Whenever his name is on the top of the marquee you can be certain whomever is accompanying him on his tour will knock your socks off. If Wilson is the headliner you never have to question who’s going to open the show.
You talked briefly about your staying power. Some of them even started getting bands to back them up. It was a new form of expression and that’s how they came in the game. I didn’t care that they were using turntables because when I saw hip-hop first come in, I would just watch those guys do their thing. Actually that’s what a lot of the guys around me used to point out… that the rappers didn’t play instruments. How shocking was it to see these young rap artists show up onstage with just a pair of turntables and a microphone?
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They learned how to take hold of a crowd and not just use the song to entertain.Ī lot of the R&B bands back then were dismissive of hip-hop acts because they didn’t play instruments.
Doug just took it all in and absorbed all the things we were doing onstage. They actually picked up a lot from being on the road with Gap, Zapp, and Parliament. Let me tell you something about Doug…when they released, it was a wrap after that! But we had a good time with those guys. I remember going on the road with Doug E. Did you guys share the perception of the majority of your peers that hip-hop was just a fad? My brother was incredible.ĭuring the height of the Gap Band in the early 80s, rap groups were starting to tour with R&B and funk acts. Before my brother passed, we were talking about doing a Gap Band reunion. But now I can understand what Janet, Randy, Tito and all those guys were going through. I watched the Jacksons lose Michael a year ago and I was one of millions of people witnessing that tragic loss. You can hear it on “Yearning For Your Love.” Everybody was trying to figure out how he played those low notes, but he played his bass like it was a guitar with a lot of vibrato. My brother used to tune his four-string bass down so low and go deep on the songs. He was the other frontman who was just as powerful. I had to duck his bass just about every live show we did because he was so energetic he would spin on you in a minute. When you listen to all those Gap Band hits like “Burn Rubber” and “Outstanding” you hear that bottom. What did he mean to the legacy of the Gap Band? People are finally starting to acknowledge his influence as a songwriter and a bassist. Your brother Robert recently passed away. You want to have someone like that in your corner. Sometimes she tells me what licks to sing on my songs.
She’s the one who told me when we got married 15 years ago, “Hey, I’m going to show you that we are going back to the top.” She did not let up on me when I didn’t have the belief in myself to She’s my anchor. When we were writing that song I was thinking about Michelle Obama and how she stuck by her man from their college days all the way to the Senate and all the way to the White House. It’s going to be the wedding song of the millennium. This particular single, “You Are,” is basically about a strong man who has the support of a stronger woman. I’ve been in the studio with everyone from Snoop Dogg to Kanye West. VIBE: You are set to release a new single (“You Are”) going into nearly 40 years in the music business both as a member of the Gap Band and as a solo artist? Are you amazed that a new generation of hip-hop artists and R&B fans have embraced you?Ĭharlie Wilson: It’s been amazing to know that I’m still wanted.
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