louie's mixtape

a celebration of music (that soundtracked my life) from the 80s, 90s and beyond

[louiesmixtape]

by 1992, freestyle music was fighting for its life on mainstream radio. the vibrant genre that once defined dance floors from the bronx to miami was now competing with house music and hip-hop’s unstoppable rise. still, artists like lisette melendez, arguably the last successful new solo artists of that era, tried to breathe new life into the genre.

signed to a subsidiary of columbia records, lisette released her still influential single “together forever” in late 1990. produced by carlos berrios and written by franc reyes, “together forever” not only reached top 40 on billboard’s hot 100 but it helped to reinvigorated the freestyle genre, which by then had grown stale.

the combination of melendez’s distinctive voice, reyes’ lyrical prowess and berrios’ hip-hop/synth-oriented production, pointed to future of freestyle music. this was evident in melendez’s follow-up single “a day in my life (without you)." similar sounding songs began to flood the market but this trio would prove to be ahead of the curve with lisette’s third single.

“never say never” was released in early 1992 and further evolved the freestyle sound beyond its boring genre tropes by featuring a jazzy/funk horn arrangement by urban blight. melendez’s vocal performance leans more r&b while maintaining the DNA of what made freestyle music. this song grown and sophisticated. this was freestyle with a glass of wine and a silk blouse. sadly, it was freestyle ahead of its time.

despite all of the magic of “never say never”, the song didn’t crack the Billboard Hot 100 and is not as regarded as lisette’s breakthrough top 40 hit “together forever.” but in hindsight, it’s one of the boldest examples of freestyle’s evolution. the song is a reminder that even as freestyle was being pushed off the charts, creatives like lisette melendez, franc reyes, and carlos berrios were still experimenting, still growing, still giving us feelings. radio said freestyle would never change its sound—but lisette declared, never say never. sadly, the world wasn’t ready.

[louiesmixtape]

look. before céline reinvented the vegas residency and gifted us lewks in head-to-toe valentino, she was just a french canadian girl with a dream, a powerful diaphragm, and a name you had to pronounce like “sell-lean.” and baby, she worked for it. lawd knows, it was not easy stepping into a musical landscape where whitney and mariah were still at their zenith.

céline was already an teen superstar in quebec before she signed with epic records and released her debut US album Unison which featured the “bitch, this is a star search climax” (IFYKYK) ballad “where does my heart beat now.”

released in october 1990, the dreamy power ballad “where does my heart beat now” could have easily been a hit for the multiple glam metal hair bands of the 80s who were still scoring hits in 1990 but they would not have been able to close to the stunning vocal performance dion delivered on the song.

17 months before its official release, dion performed the song for the very first time during the 1989 eurovision song contest in switzerland. is it just me or does the into sound similarly to heart’s 1986 power ballad “these dreams?”

“where does my heart beat now” was a slow burner of hit, finally reaching top 5 on both billboard’s hot 100 and adult contemporary chart in march 1991. though the song was the sole notable hit in the US from the Unison albums, the success of “where does my heart beat now” propelled the album to platinum status.

i first heard “where does my heart beat now” on the syndicated radio show future hits. while i liked the song, the music video was… uninspired. i remember thinking, “she can sing, but chyle, she is a bore.” little did i know that just a couple of years later, i’d be all in with her 1992 self-titled album. from there, i—like the rest of the world—watched céline become one of the defining voices of a generation.

[louiesmixtape]

i lived in my imagination. it was the only place i felt safe. applause, standing ovations, pop concerts, and love on demand — all of it lived in the universe i created in my aunt janet’s basement.

that’s where mariah carey found me. i was already living on the edges — queer, rican, poor, and navigating family trauma. but when i heard mariah’s voice for the first time, i didn’t feel alone anymore. yes, it was “vision of love” that introduced me to her, but what followed was more than a single song.

mariah became something closer to a belief system. her music offered not just escape but clarity. her voice — elastic, layered, impossibly emotive — filled every corner of that basement and every hole in my heart.

people laugh or are confused by my devotion to mariah, but i get it, some people just don’t believe in saints like i do. for a gay puerto rican boy who always felt like god had no space for him, divas like mariah were scripture. her albums became doctrine, a roadmap for navigating a world. well, not so much e=mc2, i still cannot get into that album. me to change.

even after all these years — decades now — her presence still anchors me. i’ve lost people. my aunt janet passed away. she was a mariah fan too. when she moved to florida in the ’90s, i’d buy two copies of every mariah album — one for me, one to send to her. we’d use $10 calling cards to dissect each album like it was bible study.

i know it sounds fanatical to some, i still believe (see what i did there?) mariah has carried me — through isolation, shame, violence, loss, and joy. and now, all these years later, i live in the vision of love i used to only dream about.

