Patrice Rushen

Infobox musical artist 2
Name = Patrice Rushen


Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Patrice Louise Rushen
Born = birth date and age|1954|9|30
Origin = Los Angeles, California, United States
Genre = Jazz, R&B, Pop, Soul
Associated_acts =
Occupation = pianist, singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, music director
Years_active = 1972–present (singer)
Label = Prestige, Elektra, Arista, GRP, Aix Entertainment, Discovery
URL = [http://www.patricerushen.com/ www.patricerushen.com]

Patrice Louise Rushen (born September 30, 1954 in Los Angeles, California) is a Grammy Award winning American R&B singer, songwriter, composer, and pianist.

Biography

Rushen demonstrated her musical potential at a young age; she was regarded as a child prodigy. In her teens, she won the prestigious 1972 Monterey Jazz Festival. She earned her degree in music from the University of Southern California. As a mature woman, she became a jazz master and top musical director.

Due to her musical talent, Patrice Rushen has made many ground-breaking achievements. She became the first woman to serve as head composer/musical director for the Grammy Awards and the Emmy Awards, the first woman to serve as musical director for the NAACP Image Awards broadcast, an honor she held for twelve consecutive years. Rushen has been the only woman to be a musical director/composer for the People's Choice Awards, HBO's Comic Relief and the only woman musical director/conductor/arranger for a late-night television talk show, The Midnight Hour which aired on CBS.

In addition, Rushen was named musical director/composer for Newsweek's first American Achievement Awards, broadcast on CBS from the Kennedy Center and she served as the musical director for Janet Jackson's World Tour, "janet."

Solo career

Rushen has also achieved great success as a singer. A classically trained pianist, Rushen has spent great deal of time channeling her skills towards making great music. Won competition at the 1972 Monterey Jazz Festival put Patrice into the spotlight. The attention garnered from this earned her a contract with Prestige Records in 1973.

After recording three albums and becoming an in-demand session player, including with artists such as Jean-Luc Ponty, Rushen signed with Elektra Records in 1978. Forging an engaging jazz/R&B/funk fusion, this fresh mixture of styles gave her great success with a string of Top Ten R&B hits, including "Haven't You Heard," "Forget Me Nots," "Feels So Real," "Watch Out," "You Remind Me," and "Never Gonna Give You Up" from her first five albums (Patrice, Pizzazz, Posh, Straight From the Heart, and Now). Rushen also performed her single "I Need Your Love" on the hit show Soul Train in 1981. She also penned the opening theme for The Steve Harvey Show. Her mentor and friend is Quincy Jones. Rushen also plays multiple instruments including flute, piano, percussion, and clarinet.

Samples & Covers

* Her 1982 hit song "Forget Me Nots" has been sampled several times. The most notable has been its inclusion as the driving musical element in Will Smith's "Men In Black," the theme to the 1997 film of the same name. The song won a Grammy, which co-writers Freddie Washington and Terry McFaddin also shared. Also in 1996, "Forget Me Nots" was featured prominently in the bridge of George Michael's #1 hit "Fastlove."

* The 1998 hit "Strawberries" by female rapper Smooth samples "Where There Is Love" from Rushen's 1982 album "Straight From The Heart".

* The uptempo "Haven't You Heard" was sampled prominently into gospel artist Kirk Franklin's 2005 hit "Lookin' 4 U," with gospel lyrics written by Franklin. The song was also interpolated into Zhane's early 90's hit single "Groove Thang."

* R&B singer Musiq Soulchild covered Rushen's "Settle For My Love" as a duet with sibling group Aaries on 2000 debut album "Aijuswanaseing."

*Patrice Rushen's "Remind Me" from her 1982 album "Straight from the Heart" was sampled by 9th Wonder on the remix of "The Cross" from the 9th Wonder remix album, "God's Stepson."

*On her 1995 debut album "Faith", singer-songwriter Faith Evans used a sample from "Remind Me" on the song "Fallin' In Love".

*The 1995 single "Temperature's Rising" from New York rap duo Mobb Deep sampled "Where There Is Love" from Rushen's 1982 album "Straight From The Heart".

*In 1994 Long Beach rapper Lil' ½ Dead released the album The Dead Has Arisen. Track #2 "12 Pacofdoja" contains a sample of "Where There Is Love" from Rushen's 1982 album "Straight From The Heart" modified into the G-Funk style of the era.

Awards

ASCAP Songwriter's Award, 1988; USC Black Student Assembly, Legacy of Excellence Award, 1992; Crystal Award, American Women in Film, 1994; AS CAP Award, Most Performed Song in Motion Pictures for 1997 for "Men in Black," 1998.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Filmography

* Burning Sands (2008) (pre-production)
* For One Night (2006) (TV)
* Just a Dream (2002)
* Our America (2002) (TV)
* Baby of the Family (2002)
* Piano, Bass and Drums (2002 Aix Entertainmen), (DVD Audio)
* The Killing Yard (2001) (TV)
* Fire & Ice (2001) (TV)
* Cora Unashamed (2000) (TV)
* Ruby Bridges (1998) (TV)
* America's Dream (1996) (TV)
* A. Philip Randolph: For Jobs and Freedom (1996) (TV)
* The Steve Harvey Show (1996) TV Series (unknown episodes)
* The Best of Robert Townsend & His Partners in Crime (1991) (TV)
* "The Midnight Hour" (1990) TV Series (unknown episodes)
* Without You I'm Nothing (1990)
* Hollywood Shuffle (1987)
* George Michael: I'm Your Man - A South Bank Show Special (2006) (TV) (writer: "Fastlove")
* Fahrenheit (2005) (VG) (performer: "Hang it Up")
* Men in Black (1997) (writer: "Men In Black")
* Waiting to Exhale (1995) (performer: "And I Gave My Love To You")
* Big (1988) (writer/performer: "FORGET ME NOTS")
* Dominick and Eugene (1988) (performer: "Somewhere")
* TV in Black: The First Fifty Years (2004) (V) Herself
* "VH-1 Where Are They Now?" Herself (1 episode, 2002)
* "100 Greatest Dance Songs of Rock & Roll" (2000) (mini) TV Series Herself
* Monterey Jazz Festival: 40 Legendary Years (1998) (V) Herself (hostess)
* The Best of Robert Townsend & His Partners in Crime (1991) (TV) Herself
* "Top of the Pops" Herself (1 episode, 1982)
* Soul Train Herself (1 episode, 1981)

Musical directing

* The 48th Annual Grammy Awards (2006) (TV) (musical director)
* The 47th Annual Grammy Awards (2005) (TV) (musical director)
* The 10th Annual Walk of Fame Honoring Smokey Robinson (2004) (TV) (musical director)
* The 46th Annual Grammy Awards (2004) (TV) (musical director)
* The 9th Annual Walk of Fame Honoring Aretha Franklin (2003) (TV) (musical director)
* The 8th Annual Walk of Fame Honoring Stevie Wonder (2002) (TV) (musical director)
* The Best of Robert Townsend & His Partners in Crime (1991) (TV) (musical director)
* The Women of Brewster Place (1989) (TV) (special musical consultant)
* The Midnight Hour (1990) TV Series Herself (Musical Director) (unknown episodes, 1990)
* Robert Townsend's HBO variety show series: "Partners in Crime" (1988) (TV) (musical director)

References

*cite web
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first =Ed
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url = http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/rushen_patrice/artist.jhtml
title = Patrice Rushen
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publisher = VH1
language = English
accessdate = 2007-05-09
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External links

* [http://www.patricerushen.com/ Official website] of Patrice Rushen
*
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0750725/] at IMDb