Happy birthday to Ronald DeVoe of the groups New Edition and Bell Biv DeVoe, born November 17, 1967.
Though introduced to the world as a not-so-inspired Jackson Five ripoff, New Edition emerged into one of the most important groups of its generation and its members became the royalty of New Jack movement of the late 80s.
Formed by a quintet of Boston preteens in the late 70s, New Edition, then consisting of Bobby Brown, Ricky Bell, Michael Bivens, Ralph Tresvant and Ronnie DeVoe, was signed by writer/producer/record company impresario Maurice Starr (who later would become the svengali behind New Kids on the Block) to his Streetwise label while the members were still early teens. The group’s initial recording, 1983’s “Candy Girl,” was a melodic but schlocky J5 derivative that shot to the top of the Soul charts. This initial success led to the group’s move to much larger MCA (and an extended legal battle with Starr over the group name).