I Still Believe was first recorded and released in 1988 by brenda k. starr, who mariah sang backup vocals for before landing her own record deal. mariah covered the song for her 1998 #1s compilation as a tribute to brenda, for the role she played in helping mariah land a deal in the late ’80s.

the main video, directed by brett ratner, was inspired by marilyn monroe’s 1953 performance for U.S. troops in korea. the ballad version was produced by mariah and stevie j., whom she had collaborated with for her 1997 album Butterfly.

notable remixes of the song were the David Morales dance mix, and the Damizza Remix, which interpolated Pure Imagination from the Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory film.

mariah’s cover of I Still Believe peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of march 20, 1999, becoming her 19th top 5 hit.

[louiesmixtape]

in the spring of 1997, i was trying to mend my first broken heart. i was devastated. so much so, that i ran away to orlando, florida to physically get away from everything that reminded me of him. i still thought of him every moment but being with my late mother and my late aunt janet helped provide some reprieve.

it always during this visit (or escape) that i first heard “quit playing games with my heart” by the backstreet boys, “mmm bop” by hanson, “da dip” by freak nasty and “return of the mack” by mark morrison. all these songs became massive hits on billboard’s hot 100 by the summer of 1997 and even now still reverberate through contemporary pop music. but there was one song that entered my life during that period that did not achieve the success i think it so deserved.

signed to motown records in the mid-90s, r&b quartet shades released their debut single “tell me (i’ll be around) in june 1996. the quartet formed while students at northeastern university in boston originally consisted of tiffany, monique, danielle and shannon.

the group issued their second single “serenade,” which sampled spandau ballet’s 1993 hit “true,” so lovingly i might add, in may 1997.co-written by shades and billy lawrence (who should have massive pop star!), “serenade” was a sophisticated blend of pop and r&b produced by darell “delite” allamby.

unfortunately, even with a stunning video directed by X, the turmoil motown was going through, impacted the promotion of “serenade” resulting in a #88 peak on billboard’s hot 100. another reason could be that the music landscape was rapidly shifting away from r&b groups to more pop oriented acts. even en vogue failed to score notable hits on their summer of 1997 return.

i bought shades’ self-titled debut album on the strength of “serenade.” the song remains one of my fave pop/r&b songs of the decade. i think it is a perfect song for a girl group. and i STILL feel it works perfectly as both a pop and r&b track.

after my visit to orlando, i returned to philadelphia fully expected to move to florida. but I got hired at colours, a Black LGBTQ org and stayed in philly. everything worked out.

[louiesmixtape]

if this were the late 1980s, i’d say, “liza is the bomb!” but since it’s 2025 and the collapse of democracy, ima go with m, “liza is that gurl!”

i grew up in a household where divas were celebrated and miss liza minnelli was one of those divas. that is not to say my mother was blasting her albums, BUT she loved liza as woman who was always persevering. and while liza was an accomplished actress, singer and performer with an academy, tony and emmy award to prove it, it was her public struggles with addiction and her multiple “comebacks” that made her a much beloved, like her late mother judy garland, a queer icon.

by the late 1980s, liza was leaning even more into her queer fanbase when she teamed up with the pet shop boys for her disco-thumping album “results.”

produced entirely by the pet shop boys, “results” was liza’s foray into high-energy synth-pop. the result - see what i did there? - was a surprisingly catchy collection of contemporary dance tracks that incorporated liza’s brand of camp and theatrical flair.

the album generated four singles including “don’t drop bombs.” released exclusively in europe in september 1989 as the album’s second single, “don’t drop bombs” charted in the UK, just missing the top 40. the single was not released in the US but found success within the queer club circuit as an import.

i am enthralled by both the “don’t drop bombs” song and the music video. it is flamboyant, funny, and fiercely performed by a diva who’s legacy spans over several decades. the “results” album may have been a quirky footnote in liza’s career, but for some of us, it’s an absolute treasure. and you know what? in my house, this album is still the bomb.

