first began singing at age nine in a local gospel group. I did it to kinda show people you can have some real tough things happen in your life, but you don't have to wear it on your sleeve." Saadiq states that he does not want his music to be reflective of the tragedies he experienced, saying that "And through all of that I was makin' records, but it wasn't comin' out in the music. Saadiq was born in Oakland, California, and was the second-youngest of 14 siblings. 2.4 2011–present: Stone Rollin', Jimmy Lee and other work.2.3 2004–2010: Expanded output and second string of albums.2.2 1999–2004: Lucy Pearl and first string of solo albums.Īs a songwriter Saadiq has received a Grammy Award, two Golden Globe Award nominations and an Academy Award nomination. Inspired by spiritual and societal themes and personal family tragedies, it earned Saadiq further acclaim. The more contemporary-sounding Jimmy Lee was released in 2019. Saadiq has released five solo albums, including the critically acclaimed retro-styled The Way I See It (2008) and Stone Rollin' (2011). Saadiq is also a co-founder of independent video game developer IllFonic, which developed Friday the 13th: The Game. Saadiq and D'Angelo were occasional members of The Ummah, a music production collective, composed of members Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of the hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, and J Dilla of Slum Village. Music critic Robert Christgau has called Saadiq the "preeminent R&B artist of the '90s". Blige, Ledisi, Whitney Houston, Solange Knowles and John Legend. He rose to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! In addition to his solo and group career, he has also produced songs for such artists as Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Stevie Wonder, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, TLC, En Vogue, Kelis, Mary J. Raphael Saadiq ( / s ə ˈ d iː k/ born Charles Ray Wiggins May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer.