Behold the wonder of people dancing to Too Turned On by Alisha on Dance Party USA back in the day.
Alisha was a Brooklyn teenager when Vanguard Records released “All Night Passion” in 1984, one of the earliest records to carry the sound that would be named freestyle. She recorded “Baby Talk” the following year, and the single topped Billboard’s dance chart while she was still in high school. Read the full Alisha biography.
The radio version of Give In To Me by Monet About Monet Monet’s “My Heart Gets All the Breaks” was the first record on Ligosa, catalog number LIG-501, released in 1987 with production by Mark Liggett and co-production and mixing by Tommy Uzzo. Ligosa was the same New York independent that would later first release…
The official video of Object of My Desire by Starpoint About Starpoint Starpoint came from Maryland as an R&B and funk band years before freestyle existed, led by vocalist Renée Diggs. “Object of My Desire,” released on Elektra in 1985, crossed the band into the dance world that freestyle audiences were building, and the genre’s…
The official video for I Wonder If I Take You Home by Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam About Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam Before freestyle had a name, Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam were already defining its sound. Emerging from Hell’s Kitchen in the mid-80s, the trio—lead vocalist Lisa Velez, guitarist/bassist Alex “Spanador” Moseley, and…
The club version of Honey To A Bee by Tina B About Tina B Tina B worked at the center of New York’s early-80s dance machine, recording with producer Arthur Baker across the years when electro was becoming freestyle. “Honey to a Bee,” released on Elektra in the mid-1980s, became her signature, with the Latin…
The radio version of I’ll Be All You Ever Need by Trinere About Trinere Trinere was Miami freestyle’s leading voice, recording with producer Tony “Pretty Tony” Butler on his Music Specialists label from the mid-1980s. “All Night” and “I Know You Love Me” defined the Miami side of the genre: faster, brighter, and bass-heavier than…
The radio version of What Comes Around Goes Around by Giggles Read a biography of Maria “Giggles” Respeto About Giggles Giggles was born Maria Respeto in Santurce, Puerto Rico, and moved to New York at eleven. She studied performing arts at Lehman College in the Bronx, and Cutting Records released “Love Letter” in the late…