[louiesmixtape]

by the late 1980s, the pop music landscape was flooded by pop/dance artists who did not necessarily contribute anything unique to the dance and synthesized sound dominating radio. this ain’t no shade. this is fact. but in the spring of 1988, miss vanessa lynn williams descended from the R&B and pop heavens and gifted us all her debut album, the aptly titled, The Right Stuff.

when the album’s titled track dropped as the first single, i said, “oh ok! she is not playin’” and by the time she gave us the smooth and sultry ballad Dreamin’, i went out and bought the album. fun fact: The Right Stuff was the third album i purchased with my own money as kid. right behind karyn white and paula abdul’s debut albums. MY TASTE! 👌🏽

but then, my good sis gave us Darlin’ I and whew, my fandom was signed, sealed and delivered! this was miss williams letting us know she could deliver R&B/pop bops like the other gurlies, but she was also VOCALIST! that rich, buttery alto, caressing every lyric like that swells into the beautiful harmonies in the chorus! THIS HERE IS WHY QUIET STORM RADIO REIGNED SUPREME!

the vintage black-and-white aesthetic of the Darlin I music video is why it is STILL my fave vanessa visual. the red lip (i know it was red, don’t play with me), the pin curls? it was a timeless beauty in the spirits of lena horne and dorothy dandridge. i could go on.

Darlin’ I stalled at #88 on billboard’s hot 100 but proved more successful at Black radio reaching #10 on the hot Black singles chart in the summer of 1989.

as with most songs i post on here, Darlin’ I harks me back to a time when we moved into a house after years of living in a single bedroom. i remember this song playing as i was rushing up the steps to my room. such a random memory that conjures up so many feelings. but i suppose this is the power of music and the lasting impact of a songstress that many thought wouldn’t even score a single hit.

vanessa, darlin’ i am still blown away by you!

[louiesmixtape]

ya know, i have always been fascinated by the US chart success of cathy dennis as a solo artist. like, her music videos were in rotation on MTV and VH-1 - no small accomplishment for a dance artist in 1990, extensive airplay at top 40 radio and a f*ckin’ appearance on the oprah winfrey show. and yet, she is seldom included in conversations about pop music of the early 90s. like how and why? i have come up with three reasons why i think this is the case.

1. timing! the 90s are largely remembered as the decade when hip-hop and country music eclipsed pop music in sales and how hair metal was obliterated by grunge. and while those things came to define the decade, they didn’t take hold until a few years in. this meant that pop artists like cathy are remembered as remains of the 80s.

2. pop/dance artists are often dismissed! dance music has always been dismissed as a “one-hit wonder” faceless and producer-driven genre. it was the context of this cultural sentiment that cathy achieved success. and while this should have made her even more notable in the pop music cultural memory, i think her success is regarded as “luck” and something that could have only happened during the same time c+c music factory rose to prominence.

3. she wasn’t paula or janet. now, before you think i am being shady, i am not. i loved cathy’s image. no one rocked rad hair and a catsuit better than her, but her music videos were not highly choreographed events. and in 1990, this is what made you a pop/dance diva. so while cathy had a presence at MTV, she is not remembered as a performer but rather regarded as the “person who sings that song.”

i could be off base. but this is what i know—cathy dennis scored four consecutive top 10 hits in billboard’s hot 100 in the span of 18 months beginning in march 1990 with “c’mon and get my love” and commending in september 1991 with the whimsical pop gem “too many walls.” she didn’t land in the top 40 a final time in 1992 with “you lied to me” but then she was gone just like another dream.

but i remember.

[louiesmixtape]

“little” louie vega and kenny “dope” gonzalez helped shape dance and house music in the 1990s as masters at work. the duo drew upon their puerto rican cultural heritage to merge the rhythms of salsa, jazz, soul, and disco, creating a sound that transcended boundaries and set dance floors on fire. i mean their 1991 single “the ha dance” is STILL a staple for vogue categories at Black and Latinx balls.

india, one of the most prolific vocalists of the last 50 years, began her career as a latin-freestyle artist scoring her first dance hit in 1988 with the fiery “dancing on the fire.” by the mid-90s, she had successfully pivoted to salsa music and was a mainstay on the dance chart with her collaborations with masters at work including the “i can’t get no sleep.”

in 1997, india was featured on vega and gonzalez’s fusion project nuyorican soul. this effort was an opportunity to bring together iconic musicians from various genres, such as the late tito puente, george benson, roy ayers, and jocelyn brown and india.

the nuyorican soul album was proceeded by the disco/funk-flavored single “runaway”featuring india. the original version of “run away,” by the salsoul orchestra featuring loleatta holloway, reached #3 on the billboard’s disco chart in 1977. nuyorican soul’s cover featuring india topped billboard’s dance chart in march 1997 and reached #77 on the r&b singles chart.

janet jackson has cited nuyorican soul’s cover of “runaway” as an inspiration for the pop/disco sound of her single “together again.” makes sense because their version of “runaway” is a masterclass in reimagining a disco classic for a new generation.

[louiesmixtape]

by the mid-1970s, donna summer had firmly established herself as a pop and dance music icon. crowned the “queen of disco,” summer’s innovative artistry redefined the sound of the pop music, blending soulful vocals with pulsating dance rhythms.

“winter melody” was released as the second single from summer’s 1976 concept album, four seasons of love. co-written by summer and produced by giorgio moroder and pete bellotte, “winter melody” is a lush and cinematic soulful ballad with a tinge of a disco rhythm.

“winter melody” reached top 30 on billboard’s r&b singles chart and just missed the pop top 40 peaking at #43.

donna summer elevated disco to an art form, proving that the genre could be innovative, emotional, and enduring. summer was more than just the voice behind club anthems. she had the ability to infuse emotional depth into her music was unmatched—a talent she showcased beautifully on the often-overlooked gem “winter melody.”

happy heavenly belated birthday, miss summer.

[louiesmixtape]

we didn’t grow up celebrating the holidays the way i saw on TV sitcoms. my mother didn’t bake cookies, and we didn’t drink coquito. we didn’t decorate a tree or put up colorful lights. chyle, i didn’t even know what a parranda was until I was well into my 20s. my mother, who was essentially estranged from her family, didn’t have any traditions to pass down. so christmas and every damn holiday were like tuesdays and thursdays—we just got through them. the saving grace was that we got through them together.

but what was constant in our house was music, and by default, christmas songs were in the background. songs like RUN DMC’s “christmas in hollis,” new edition’s “it’s christmas (all over the world) and alexander o’neal’s “my gift to you.”

“my gift to you” is the title track from alexander o’neal’s first and only christmas album released in november 1988. by the late 1980s, o’neal was an established star in R&B with hits like “fake,” “criticize,” and the timeless duet, “saturday love”with cherrelle.

written and produced by o’neal’s longtime collaborators jimmy jam & terry lewis, “my gift to you” is a slow-burning christmas ballad that centers on love, gratitude, and emotional connection while highlighting every reason why alexander o’neal is national treasure.

while not officially released as a single, “my gift to you” garnered extensive rotation at R&B radio and remains a holiday fixture.

[louiesmixtape]

akron, ohio native Chris butler wrote and produced “I know what boys like” for a band, he imagined called the waitresses. His vision came to fruition after meeting patti donahue, and the song was recorded in 1978. the song would be released two years later on ZE records, and butler assembled a band with donahue as lead singer.

“i know what boys like,” while not a major pop hit, did provide the band enough buzz to tour throughout the US IN 1981. during this time, the label asked the band to contribute a song to a Christmas complication entitled “Christmas records.” far from being excited by the request, the band begrudgingly recorded “christmas wrapping.”

written by butler, “christmas wrapping,” which title pays homage to kurtis blow’s 1979 holiday song, “christmas rapping,” is a tongue-in-cheek narrative about a woman who skips the holiday frenzy and serendipitously connects with the guy she has been chasing all year long.

“christmas wrapping” became the first song for the waitresses to garner significant radio airplay in the US in late 1981. the label then re-released “i know what boys like” in early 1982. it would reach #62 on billboard Hot 100.

the waitresses disbanded in 1984, but their legacy endures. over four decades later, “christmas wrapping” song is a holiday staple. for a song created almost begrudgingly, “christmas wrapping” is a reminder that sometimes, the most enduring classics come from the most unexpected places—and that even the grumpiest among us can find a little holiday magic.

[louiesmixtape]

i love it when a song leaves me feeling excited and glad to be alive. yes, that can sound a bit hyperbolic and dramatic, but i sincerely love the moments when i realize how grateful i am to exist in the same space and time as something really great. is that still too much? oh, well.

my love for latin-freestyle came long after its social capital as a sub-genre of dance music fizzled. in my puerto rican and Black neighborhood, sounds of cynthia, johnny o., george lamond and stevie b. were ubiquitous, so i was pretty familiar with the genre’s most popular acts. i just didn’t care for it. but look at me now!

i am still waiting for a latin-freestyle music renaissance. i thought it would come in 2003 when kelis included the very freestyle-flavored “protect my heart” on her album “tasty.” perhaps it was just too soon before the dance explosion at pop radio. since then, artists like anthony ramos, maluca, mnek, kelela, and frankie j, who began his career as a freestyle artist, have all released songs that were rooted in the latin freestyle ethos. still, no damn renaissance. but i am patient.

so, back to my excitement! maybe you have asked yourself why. or not. i'll still tell you! ha!

a few days ago, i heard” speed it up” by junior sanchez featuring lauren hashian, and i was legit blown away. it was like a treasure had been shared with me. as soon as the breakbeat began and hashian’s dazzling vocals kicked in, i was like, “my gawd, this is good!” the bridge, the hook, the break—i mean, everything.

“speed it up” is what the latin-freestyle genre needs. it’s a throwback to the sounds of louie vega, todd terry and mantronik. still, it is also in concert with the vulnerable hyper-pop dominating today’s music landscape. and bearing witness to this is exciting.

music excites me. and a good song always makes me feel like anything is possible. even a latin-freestyle renaissance. so if the universe hears me - speed it up!

[louiesmixtape]

pajama party was a trio, (and i used that loosely because members changed as often as they released singles), from new york. their 1989 debut single “yo no se” became a club hit peaking at #34 on the dance chart and #75 on the hot 100. it was the first and only freestyle song with an all-spanish title to chart on any billboard chart.

the group’s follow-up, was my absolute fave, “over and over,” a track originally recorded by brenda k. starr. That single bested their previous chart peak and reached #59 in late 1989. not a bad showing for a new freestyle group that was essentially faceless and without a music video.

by the start of 1990, pajama party’s third single, “hide & seek” leaned more pop in its original form. to ensure the group kept its club appeal, the single was remixed by the production and remix duo clivilles & cole. not that anyone asked, but I prefer the album version.

“hide & seek” became the pajama party’s third consecutive club and crossover radio hit. It would climb to #33 on billboard’s club chart and peak at #73 for two weeks on the hot 100 on late march 1990.

pajama party released one more album in 1991 but by then, freestyle had lost ground at both crossover radio and nightclub DJ playlists. The album yielded no hits, and the group would experience YET another line-up change soon after its release before disbanding in 1992.

pajama party are probably most remembered by freestyle music megafans. but their vibe was unlike their contemporaries sweet sensation, the cover girls and seduction. pajama party’s style and vibe was close to the quirky UK trio bananarama. who knows what could have happened if they had better management and if the freestyle music era had lasted just a few more years. yo no sé.🤷🏽‍♂️

[louiesmixtape]

my memories of the cover girls are sporadic. i was not initially a fan upon their debut, but their music was everywhere in 1987. i remember seeing a cassette of their debut album lying around my grandmother’s living room. i looked at the album cover and was intrigued because they were a girl group and i LOVED girl groups. they looked so glamorous, ya know like, cover girls!

two years later, we were living in the same house. my grandmother had moved out of the house following the death of her youngest son, my uncle, francisco. so my mother moved us into the house, and it was in that same living room that i first heard, “my heart skips a beat”

released as the lead single from their sophomore album, “we can’t go wrong,” the infectious “my heart skips a beat” was produced by david cole and robert clivilles, the duo behind the group’s pop top 30 hit, “because of you.”

“my heart skips a beat” found success at club level, reaching #4 on billboard’s dance chart. the song also continued the group’s success at crossover radio, propelling the single into the top 40 on billboard’s hot 100.

when the song was initially released, i liked it enough. i wasn’t a huge freestyle fan but the hook is inescapable. of course, all these years later, it has become one of my favorite songs in the freestyle genre. angel’s lead vocal performance and adlib flourishes towards the end of the song, always make my heart skip a beat. too corny? so!

the cover girls, at least this iteration of the group, would score a top 10 hit in early 1990 with the ballad, “we can’t go wrong.” the group then experienced some line-up changes and in 1992, scored their final pop top 10 hit with their cover of the rose royce hit “wishing on a star.”

[louiesmixtape]

sweet sensation was one of my favorite girl groups of the late 1980s and 1990. their brand of freestyle/pop music appealed to me even during the years when the genre made my ears bleed.

as a new york-based trio, sweet sensation made history as one of the first freestyle girl groups to chart on the hot 100. their debut single, “hooked on you,” peaked at #64 in early 1987, paving the way for a string of hits, including the 1988 top-20 pop hit, “sincerely yours.” these successes helped their debut album reach gold status, selling over 500,000 copies.

striking while the pan was hot, sweet sensation swiftly released their sophomore album,” love child,” in the spring of 1990. the lead single, a cover of the supremes’ 1968 hit, “love child,” was an immediate crossover hit. although the production boasted a more sleek and polished pop sound, the overall fundamentals of their version was still rooted in freestyle.

despite their success, sweet sensation, like many freestyle artists, faced challenges in the industry. their cover of “love child” climbed to #13 on billboard’s hot 100, a remarkable feat for a freestyle song. however, their music videos rarely rotation at MTV. even in 1990, after the monumental success of gloria estefan, the industry still struggled with where to place latinx artists who sang in english, often leaving these acts in a kind of musical genre limbo.

sweet sensation’s time in the spot light was brief. their follow-up single, the very poppy “each and every time” (which i loved!), stalled at #59 on the pop chart. and while the song was remixed for a the club, it failed to make a dent on the dance floor, further alienating their core fan base. by 1992, the group dissolved leaving lead singer better lebron as the last original member standing. and oh yeah, by the end of 1992, the freestyle music era was declared over! dead! done! RIP!

in hindsight, sweet sensation’s decision to cover “love child” is both interesting and courageous. latin freestyle, in terms of lyrical content, was always apolitical so choosing to cover a song about delaying sex and teenage pregnancy was not the norm. kudos to them!

[louiesmixtape]

the early 1990s were a hotbed of girl groups, especially in the latin freestyle genre. groups like exposé, sweet sensation and the cover girls remain the most successful and remembered of the era, but let me submit an honorable mention: laissez faire.

laissez faire originally formed in 1989 with three members: maria, sharon and lisa. their debut single “after the lovin’” generated a buzz in the west coast, but the original line-up dissolved quickly. but knowing that a girl group was freestyle gold, independent label metropolitan records held auditions to rebuild laissez faire.

three young women from new york, gina, margo and former club MTV dancer, jennifer, were selected as the final interaction of laissez faire.

In the summer of 1991, laissez faire released the bubbly “in paradise.” written and produced by joey gold “in paradise” achieved moderate success on billboard’s hot 100, peaking at #64 in february 1992. a respectable showing for a latin freestyle track from a independent label. what was also notable about “in paradise” was that a music video was produced to support the single. this was significant for freestyle acts, even those on major labels. unfortunately, music videos by most dance artists were largely ignored by MTV.

by the start of 1992, laissez faire were arguably the “it” and most gaudy (I love it!) freestyle girl group. exposé were on hiatus, sweet sensation disbanded, and when the cover girls re-emerged later that summer, it was with a ballad. so when laissez faire released their third single, the slammin’ “to be in your arms” (my favorite), they were filling a void left by the aforementioned groups.

laissez faire released their only album “hands off” in late 1992. two more singles followed, the catchy pop/house track “round & round” and “swept away.” had the freestyle music era not been in such a tailspin, the group could have achieved even more success. their album track “tuesday’s gone” was a glimpse of where freestyle music could have gone sonically.

[louiesmixtape]

fifty years ago in november 1974, the pointer sisters were just beginning to make their indelible mark on pop music when they became the first Black vocal group to perform at the legendary grand ole opry in nashville, tennessee. a few months later, in early 1975, the sisters would take home the grammy for best country vocal by duo or group. these monumental achievements were the result of a twangy country ballad that proved that the four sister family vocal group could cross genre boundaries.

the pointer sisters, which initially consisted of ruth, bonnie, anita and june, scored their first hit in 1973 with the black liberation funk-anthem “yes we can can.” a year later, they released their sophomore album “that’s a plenty” which included the bonnie and anita penned country weaper, “fairytale.”

“fairytale” was originally released as the b-side to their single “love in there them hills.” but when “love” failed to generate interest at pop and r&b radio, “fairytale” was pitched to country music stations. and to the surprise of many, the song achieved respectable success, reaching #37 on billboard’s country music chart. this helped “fairytale” crossover to pop radio and propelled the single to #13 on the hot 100.

“fairytale” garnered acclaim within the country music, and in november 1974, the pointer sisters made history by becoming the first Black group to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, a testament to the song’s impact in country music.

the pointer sisters further solidified their prominence when “fairytale” won the grammy award for best country vocal by a duo or group in 1975. they remain the only Black group to win this category.

in 1994, the pointer sisters contributed to the album “rhythm, country and blues,” a collection of duets between r&b and country singers. the album topped the country chart and was nominated for the country music association award for album of the year.